When one thinks “Tokyo”, immediately futuristic technology, enormous Sony Trinitron screens, Hello Kitty and “Lost in Translation” come to mind. While these images are truly a part of the Japanese urban landscape, a new neighborhood in Tokyo has recently begun to sprout, offering a respite from the overwhelming cacophony of noise, lights and Harajuku girls.
Naka Meguro, until recently, was a quiet upper middle class residential neighborhood, hugging the banks of the Megurogawa River, a small winding canal that runs parallel with the punctual subway line. Modern, tidy apartment buildings and tiny traditional houses line the cobblestoned lane, which is divided by the canal and dripping with blooming cherry blossom trees. Seeing an opportunity to capitalize on the calm and coolness of the neighborhood—not to mention the bulging wallets of the residents—shops, restaurants and galleries began to pop up, and soon it became the “it” place to be.
Sunday is the perfect day to visit and stroll Naka Meguro, as the streets are cheek to jowl with locals enjoying the sunshine and parading their costumed dogs around the river. Yes, costumed dogs. Naka Meguro has more pet clothing stores than children’s clothing stores, and clearly, these miniature pups are spoiled rotten. Teacup Yorkies and their counterparts are pushed in decorated prams, when not on polka dotted leather leashes that coordinate with their hooded sweatshirts. The best place to watch this parade of humorous insanity is to park yourself at the café tables at Snobbish Babies, a restaurant-cum-doggie fashion emporium. Luckily for us humans, the food served here is good—curries, rice dishes and an array of salads all at 1000 Yen (at current exchange rates, approximately $10). Slowly sip a coffee and keep your camera handy.
Shopping is the chosen religion of Japan, and it’s likely that anyone visiting will find themselves quickly bowing at the altar of consumerism. It’s difficult not to, simply because the Japanese have an incredible way of making the simple and ordinary look so excruciatingly beautiful. Perfection and attention to detail are what makes these people tick. Each store is a vision, homage to an idea, a thought and a creation, and nothing is left unfinished or unfussed over. Stop in at Research General Store to witness the evidence firsthand. This men’s store, scented with cedar chips to instantly set a mood, is L.L. Bean-by-way-of-Japan and has immaculately crafted hunting jackets (approx $500) that would make Mr. Bean himself proud (and envious). Rucksacks, embroidered chambray shirts and perfectly executed jeans would turn a mountain man into an urban poser in about 5 seconds flat.
The Japanese have perfected the art of repackaging and re-envisioning Americana and somehow making it look cooler than the original. The Jean Nassaus store, a few steps away from Research General Store, has recreated the surf’s-up, life’s-a-beach Hawaiian ideal and fused it implausibly—but adorably– with Little House on the Prairie. Women’s dresses, skirts, and hoodies are designed with loving details—calico drawstrings on beachy, casual, easy-breezy cotton dresses (starting at $85) add a certain innocence and charm to something you’d pass over at a thrift shop in So Cal. Faux surfer tees ($50), trimmed in delicate lace, have just the right distress to make them seem real, well loved and lived in, without the wrinkles. Jewelry is funky, slightly bohemian and yet, very now and super trendy. Rounding out the assortment are soft leather ankle boots ($150) and oversized totes ($85), perfect for a day at the North Shore.
Books and reading are a national pastime in Japan. Walk by any book store at any time of the day in Tokyo and you will see five people deep huddled around the shelves, noses buried in the latest novel or a new Manga book. Cow Books, up the street from Jean Nassaus, is a peaceful retreat celebrating the written word. Flashing on the wall on an electronic ticket tape, a mantra repeats ‘BOOKS BLESS YOU’ over and over again. Curated and artfully arranged—of course—hard to find coffee table books of fashion photography and art are displayed like fine paintings in a chic gallery. A selection of vintage books, mostly in English, is showcased behind glass doors, but begs to be opened and gawked at. Strange and unusual trinkets are for sale on a long minimalist table in the center of the small shop and a bulletin board on the wall announces up coming readings, gallery shows and other events in the area.
Japanese are hobby enthusiasts. Everyone’s got one, and they’re very serious about them. And buttons, beads and charms have their very own cathedral/shop in Naka Meguro for crafters, and it’s called & Stripe. Across the canal from Cow books, this is a DIY-ers paradise. The astonishing selection of handmade buttons (skulls, anchors, shoes, bells, lacquered bows, cats; the assortment is endless), various charms in a variety of finishes and colors, plastic and ceramic beads of every color and shape imaginable are all for sale here, however, not cheaply. (Some of the larger styles and more intricate designs can go for $20 a piece.) Since it is Japan, the shop is set up like a vintage apothecary—each style is housed in an impeccable white box that slides neatly into the wall. Tables are adorned with the necessary add-ons for whatever you’re creating—hair elastics, leather thongs, ribbons—but this is no Karol’s Krafts at the mall. This is a museum to creation.
