You've probably already visited Asakusa and Ueno,
but you may have missed this amazing hidden gem.
This is Kappabashi Kitchenware Town, which actually is home to Tokyo's
largest kitchen district, which sells sample foods, Japanese cooking utensils.
But today, I'm on a mission to find the ultimate Japanese knife.
So let's see what I can find.
While you're exploring Kappabashi, make sure to keep
your eyes peeled for a Kappa, which is a mythical water imp.
And there are quite a few little statues throughout the whole neighborhood.
And the name is actually originating from Kappa.
So keep your eyes peeled.
I think it's worth a visit to this neighborhood just to walk around
and see these elaborate storefronts, because there's not quite
anything like it.
Just seeing everything out the front,
You can pick it up and take a look and see if anything's on sale.
But there's a lot of affordable things in this district.
But I actually have a plan.
Before I get the knife, I want to check out a few handmade
like chopstick stores, bento, as well as some plastic food.
Check out that view Sky Tree.
That just shows you how close we are to our Asakusa.
Because if you go right down there, you'll be at Sensoji temple.
And it seems like there's more shops down this little road,
so there's so much to explore.
You really need a dedicate at least half a day
to really digging yourself deep in Kappabashi.
One thing I recommend checking out while you're here
is these sample foods, because these are really iconic in Japan.
Every time you go to a restaurant,
you're going to see things like this and some of them are incredibly realistic.
So, come inside and take a look.
This is my favorite Japanese breakfast natto and rice
and look how realistic it looks.
I wouldn't know if someone put that in front of me,
but you can also buy the classics like Ramen
or a little pencil holder
look at this.
That's so cute.
There's so much to look at.
I love these.
They're the perfect souvenir for a friend back home.
Even like a cat cookie.
The details on this are insane.
Like you can even see, like, the condensation and like the cold ice beer
this literally has every detail- even bubbles inside.
This is what I want to bring home.
This is melon pan.
And this is a very, very popular
snack in Asakusa, which is right around the corner.
Highly recommended if you're in the area too
these look so realistic, I could just bite into it.
I've just stumbled across Dengama, which is a store
specializing in Yakimono, also known as Japanese ceramics.
And I think there are over 3000 here
and they've got two floors with all kinds of things.
And I'm overwhelmed because it's so impressive.
So I want to take you guys inside
for a quick look around before we move on to our next place.
Apparently one of the most popular products here are these sake cups.
Look at these.
And surprisingly affordable - ¥410.
They're all within ¥1,000.
I love these blue ones.
So pretty.
Right now I'm visiting early in the year,
but I need to make another trip in October because I just found out there's
something called Kappa Matsuri, which is essentially a festival
in the street where all the shops participate.
And there are so many people here because there are sales
I love sales and you can get 10% to 30% off the goods.
So yeah, come back.
Another thing to pick up when you're here are chopsticks
and I've come to Mikura because they specialize in only chopsticks
and they have over 500 varieties of different styles and designs.
And I'm really impressed because the prices range from about ¥440
to ¥8000 at the higher end.
But there is something for everyone.
There are so many beautiful designs, so many colors.
We've got tones of red, brown, but then also more colorful modern ones.
And if you come over here, they’ve even integrated, some popular
anime manga designs from Kimetsu no Yaiba.
And if you're looking to make a really personal souvenir and take it
home, you can get engraved name or message on your chopsticks for a small fee.
I believe it's about ¥550 to about ¥880,
and I think I might even pick up some for myself.
Even a cute cat one here.
Japanese knives are known internationally as being some of the best quality
and incredibly sharp.
And when you come to a Kappabashi
there are so many stores some of them actually only selling knives.
So today I want to recommend you a place
that has a long family history and it's been around since 1805.
This is Sakai Tohji, let's go inside.
Quite modern.
I heard it only opened last year at the end of summer.
And the moment you walk in, there are so many knives up against the wall.
And I do love cooking.
But I'm here to learn all about them today.
And so I've heard there’s some English speaking staff.
Hello, I'm looking to buy a knife.
Can you give me a bit of information about the knives you have here?
Ah this side is stainless steel knife.
