Ameyoko (アメ横), also known as Candy Alley, is one of Tokyo’s most famous shopping streets. It was originally a black market for food produce in the aftermath of war, and while today much of the stalls sell fresh produce and Japanese snacks you also get a range of clothing products and Japanese souvenirs. Visit in the early evening (ideally Friday or Saturday) when the neon lights, trains running directly overhead, smoke from the meat grills, and cries of the vendors peddling anything from dried fish and Japanese crackers to baseball caps and U.S. Navy jackets, let you experience first-hand the grittier side of the city.

Information
Getting there
Come out of Exit 7 from JR Ueno Station and cross the main road south
You May Also Like

Komachi Dori

250-meter shopping street running northeast from Kamakura Station. Pick up some souvenirs or get a bowl of the region famous shirasu dish.

Tokyo Midtown

Opened in 2007, the Tokyo Midtown complex contains offices, shops, restaurants, as well as the Suntory Museum of Art.

Oriental Bazaar

The souvenir store on the boulevard was originally an antique store but moved to Omotesando Dori in 1951 to target the U.S. army personnel in the area (it is modeled after a shrine and stocks “Japanesey” items).

Ginza Six

Up-market department store which opened in April 2017. It’s a 13-floor building with a large restaurant floor and a roof garden from which you can peer down on Chuo Dori.