Issue #162: The Only Guide You Need for Your First Visit to Tokyo

The 4-day itinerary I wish I had for my favorite city.

I’m currently in the midst of an international adventure (clearly!), so I’m featuring guest recommenders each week while I travel. The first two recs this week come from

Teresa Wu

of the excellent newsletter

Teahouse

—read on for her insider’s guide to Tokyo!

🎥 ‘Didi,’ in theaters now: In director Sean Wang’s semi-autobiographical debut film, Chris is a 13-year-old Taiwanese American kid navigating his messy youth in the Bay Area. The Sundance festival favorite captures the awkwardness of adolescence and growing up in the 2000s MySpace era with a visceral, hyper-specific accuracy. It’s tender and touching all at once—prepare to cringe and cry. - Teresa

🍝 Tomato-poached fish with chile oil and herbs: With burst cherry tomatoes and a smattering of fresh herbs, this bright, flavorful fish dish is one of my summery go-tos. It comes together quickly, is easy to make for a group, and feels near-foolproof. - Teresa

📺 “Three Women” on Starz: I’ve been eagerly awaiting this adaptation of Lisa Taddeo’s book covering the sex lives of three women across the United States. Like the book, this ten-episode series pushes boundaries, showing full nudity and depicting the complicated, myriad desires of women while including Taddeo’s process of writing and interviewing her subjects. Side note: I was interested to learn that writer Gay Talese was a mentor of Taddeo’s. I think about his famous article “Frank Sinatra Has a Cold,” and this one about a hotel owner/voyeur (my actual worst nightmare), all the time. - Leslie

My first two meals in Tokyo took place in rapid succession. After eating a 7-Eleven egg salad sandwich outside of my Airbnb, I dropped off my bag and headed to Sushi no Midori in Shibuya. Still unsure of how to navigate a Japanese menu, I ordered by pointing to the arrangement of nigiri that had just been placed in front of the woman beside me. The juxtaposition, from low to high, should have made my convenience store sandwich feel sad in comparison. Instead, I found myself astounded by both—the buttery scallops and melt-in-your-mouth toro and the kewpie mayonnaise-laden eggs sandwiched between sweet white bread. This, I soon learned, is typical of Tokyo. I spent my week consistently astounded by not only the quality of food, but also by the metro system (on time!), bathrooms (the toilets!), nightlife (who knew I could love bars?!), fashion (the blouses I bought!), and technology.

From the moment I arrived, I dove into my trip, hungry to experience as many corners of a city that feels so completely alive. As I did, I tried to compare it to places I’ve traveled to before. There’s the intentionality with food I’ve seen in Paris, the bright lights and nightlife of New York, the marriage of old with new that Copenhagen does so beautifully, the street food of Bangkok—but really, Tokyo is incomparable. I had my jaw on the floor from the moment I arrived to the moment I departed, and obsessively documented the highlights for you.

In planning this trip, I prioritized trying things that are difficult to find anywhere else. To that end, I opted for kissaten over third-wave coffee shops, Japanese boutique clothing stores over Uniqlo, and niche specialties like tori paitan broth over classic miso ramen. I also rented this Airbnb just north of Shinjuku that cost around $100/night, so I could spend more on special food experiences, like omakase and izakaya. My mom, who was my travel partner for this part of the trip, was game for it all—we walked over ten miles a day, and were barely in our Airbnb, collecting and vetting recommendations that I have been so excited to share with you.

I pulled out all the stops for this guide. This is among the longest and most comprehensive issues of Morning Person I’ve ever written and, honestly, I could have easily broken it down into three posts, but I wanted this to all live in one place so you have easy access for an upcoming trip! You may need to open it in a browser tab to see the full thing, and expand all the photos. Here’s what to expect before we dive in:

• An obsessively curated four-day itinerary—I fully planned your trip for you, down to the minute!

• My shortlist of favorite spots in Tokyo.

• Observations and etiquette, to make your trip smoother.

• Tons of photos from my own trip.

• A downloadable Google map, with nearly 200 curated recommendations.

• An insider’s guide to Tokyo, from

  Teresa Wu
  of
  Teahouse
  !

• Don’t forget, paid subscribers get access to all of my travel guides!

This is the itinerary I wish I had had for my time in Tokyo, arranged geographically and packed with recommendations. The first day starts early, to accommodate jet lag, and begins with an introduction to some of the top spots and destinations you may want to return to. Day Two is go, go, go, from morning to evening, taking in the energetic heart of the city, while Day Three is much more laid-back, with personal favorites of mine, including my favorite breakfast, store, dinner, and bar of the trip. The fourth and final day is all about “old meets new,” beginning with a super-traditional Japanese breakfast, before exploring an exceedingly hip neighborhood known for its vintage stores, ending with a grungy, cool izakaya.