Tokyo's Corner Of Refinement

by Michael Kanert

While it may be little-known among tourists, Nihonbashi is a melting pot of Japan’s regional cultures. This stately area just northeast of Tokyo Station stands as the zeromile point of the Gokaido, the Five Routes that stretched across Japan in the Edo period (1603-1868), making it the nexus where goods from all across the country converged.

While Ginza, located just to the southwest, is the longstanding byword for high-end shopping in Tokyo, Nihonbashi exudes a classic refinement that you won’t find elsewhere in this bustling metropolis.

Traditional lanterns line stone-paved Naka-dori, the district’s central avenue, with designs rotated to match the seasons. Rarefied merchandise can be found among the various shops of Mitsukoshi, Japan’s first department store, and the three stately Coredo Muromachi buildings, home to both modern styles and centuries-old businesses specializing in everything from high-end chopsticks to old-fashioned wagashi sweets.

To get the most out of the district, we signed up for an area tour at the Nihonbashi Information Center in Coredo Muromachi 1. Programs range in price from ¥1,000 (about CAD$11) for a 90-minute “cultural experience” tour to ¥8,000 (CAD$91) for a 3.5-hour gourmet tour including a cooking lesson. Some tours require advance reservations, while others can be joined on the spot.

We first learned how to purify ourselves at Fukutoku-jinja, a historic site known for providing good luck in lotteries, then saw a knifesharpening demonstration at Kiya, a knife-making shop dating back to 1792. We tried our hands at making katsuobushi (bonito flakes) at Ninben, a shop that revolutionized Japanese home cooking by being the first to seal these essential flakes in airtight packages so people would no longer have to shave them by hand to make miso soup every day. We then played with unique chopsticks at Hashicho, including a massive sumo-sized set and an unscrewable portable pair, and gaped at a paired set of lacquered and gold-leafed chopsticks valued at ¥1 million (over CAD$11,000).

Our kimono-clad, English-speaking guide also took us through Tsuruya Yoshinobu Tokyo Mise, a maker of traditional Japanese sweets, or wagashi, dating back to 1803. Just as striking as the shop’s signature yumochi and kyokanze confections was a life-sized window display of cosmos made entirely of sugar and rice flour brought up from the store’s head office in Kyoto.

Back at the information centre, we decided to finish off with an origami experience using elegant washi paper. We then carried our satisfyingly folded Japanese helmets and kimono to our next destination: Suigian, a funkily modern bar-lounge with an authentic Noh stage set in its midst, complete with a painted pine backdrop, or kagami-ita, imported from Kyoto and dating back to the Edo period.

This unique dining-and-culture experience was just opened in March 2018. Meal sets were listed at ¥3,500 (about CAD$40) apiece, but the real cost value was in the seating, which ranged from ¥3,500 at the wooden bar to ¥10,000 (CAD$114) in the two sunken VIP boxes right below the stage. Drinks were generally a very reasonable ¥1,000 (CAD$11) by the glass.

The Noh performance lasted about 50 minutes, including a subtitled introductory video and live explanation of the impending content. We caught the 7:15 dinner show, but there are also two performances over lunch. Evening performances are typically supplemented with Kyogen, a form of comedy sketch normally presented between Noh pieces, and traditional Japanese dance, called Nihon Buyo.

While the chant-sung Noh performance was entirely in Japanese, we didn’t need words to feel the power of the performance. Though we had been forbidden from taking photos during the show, as soon as it ended we were encouraged to come close to the stage for selfies with our impressively masked and posing main performer. Then the performers disappeared and ambient techno again filled the room and we returned to our succulent sushi sets, followed by green tea and traditional wagashi sweets, thus capping off a date night of rare refinement in the heart of old Japan.