With all this shopping, it’s important to re-energize and eat. And there’s no shortage of lovely cafes that surround the canal. Mother Esta (2-20-14 Aobadai, Meguro-ku) is a charming French-style bistro with an organic tilt. As is the norm in Tokyo, the choices are endless and on the menu is a selection of 40 different fresh, in-season vegetables one can choose from to have a curry or salad custom made(salad is about it $24; curry, $16). Natural yeast bread, hot, delicious and tasty, accompanies your order. Risottos and pasta dishes are also offered, as well as a huge selection of French wines.
Italian restaurants are all over Japan, perhaps because of the obvious connection between noodles and pasta. And a great one, Trattoria Naturale Dall’Orto, on the west bank of the canal, serves up a huge (of course) assortment of brick-oven cooked pizzas to enjoy in the outdoor seating area overlooking the cherry blossoms. Pasta dishes of all sorts are also served and a set lunch menu with salad and dessert is a relative bargain at approximately $18. Finish it off with a perfectly prepared cappuccino.
Japanese love sweets. Cakes are practically worshipped here and every famous French bakery has at least one—if not six—outposts in Tokyo to feed the need. Drole, a tiny shop tucked behind a women’s clothing store, just down the lane from Trattoria Naturale Dall’Orto, is a quiet oasis to all things sugary. Cakes, pies, cookies and tarts are served up in this charming and simple little establishment, where ladies-who-lunch sit about in their perfectly pressed jeans and cashmere tees and talk about their kids (or dogs). Naturally, the tea selection here is vast.
Beer is good in Japan and they drink it with abandon, particularly men with their office buddies after a long day’s work. Bonny Butterfly, a corner bar and Western restaurant, stays open nightly til 4AM, keeping customers busy with the loud jukebox music and numerous dart boards that line the wall. Beer served in plastic cups and lively (and drunken) conversation makes this joint collegiate and youthful and loads of fun. Food is secondary, but after a few Asahis, who can say no to a burger or a taco? Taco plates, approximately $10.
Finally, at the north end of the canal, crossing Komazawa Street, is the ultimate establishment in all things well designed, artful, deliberate, beautiful and utterly Japanese: Bals Tokyo. Bals Tokyo, despite the bizarre and nonsensical name, is an emporium to home furnishings, beauty, gadgets and sports equipment. While the mix may seem odd, somehow, because it is Tokyo, when presented together, makes perfect sense. Showcased on the first floor are products by a local company called Amadana, which deserves to win a Pulitzer Prize for Creating Beautiful Covetable Things that are Normally Boring and Mundane. A blow dryer looks like it should be on the wall at MOMA. Their toaster ovens are swoon-worthy. Their mobile phones make the iPhone look like yesterday’s news. Calculators, refrigerators, mixers, vacuums—all of Amadana’s products are works of art. Can a fridge fit into your suitcase? Saunter over through the rest of the store to ogle stuff that will. An enormous display of beauty products from the world over—some familiar, others not—are lined up in perfect, symmetrical arrangements and begging to be sampled. Artificial flowers, elsewhere cheap and ugly, here are stunningly gorgeous and can definitely fit into the overhead compartment. The upstairs houses furniture that won’t, but still needs to be ogled. Bicycles are displayed and it’s hard to imagine a bike being called “extraordinary”, but again, here, they are. Home gym equipment is for sale, as well, and certainly not the type of stuff that will be covered in dirty clothes and wet towels. Just because you won’t ever want to leave Bals Tokyo, there’s a café and a hair salon on the lower level. Put aside an entire day and you won’t regret it.
The country in Japan is 81.
Visas are not required to visit Japan. Taxis from the airport into central Tokyo will cost you upwards of $200; buses run from the airport to all major hotels and cost $30 each way. The bus reservation kiosk is easily found right as you exit customs. A bus trip will take approximately 1 1/2 hours into Tokyo from Narita.
Do not expect many fluent English speakers in Tokyo. Be prepared to pantomime and be patient.
Where to Stay:
Claska Hotel is a new hotel in Naka Meguro that is part hotel, part inn, part gallery space, and very, very chic. Rooms start at approximately $130 and go up to $800. 011-81-03-3719-8121; www.claska.com
Where to Eat:
Mother Esta:
healthy, beautiful and downright delicious. 011-81-03-5724-5778; www.mother-esta.com
Trattoria Naturale Dall’Orto: crowd pleasing pizzas, pastas and terrific wines. 011-81-03-6801-7693; www.dallorto.jp
What to See:
Bals Tokyo:
a spectacle of Japanese perfection, pride and high design. 011-81-03-5773-5500; www.balstokyo.com
Research General Store: proves that simple is sometimes much, much more difficult. 011-81-03-3463-6376; www.sett.co.jp
Snobbish Babies: to witness that animals are people, too. 011-81-03-3414-0957; www.asknowas.com/dewams