Japan Guide Star · Asakusa
A Japan Guide Star food guide takes you past Senso-ji to a sake bar, a taiyaki shop and a monjayaki restaurant where you cook at your own table. Book it for the eating and the company, not the temple: you spend about ten minutes there.
This is the sit-down food tour of Asakusa: 4.9 stars from 252 reviews. You meet at the Kaminarimon police box, where the guide holds a "Local Guide Stars" sign, walk up through the temple for about 10 minutes, then settle in for the food. The listing names three stops: Wasake for a sake tasting, Taiyaki Sawada for fish-shaped cakes with sweet fillings, and Rokumonsen, where guests cook monja on the hotplate in front of them.
Guests count a lot of food. Reviews mention monjayaki, a pancake with Camembert, teppanyaki and izakaya plates, with the taiyaki eaten on the walk between stops. One reviewer said there was enough to fill "a big guy". The sake stop comes last, and one group turned it into karaoke.
Two caveats. The temple visit is a quick look, so walk Senso-ji yourself first, or take the same operator's walking tour in the morning. And the group can reach 20, though several guests had only a handful of people. Tell the operator about allergies when you book.
Meet the guide with the "Local Guide Stars" sign at 1-3-1 Asakusa.
A short walk through the temple and the story of the gate.
A hotplate table, monjayaki and other dishes you cook with the guide's help.
Fish-shaped cakes from Taiyaki Sawada, eaten as you walk to the next stop.
A tasting of Japanese sake to close the evening, with tips for the rest of your stay.
★★★★★We had such a lovely time trying new food and cooking monja at our very own table! Rie was a delight to talk to and told us lots of interesting facts and made some great food recommendations.
★★★★★We had a wide variety of dishes I would have never tried but really liked. I especially liked the monja restaurant where we cooked our own dishes.
★★★★★My guide Ai was so friendly and spoke great English. We went to two great local restaurants in Asakusa. The Tokyo pancake with Camembert was so delicious!
★★★★★This was really value for money. Rie is an amazing guide. [...] The food we had were great and we had a taste of different kinds of dishes.
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The listing names Wasake (sake tasting), Taiyaki Sawada and Rokumonsen. Guests report monjayaki cooked at the table, a pancake with Camembert, teppanyaki, izakaya plates and taiyaki. See our Asakusa food guide.
About 10 minutes, on the way to the first stop. Visit it on your own as well; it's free.
A sake tasting at Wasake is part of the tour. Other drinks are extra.
At the Kaminarimon police box, 1-3-1 Asakusa. The guide holds a sign that says "Local Guide Stars".
Ready to book
Twelve dishes at local eateries, with sake tasting, taiyaki and an izakaya table, in two and a half hours.
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