This post isn’t about anything literary, but it is largely about books. A couple of weeks ago, I visited one of the most famous bookstores in Tokyo/Japan — Tsutaya Bookstore (蔦屋書店) in Daikanyama. Tsutaya is a fairly ubiquitous chain, but this is their fancy-shmancy flagship store, with a cluster of small buildings and separate sections for books, records/CDs, DVDs, souvenirs, a poppin’ Starbucks, and a couple of lovely-looking restaurants.
I wasn’t allowed to take photos inside the store, but I promise it’s really nailed that hip haven vibe. Highly recommended if you’re in town.
^ This woman told her boyfriend she was posing for the camera.
The surrounding area was also stunning. One thing I’ve noticed about really artsy-chic places in Tokyo is that entire neighborhoods seem to make pacts to color every building white and grey. This is also true for Omotesando. Needless to say, as someone who has a compulsive need to make all my possessions monochrome, I thoroughly enjoyed the view.
Daikanyama (代官山) is, if it wasn’t obvious from the photos, a pricier area filled with architecture and shops that would send any design enthusiast squealing off into its white-walled alleys. That is to say, one of the curators at the modern art museum where I work told me he know the area like the back of his hand, if that gives you a better sense of its target consumers.
Next stop: nearby Ebisu (恵比寿). A très savvy friend of mine recommended a photography book cafe/restaurant called Megutama (写真集食堂 めぐたま), with over 5000 photo books collected by famous photography critic Kotaro Iizaka (飯坂耕太郎) available for browsing. It’s a great concept that’s been beautifully executed, but the place really could have used a bit of background music. If it were up to me, some female vocalist bossa nova.
^From a collection called Now (いま) by Jin Ohashi (大橋仁) that I loved.
^Found a photograph from the 70’s of the founder of my company, Seiji Tsutsumi (堤清二), who was also a famous author under the pseudonym Takashi Tsuji (辻井喬). For the first half of July, my job was to do research about his life and convert the information into bibliographies and timelines. A little starstruck to be honest.
So that about sums it up! It’s a quiet place with delicious food that’s open from lunch to dinner without break. Highly recommended for all photography lovers/aspiring hipsters. (English website available here.)
Inklings 
