The Gotanda JP Building, a new multi-use development set to reinvigorate this often overlooked neighbourhood on the Yamanote Line, is home to this modishly designed food hall. Eleven eateries offer an eclectic selection of culinary delights.
Highlights include Kokonimo Todaka, a new offshoot of acclaimed Gotanda restaurant Shokudo Todaka. The original restaurant has become so popular, following proprietor-chef Yuhei Todaka’s appearance on the Netflix-syndicated show ‘The Solitary Gourmet’, that it can be near impossible to secure a reservation. The more accessible Kokonimo Todaka goes some way to compensating for this, via Todaka-originated dishes such as uni (sea urchin) on boiled egg, and a Japanese-style spicy sansho pasta that is exclusive to this location.
Another Gotanda favourite is the new location of Shino, a long-established eatery previously located nearby that is a great example of the Japanese shokudo: a simple, canteen-style affair offering comfort food and teishoku set meals. Classic Shino fare, such as a stir-fried pork rice bowl, is joined on the menu by several new items to mark the restaurant’s relocation. These include Shanghai-style yakisoba and homemade sui gyoza dumplings.
The coffee and sweets-focused Amameria, meanwhile, specialises in soft-serve ice cream that utilises lightly roasted, fruity-flavoured coffee. One way to sample this is in the form of a mango- and pistachio-topped parfait.
Also waiting to be discovered under this food hall’s stylishly deconstructed ceiling are Oishii Pasta, from the team behind popular Yoyogi-Uehara restaurant Sio, and a sister location of famed Western-style restaurant Acacia, which originally opened in Shinjuku way back in 1963.