Neighborhood Highlights

Ginza, Tokyo

High-End Shopping & Entertainment

Tokyo’s Park Avenue, if you will. Ginza is where all the ladies who lunch come to do just that. Where the metallic wavy architecture of the Louis Vuitton building is only as striking as the revolving installations that magically adorn every high end store front multiple times a month. Overnight.

Keep your eyes open; there’s a lot to see.

When it comes to food, there are so many options for cuisines at every imaginable price point, including all of your must eats from the Japanese food list. However, you have better destinations for them than Ginza. The place I would suggest you seek out for their tasting menu experience is Spice Lab Tokyo; you won’t get anything like it anywhere else.

Otherwise, if you find yourself in Ginza looking for a meal, check out one of my spots below. However do not be discouraged by long wait times even if plenty of tables appear to be empty. You should have made a reservation.

Your best bet (and one of my Tokyo favorites!) is to head to the Ginza Food Garden in the basement of the Mitsukoshi building, load up on snacks, and find a cool place somewhere on the block to enjoy your meal with a show. I suggest one of the many areas within the train station, or better yet the rooftop of the Ginza 6 building.

Do note that there are some really fantastic cocktail bars that are worth looking out for.

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Favorites Around the Area

  • Undoubtedly lacking in interesting coffee shops, I ended up drinking more Starbucks than I care to admit. 

    • In the basement of the GEMS building, located in the parking garage, is the SONY mini gallery and cafe. It’s super mini as the name suggests, always has a mad cool art installation (they change like every 2-3 weeks) and serves a nice espresso. Bonus, they use Minor Figures oat milk!

  • Advise you make a reservation for all options and do not be surprised by the seat charge. It’s fairly negligible and some snacks are included upon seating. I live for the French onion soup sips.

    • Bar Orchard

    • Bar Mori

    • Little Smith 

    • The Grey Room 

    • Mixology Salon 

    • Bar High Five

    • Ginza Hachigo (Michelin-Star)

    • Fugu-dashi Ushio Hachidaime Keisuke (blowfish ramen - very rare)

    • Tanakaya (Soba restaurant) in Matsuya Department

    • Sister location at 6 Chome-6-19 Ginza, Chuo City, Tokyo 104-0061, Japan

    • Standing Sushi Nemuro (Standing room, a la carte)

    There are tons of other options but not any worth your time or money if you have time to eat a fabulous sushi meal elsewhere!

    • Sanshuya Izakaya (old school, solid food)

    There are many other izakayas throughout Ginza, however most of them are cheap, quick fixes with poor quality. Fine if you need a late night place to hang and drink cheap highballs and beer with midlevel eats.

  • Sandwiches

    • American

    • There’s a sandwich stop under the GEMS building that’s right outside the entrance to the parking garage on the B1 floor. It’s solid ~ you can really tell the difference between this and a 711 sandwich. Look for the entrance to Tokyu Plaza on this level and you’ll find it

    • Ginza Food Garden in the Ginza Mitsukoshi (best)

    • Matsuya Ginza (ok)

    • Spice Lab Tokyo (High-End

    • Bangera’s Kitchen

    • Kitatde Tacos

    • Peninsula 

    • Four Seasons Otemachi 

    • The Tokyo EDITION, Ginza

    • Hyatt Centric 

    • Kabuki-Za Theatre

    • Ginza 5 Department Store 

    • Itoya Stationary Store

    • Muji Hotel + Flagship 

    • The Underworld of Tokyo Station 

    • Marunouchi Business District 

Neighborhood Gem

Ginza 6

The Ginza 6 Shopping center is undoubtedly my favorite stop in the neighborhood. While others might head there for luxury goods, I’m there to enjoy the magnitude of thought behind creating this destination, mixed-use experience.

Take in the roving art galleries that are incorporated throughout and do check out the bookstore. It’s tough to find English titles, however you will come across some gems. Don’t miss the roof top garden — it’s a lovely green space to take in views of the city.

F&B highlights include Mixology Salon and a really fantastic Family Mart on the ground floor. There’s an Eately in there as well.

Congratulations to my friend’s at Sumitomo corporation and their partners for creating a gem.

Modern Indian Fine Dining

Tasting Menu Highlight

Spice Lab Tokyo

I worked with this team for two years and enjoyed seven iterations of Chef’s tasting menus. From development of each dish to their tasteful execution, the food here is solid.

Indian food is widespread in Japan but limited to very casual, mostly curry and naan houses. There are a few that offer a slightly more regional take but what Chef Tejas and team are doing is next level. They use seasonal Japanese ingredients to recreate dishes from all over the sub-continent, usually with a signature biryani as the last savory offering. The dal makhani is my favorite - anywhere in the world.

With coursed menus at both lunch and dinner, you certainly will not be disappointed by the food, as long as you’re not a stickler for authentic preparations. Go with an open mind an equally empty stomach.

Ideal for a business meeting, a solo pensive tasting menu, date night, or a fun and fancy group meal out.

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