Tokyo’s Kitchen Street - Kappabashi Street in Asakusa

Asakusa’s Kappabashi Street is a culinary gem – often referred to as Tokyo’s Kitchen Tool Street or fake food capital, this is where you can buy a huge range of kitchenware, Japanese knives plus a cavalcade of cutlery.

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Tokyo’s Kitchen Street - Kappabashi Street in Asakusa

One of the best things to do in Asakusa, Kappabashi Street is great for shopping or just to walk along and browse beautiful things – or make a plastic pilgrimage here to make your own fake food (‘sanpuru’) to take home as a unique souvenir from Japan!

From the best Kappabashi Street shops to the famous giant chef’s head (such a cool signpost!), here is our guide to Tokyo’s Kappabashi street.

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Table of Contents

How to get to Kappabashi Street

Known locally as Kappabashi Dogugai かっぱ橋道具街, it is around a 15 walk from the main Asakusa shopping area and Senso-ji Temple.

The nearest station to Kappabashi Street is Tawaramachi Station (5 mins walk) on the Tokyo Metro Ginza line, or 6 minutes walk from Iriya Station on the Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line. From Tokyo Station, it is around a 20 minute journey.

By JR, it is around a 15 minute walk from Ueno and Uguisudani Stations on the JR Yamanote Line & JR Keihin-Tohoku Line – or 25 minutes walk from the Asakushabashi JR station.

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You might like these Tokyo neighbourhood guides:
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Asakusa
Ginza
Harajuku
Ikebukuro
Nakano
Odaiba
Ryogoku
Shibuya
Shimokitazawa
Shinjuku

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Kappabashi Kitchen Street opening hours

You can walk along the street 24 hours a day but most kitchenware stores are open daily from 10am to 6pm.

Please note some stores may be closed on Sundays or Mondays. Restaurants and izakayas in the side-streets will be open later.

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Exploring Kappabashi Kitchen Street In Tokyo

Frequented by restaurant owners, chefs, caterers and curious tourists, Kappabashi かっぱ橋道具街 is Tokyo’s best known street for knives, kitchenware, ceramics and uniforms. It is all about kitchen supplies not actual food (apart from the plastic kind – more on that later).

There are around 160 shops and stores along Kappabashi Dougagi Street down both sides of the road. This famous strip recently celebrated its 110th anniversary but it wasn’t until after World War II that it started to become known as the go-to kitchen street.

Some of the items you can buy include signboards, wrapping materials, glassware, lacquerware, kitchen appliances, bamboo and wooden products, bread baking supplies and even a sole sake shop (Kappabashi Sanwa).

And don’t worry if you don’t want to spend big or don’t have much room in your suitcase – there are lots of small ceramic bowls or colourful chopsticks you can buy too.

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Kappabashi Knife Shopping

Kappabashi is perhaps most famous for its Japanese knife stores where high quality knives can be bought and tested, often in shiny showrooms – these seemed to be the most popular stores for tourists / non-trade people when we last visited.

One of the best known Kappabashi Knife stores is Kama-Asa, which has been crafting beautiful blades and perfect pans since 1908.

knives Tokyo’s Kitchen Street - Kappabashi Street in Asakusa

Inside, the attentive staff speak English and you can even get your own personalised inscriptions or initials on your chosen knife.

This is very popular with visiting chefs who are in Japan as tourists but want to take home something truly unique (just don’t pack it in your carry on luggage or you might not get them all the way home!)

You can even do Asakusa after hours knife store tour with a guide via Klook >

knife hand engraving Tokyo’s Kitchen Street - Kappabashi Street in Asakusa

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Kappabashi goes kawaii

One of the most famous Kappabashi Street attractions is the big chef head located on the corner where Kappabashi Street runs into Asakusa Street.

If you are arriving from Tawaramachi Station, just look up when you arrive – it can be found on Google Maps here and it is hard to miss!

Across the road, there is also a balcony made from huge cups and colossal crockery – many of the display sign shops also have cute / funny billboards and poster panels outside too. Also look out for giant whisks and knives along the way.

We also spotted a few Kappabashi Street gachapon capsule toys along the way which had miniature knives and tiny capsule cooking toys – so cool!

Another thing to do on Kappabashi Street is look out for their mascot, Kappa Kawataro statue, a golden statue installed over 20 years in a little park near to Seisuji temple.

Kappabashi replica food / fake food

As well as knife shops and kitchenware, Kappabashi is also famous as somewhere you can buy the fake plastic food you see in so many Japanese chain restaurant windows and beer halls like Tokyo Ginza Lion.

At the time of writing in April 2025, there are three remaining replica food stores along Kappabashi Street – Sato Food Samples, Tokyo Biken and Ganso Shokuhin Sample-ya store.

Known as ‘shokuhin sanpuru’ in Japan (食品サンプル means food sample), these fake foods and plastic models of pints can be seen all over Japan.

‘Sanpuru’ in Japan is big business with millions of pieces of plastic foods and sublime samples that look good enough to eat (literally).

So realistic and life-like, you can even make your own sampuru and plastic food models whilst in Kappabashi Street at Ganso Shokuhin Sample-ya Kappabashi Showroom (map).

Whilst not cheap at 2,500 Yen, you can have a stab at learning to make plastic tempura and lettuce in a 40 minute session.

You can also purchase everything from plastic pork dishes to Sampuru sushi – talk about fantastic plastic. It looks good enough to eat (but please don’t)!