Food and groceries in Japan

FOOD in Japan is usually pretty expensive. From fruits and vegetables to meat, from local produce to exotic, it's all fairly expensive. The good thing is that anything you buy in Japan is probably as fresh as it gets. Not only is it fresh, the varieties cultivated tend to be more flavourful in exchange for less shelf life, it's also devoid of many preservatives. Most produce will spoil within days or a week at best, even if kept in a fridge. I've bought some vegetable (on sale) which actually went bad overnight in the fridge.

The season where most vegetables and fruit are cheaper is fall and winter, as the temperatures go down the more common vegetable ripen.

Most Japanese people buy every night what they intend to eat that evening or the next day. One of the reasons they do this is because electricity costs, as well as the high price of a large fridge, are more expensive than it's worth. The downside to this "buy now eat now" mentality is that nothing fresh is meant to be stored.

How to eat for cheap.

With this in mind it's harder than ever to find a way of eating for cheap. Since buying in bulk doesn't work out economically. 100 yen store (pronounced: "hiakuen stoa" in Japanese) to the rescue! This is the equivalent of a dollar store, though some larger and more expensive items are over 100 yen. Almost anything you can think of it in a 100yen store. There are more practical and household items than you'll find in any dollar store anywhere else. There is also a section of prepackaged food in these stores. You can find snacks, drinks, spices (some) and even some pre-made meals there.

As an exploring person, I set out to find out how much it would cost to feed me for a day buying only from the 100yen store.

This is the result of my research. There are prepackaged pouches containing curry or pasta sauce which are available. You can also buy 500g of dry pasta or a small box of precooked rice to be heated up in a microwave for 100 yen.
I bought a box of tea bags, 25 tea bags (too strong for me, should have gone for a green tea).
A large apple pie/chausson, with a cup of tea it was a great breakfast.
I also got a bag of chips (Taco flavour) which were a great midday snack.
Finally, I got a pouch of curry (240g). It wouldn't win any culinary awards but it was fairly decent. It's also enough for two small meals.

Total for a day of food including the rice I bought 420yen. Price of tea for a month 100 yen x2? If I were to eat this stuff everyday I'd spend 12600 yen on food a month, or about $130. Not bad!
And if you're wondering, the total calories was about 300 for the curry pouch, 300 for the apple pie and 350 for the chips. The rice I ate with it probably added another 400-600 calories. I also noted that most of my day's vitamin requirements were taken care of. Hmmm... Maybe I should start a new diet fad...

Shinjuku sightseeing

SHINJUKU is one of the busiest places in Japan, especially once the sun drops below the horizon. It's one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. It's a major commercial and administrative center, housing the busiest train station in the world, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the central administration of government of Tokyo.

The heart of Shinjuku is Shinjuku Station. Surrounding the station are department stores, many specialist electronic and camera shops, cinemas, restaurants, fast food joints and game centers. Many international hotels are also located here. Due to the fact that Shinjuku has the highest percent of foreigners and foreign nationals living in any place in Japan, much of the area has European and north american stores and food places such as the, very much in demand, Krispy Kreme doughnuts. The clock displaying the waiting time outside was always set to at least a half hour, and once we saw it up to an hour and a half.


One of the biggest chains of electronic stores is in Shinjuku, called Yodobashi. There are 5 stores around the area each with a specialty.


Of the many famous districts surrounding Shinjuku is Kabukichō, A red-light district well-known for bars, restaurants and with massage parlors, and other sexual commerce shops. It is located to the northeast of Shinjuku. True to the Japanese style, a walk in the neighbourhood made it both obvious and not, that this is a red light district. Small shops and grocery stores as well as game centers took center stage in visibility, but a quick look at the small (and sometimes not so small) signs showed the real nature of the neighbourhood. There are stories of tourists wandering around inside the district without ever knowing they were there.

Shinjuku is also the district which boasts many of the highest skyscrapers in Tokyo, including the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, KDDI Building and Park Tower. Some of the buildings are truly incredible works of art. Such as this building.





Shinjuku Station sees an estimated 3.64 million passengers pass through each day, making it the busiest station in the world. It houses interchanges to three subway lines and three privately owned commuter lines, as well as several train lines.



A few videos of Shinjuku we took. Still pictures just don't seem to capture the bustling activity of the biggest beehive of entertainment in Tokyo.