A Global Romp Through Tokyo
Photo: Courtesy of Tokyo Bike
Travel the globe without leaving the island. Japanese interpretations of foreign fashion, food, and pastimes bring the world home to Tokyo.
Australia
1. Make it a g'day and fuel-up Aussie backpacker style with an acai bowl at Bondi Cafe.
2. Take a Tokyo Bike for a spin. The rental company started in Yanaka but has popular branches in Sydney and Melbourne, too.
3. Nip a bottle of shiraz or GSM (the indigenous grenache/syrah/mouvedre blend) at Dance Bottle Shop, importers of the continent's finest reds and whites.
England
1. When warm weather hits, nab a picnic hamper from Rose Bakery on the very top floor of Dover Street Market in Ginza and do lunch in Yoyogi Park.
2. Creepers (or, "rubber soles" as the kids say) too tough? Try a pair of Miharayasuhiro's Saville row-inspired wingchips in gold or silver.
3. There isn't a bad time of day to stop for a toasty welsh rarebit and a frosty pint at the chic Justin Pub and Dish in Harajuku.
France
1. Classic pastry principles apply to veggies at Potager, resulting in celery chiffon cakes, purple potato cookies, and burdock-cocoa loaves.
2. The newly opened Bonjour Records location in Lumine Shinjuku has music and accessories to meet a French New Wave girl's needs.
3. Once the sense of oh-that's-too-pretty-to-eat wears off, stockpile chocorons (chocolate-smothered macarons!), one of Patisserie Sadaharu Aoki's signature sweets.
Italy
1. Well-priced wine and cicetti await at Sopra Sotto, a friendly neighborhood underground bar.
2. Drop by Life for untouristy souvenirs like aprons and vac-packed cured olives. Make time for a margerita pizza pie.
3. Dive into pesci and pasta at Lo Scoglio in Tsukiji (6-27-3, Tsukiji, Chuo-ku), modeled after the most beloved restaurant on the Amalfi Coast.
Sweden
1. Stock up on Japan-made, Scandi-influenced everyday living supplies at Cinq.
2. Retreat to the sauna at Laqua and splash around the koshikawa natural hot springs.
3. There's a little bit of Stockholm in every lingonberry cocktail and bite-sized meatball at Aquavit, a nordic import via NYC.
USA
1. Grab a fork and dig into a short stack of hotcakes at Bills, Ivy Place, and Good Honest Grub. Pancake cafes are all the rage.
2. Leave yourself enough time to really soak in the hand-picked Americana at J'Antiques in Nakameguro.
3. Pop into NYC import Saturdays Surf in Daikanyama for a Bear Pond espresso and a pair of board shorts.
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