(This side) It's carbon steel knife.
In general, carbon steel is more sharp than stainless steel,
but (requires) rust maintenance.
I see.
So, Iwata-san here has brought out three beautiful knives.
And I believe they have all different types of uses.
So could you explain the difference between these three knives?
Okay, first is this.
It is an Usuba knife.
Mainly for chopping vegetables.
It's kind of like a rectangle shape
made for a chop and push.
So if you chop and push - (you’ll get) entire cut.
But one point; it’s not curved, so slice is not good.
Next, is this a chef’s knife.
Japanese name - Gyuto
This is better for slicing.
Third is Santoku knife.
Okay.
It’s half a straight and half curved,
so chop and push is good and it’s able to slice.
So this is all round? Yes.
Okay.
So I've learned a little bit of information here.
Vegetable
knife.
Meat knife.
And then all around knife, meat, veggies, fish, everything.
These brown ones here are stainless steel and they're really resistant to rust,
easy to maintain and you just wash it and you're good to go.
Whereas this middle one's here because it's carbon steel.
If you don't wash it off, it's more likely to rust.
But the benefit to this is that it stays sharper for longer.
So if you love to maintain your kitchenware, your knives, go with this.
They've just let me into the cabinet with all the knives.
And this beast of a knife is 13 grand.
that's like, insane, but it looks beautiful.
And we've got like a little bit of a rainbow shimmer and surprisingly light.
But in the kitchen, I’d feel like pretty good using that.
And on the other hand, this is the most budget friendly knife, which is ¥9,000.
And it's very light and small in comparison, but also just as sharp.
my gosh,
I feel like a samurai,
but I’m gonna put this away because I.
I don't want to mess up and then be in debt.
And I'm here to meet
the people who are making the knives so let's check it out.
Let's go inside.
I'm so excited.
Never been in a place like this and it literally looks like someone's home.
So those are all the materials they use
to create these amazing knives - oh we’re going inside
It's quite intimate.
Where are we going?
It's really dark.
It's all of a sudden a bit warm.
So this is literally where they're doing the work.
And it's a lot smaller than I imagine.
So the reason it's dark is apparently because they're using the fire
and they need to see the flames.
That's interesting.
I didn't realize that.
He's going in like a little hole
So they're trying to make a knife like this.
And this is such rare opportunity seeing something so close up
and getting the opportunity to talk to these shokunin-san (artisans)
I mean, imagine
doing this whole day being in front of the flames.
This is a family owned knife business
so he probably learnt from a young age-
So apparently this business has been around for a hundred years.
And they've been inside
this little factory for 60 and it's always been in Sakai City.
So it's got so much history and devotion
and passion.
So this is one step in a long process.
But look how many knives he's made in one day alone.
maybe we'll let them get back to work because he's quite busy
and we'll catch up with them later.
(We’ve) come to the studio and I'm going to try slicing with a blunt knife
and then we're going to get it sharpened afterwards and test out the difference.
So got a tomato here,
give it a go.
Well, that was pretty good.
Is it meant to be that good?
Even blunt?
Apparently it was blunt, but I'm just too good at slicing.
How's that?
I've never sharpened a knife before, so I'm quite excited
because this is a skill that everyone who owns a knife
and makes any kind of food at home and cooks needs to know,
especially if you're going to invest in such a good knife.
You need to know how to take care of it.
So this is another way you can do it
just gently gliding down
and you can buy this brick at a homeware store.
So you can do this at home.
And now it's time to slice the tomato and see if there's a difference.
I'm curious because it was quite a good knife,
even blunt- that’s smooth.
It actually does make a difference.
It just glides.
I have literally sliced
this entire tomato into tiny pieces and
tastes even better now because it's
just so beautifully sliced,
such a light, well made knife
might have to take it home.
So sharp
One of the reasons we've come today is to actually support
these Shokunin-san and start a Kickstarter,
which means if you're interested in getting one of these
beautifully handmade Japanese knives, you can.
So check out the link down below.
And we really hope that you’ll want to support people
out here in Sakai, Osaka, making these knives
because they are worth every cent and every yen.
Thank you so much for your time today.