Shimokitazawa

About Shimokitazawa

Kitazawa is often called “Shimokita”. Often favored by young people, it is a great place for wandering and shopping. This street offers a refreshing break from the mainstream, and is the first stop for many stage actors and costume designers. It is also a great place to find many underground bands, independent troupes and non-mainstream artists. Small-scale theaters can be found in Shimo-Kitazawa including the Honda-geki Theater and Ekimae-geki Theater. SHELTER and Yaneura are also very famous. Shimo-Kitazawa, along with with Kichijoji, Sangen-Jaya, Jiyūgaoka, Naka-Meguro and Daikanyama, is featured heavily in TV shows and magazines – as the backdrop of the young and fashionable. Local streets, though narrow and small, are packed with grocery stores, vintage stores and fabric stores. In front of the north exit of Shimo-Kitazawa Station, there is a crêpe store called アンドレア(Andrea). The store is renowned as “The Crêpe Queen” in Tokyo. You can grab a crêpe to-go and wander the streets. You might even want to stop in to a rabbit café and play with all the cute, wee fluffy bunnies.