Tour Tokyo's Trendiest Hipster Neighborhood

Tokyo Shimo Kitsawa neighborhood is where the cool kids live

With independent clothing shops, retro restaurants, coffee shops, and of course vending machines

this is a walkable area to lose yourself in a bohemian and creative atmosphere

To find out why Shimo Kitazawa is so popular, I met up with Brianna Goldberg, an American student

studying abroad in Tokyo. So this area called Shimo Kitazawa has a hipster feel to it

You'll see a lot of old shops mixed in with the new style

lots of color. A lot of students like to come here, especially

during the weekends, it gets really crowded. You'll see lines out the door of, for example

a pancake shop and other sweet shops in the area. Yeah, I wouldn't have thought I'd see a pancake shop here in Tokyo

but it's the pancakes in Japan are amazing. amazing. You need to try them. It's not like the US. They're really fluffy and tall

Actually in Japanese, fluffy is foo-fua. So if you go to a pancake shop, make sure to ask for the

foie-fois pancakes. So here's a classic example of what you'll find here in the area

Just a vintage clothing shop right next to a more modern-looking Japanese shoe store

For some of the shops, you can find the full sale prices

but if you go upstairs or in the back, it's possible that they'll have a used area

so you can get second-end items. For vintage clothes, check out longtime Formingo, a neighborhood fixture

and enjoy meandering through the pedestrian-friendly street of this fashionable Tokyo neighborhood