"Tadao Ando's mall on Omotesando Dori is an architectural delight. In an interior skylit atrium, a spiral walkway ascends from the basement up to the third floor. Most of the shops are high-end: fashion designers, jewelry stores, and cosmetics, while Pass the Baton is a secondhand shop of select clothes, antiques, jewelry, and housewares. Vegetable-focused restaurants include Yasaiya-Mei and Kyo-Oyasai-Bar Mei; though they are not strictly vegetarian, both offer seasonal and local produce. Chocolate aficionados can indulge at the Jean-Paul Hévin boutique."

"The stationery shop Itoya resembles a museum, with its exquisite displays and handsome collection. The main shop on Chuo Dori has 12 floors of paper, stationery, pens, planners, and a café. The annex on the backstreet has seven floors of paints, colored pencils, notebooks, and more. Itoya is a great spot to pick up gifts for friends back home. It's easy to find—just look for the giant red paper clip in front of the building."

"High End Shopping in Roppongi Hills In recent years the construction of Roppongi Hills Mori Tower and Tokyo Midtown has made Roppongi a high end shopping destination. Tokyo Midtown and Mori Tower combine art and fashion. Tokyo Midtown tauts stores like Pleats Please Issey Miyake, Boss Orange and museums including 21_21 Design Sight and The Suntory Museum of Art. While Mori Tower has The Mori Art Museum, and designer shops including Alexander McQueen, Diane Von Furstenberg, and Kate Spade. Both complexes have a rich assortment of traditional Japanese restaurants and global cuisine. Sukiyabashi Jiro Sushi is the Roppongi Hills sushi restaurant run by the son of Takashi Jiro, Tokyo 's famous sushi chef featured in Jiro Dreams of Sushi."

"Competition among 100-yen shops, the Japanese equivalent to an American dollar store, is resulting in cool outlets filled with fun items for the home and office. Seria, in particular, has a surprising selection of tableware, kitchenware, stationery, and housewares. DIY fans will have a heyday carefully perusing the selection of things you didn't know existed but now must have, and many items like the tableware items are surprisingly high quality and beautifully designed. Gifts that are easy on the wallet and cool for friends back home include kawaii (cute) washi tape in fun designs, organizers for home and for travel, and other souvenirs. This Seria shop is a short walk from Shinjuku Station, but there are branches throughout the city."

"In a quiet part of the city, Yanaka Ginza is a retro shotengai shopping arcade. Before shopping malls and supermarkets, there were shotengai filled with mom-and-pop shops selling seafood, tofu, meat, and vegetables. It’s a good place to try a number of local dishes: menchi-katsu (ground meat that is breaded and deep-fried), chestnut sweets, ikayaki grilled squid, and sweet bean paste–filled cakes in the shape of cats. A short walk from Nippori Station, Yanaka Ginza offers a glimpse of how the Japanese used to shop and some still do."

"Tokyu Hands is a quintessential Japanese lifestyle shop designed to make your life more refined, or at least more fun. There are now branches throughout the country, as well as international ones in Taiwan and Singapore , but the Shibuya branch is the largest, with more than 20 floors of merchandise if you include the mezzanine levels. It is a treasure chest of items, practical and not, for home, travel, and garden. The select collection of luggage and bags, many made by Japanese craftsmen, is especially worth perusing. Each floor is themed, organized around subjects such as the kitchen, travel, health and beauty, DIY, and stationery. It’s easy to get lost, as there is so much to see, whether shopping for yourself or for gifts for friends."

"The historic Kiya shop specializing in cutlery has been in the Nihonbashi district since 1792. Come here for Japanese knives and traditional Japanese kitchenware, including donabe for cooking rice and hot pots, copper graters, and mortar and pestles. There are wooden boxes for making pressed sushi and wooden cutting boards that are gentle on the Japanese knives. Staff are friendly and helpful, guiding customers to the right knife or utensil. Beyond cutlery, Kiya also has other cutting tools that are worth checking out, including nail clippers, shaving gear, pruning shears, and scissors."

"If you love to cook, you won't want to miss Kappabashi, the wholesale district where chefs and restaurateurs come to buy all they need to open a new restaurant. On this long street, you'll find everything from plastic fruit samples to dishes and pots and pans. There are shops that specialize in knives, kitchenware, lacquerware, ceramics, and tableware. Surprisingly, there is not great food to be found in the area, but Asakusa, a short walk away, has plenty of eating options."

"For a one-stop shopping fix, head to Ginza Six, a mall with more than 200 high-end stores for fashion, cosmetics, food, and art. The largest rooftop garden in Ginza has seating for a bento lunch or for a short rest in the heart of the city. The Tsutaya bookstore has an art exhibition space, and there is a traditional Noh theater. The underground food floor includes Enoteca wine bar, a Philippe Conticini dessert bar, and Kurogi Chacha for Kyoto Uji tea and sweets. Restaurant highlights include Yamanoue for tempura, Tsukiji Suzutomi for sushi, and Yakiniku Sansui for marbled Wagyu beef grilled at your table."

"A short walk from Daikanyama Station is one of the metropolis's iconic bookstores, Tsutaya at T-Site. Designed by Klein Dytham Architecture, the Tsutaya bookstore is celebrated not only for the beauty of its three buildings but also for the extensive selection of books, magazines, CDs, and DVDs. Tsutaya opens at 7 a.m., perfect for travelers who land before hotel check-in. You can have a coffee or a cocktail in the Anjin Lounge while perusing books. The concierges are specialists in a variety of topics to help guide consumers through the books, music, and movies."

"Best Knife Shop in Tokyo In the outer market of Tsukiji, I bought a knife at this amazing shop and the experience stuck with me. Any cook knows a great knife makes all the difference, and here they have such a vast variety of knives, at various prices, that anyone can find something here. After selecting my purchase, the third generation owner put my name on the knife by hand. Who knew knives could be so personal? Keep in mind that this is a cash only shop. Tsukiji Masamoto Tsukiji 4-9-9"

"Where to Buy Your Knives and Swords Near Tokyo The historic kurazukuri district of Kawagoe, a short train ride north of Tokyo , is home to dozens of artisan shops, including Machikan, which has been making and selling knives and swords for generations. While in town, try the famous sweet-potato candy."

"Shop the Pure + Ordinary at the Muji Flagship Store Muji reigns supreme in clean Japanese design. Muji sells clothes, home goods, and furniture and has a deliberately simple approach to the way they design their products. The clean and pure design of Muji products has made it a beloved brand both in Japan and internationally. The Muji flagship store in Ginza has a full Muji house you can walk through and purchase (as long as you have a spare plot of land). There's also a cafeteria style cafe that serves full meals."

"Shop the Uniqlo Flagship Store in Ginza Uniqlo is the affordable and stylish brand of Japan. They sell men's and women's clothing and they excel at the basics: cotton tees, plaid shirts, underwear, sundresses, and jeans. The Uniqlo flagship store is located on Ginza's Chuo Dori amidst luxury brand giant towers. This twelve story Uniqlo has some specialty Tokyo bags and shirts made only for the flagship store. On the top floors you'll find a gallery of t-shirts decorated with anime favorites, Disney characters, and Star Wars scenes."