Shinjuku or Shibuya

[infernooo]

Hi everyone!

I'm off to Japan soon, and have my mind set to stay either in Shinjuku or Shibuya.

Can someone give me a run down of the benefits/drawbacks of each of these places in terms of food joints (mainly looking for awesome sushimi and hawker / authentic street eats [including organ meat yakitori] rather than upscale expensive michelin restaurant type places), shopping and general sight/feel of the places? I have done a lot of searching and guide book reading, but figured I would probably be best to get some advice from my fellow food nerds :-).

Thanks!

Edited July 10, 2008 by infernooo (log)

[JasonTrue]

Street food basically means shops that open out into the street (with takeout windows, more or less) in Tokyo, as almost all of the carts have gradually disappeared. The few remaining carts in-city sell things like yaki-imo (roasted sweet potato) or roasted chestnuts.

This is because of various restrictions that have been placed on such carts, particularly the licensing of new ones.

If you want more of a street food experience, you can go to the Ame-Yoko in Ueno and you'll find things like this.

Things are slightly different in other cities. There's still an occasional ramen vendor near my wife's family's home in Kawasaki, for example; I think that was in a camper or trailer.

Otherwise, most street foods are limited to special festivals.

If you want a lot of street food, you should consider Fukuoka (Hakata), especially around Tenjin, though that's at the other end of the country. Even there, it's pretty much a disappearing breed.

Shinjuku and Shibuya are mostly full of upscale restaurants. Shinjuku feels like it's about 40% Italian restaurants, though I realize that's a bit of an exaggeration. There are certainly restaurants in those areas that are a good value, but they aren't really where you go to get what it sounds what you're looking for. Probably the feeling you are trying to capture is more likely to be possible in "old Tokyo", the areas which comprise Shitamachi (including Ueno, Tsukishima, and areas around there).

There's nothing wrong with staying in Shinjuku or Shibuya, and there are certainly plenty of decent izakaya style places, which is close to what you want, but they tend to be fancier than the old-school places that haven't been redecorated since the Showa era. (There are some of those places hidden away in Dogenzaka in Shibuya, though).

[nakji]

Yes, the vibe in both Shinjuku and Shibuya is very "modern" Tokyo, I think, although there is that old alley way of broken-down yakitori joints under the tracks in Shinjuku....overpriced, maybe, but fun atmosphere. A definitely old-school - organ meat, cartilage, the whole nine yards....

I prefer Shinjuku myself, but that's because it feels slightly less full-on to me. You might be looking for the in-your-face craziness, in which case, Shibuya has the edge.

[JasonTrue]

I should add that Hiromi recommends Shimbashi for streetside and lowbrow eating.