Create meetup in Tokyochevron_right
Select a place on the map to change the location.
I want to meet
Verified required?
want to meet at fmd_good Corner Diner
want to meet at fmd_good City Market
want to meet at fmd_good Brew Lab
explore Tokyo Guides
bar_chart Trends in Tokyo
Watch shopping buying guide in tokyo/kyoto/osaka?
Need some advice on where to buy watches. Am interested in grand seiko, kurono tokyo, etc... brands.
I heard that tourist discounts and tax discount available at around 5-10%, is this still t… Hello.
Need some advice on where to buy watches. Am interested in grand seiko, kurono tokyo, etc... brands.
I heard that tourist discounts and tax discount available at around 5-10%, is this still true?
Any suggestions for watch shopping in these cities?
Cheers
One spot that doesn't come up much is the Grand Seiko boutique in the Tokyu Plaza Ginza building. It's a few floors up and much smaller than the flagship, but they often have display models you can actually handle that the bigger stores keep locked up. The staff there are also less scripted, I had a good chat about the 9SA5 movement vs the older 9S65 without any sales pressure.
For Osaka, if you are near Namba, walk through the OCAT building near Nankai Namba station. There is a watch dealer on the second floor called Komehyo that has a strong pre-owned Grand Seiko section. They price things based on condition honestly, so a watch with a hairline scratch on the lug might be a few thousand yen cheaper than the same model at a flashier shop. You can also find some older Credor models there that are hard to spot elsewhere.
yeah tax-free is still a thing, the 10% consumption tax gets knocked off if you spend over 5,000 yen and show your passport at the store. some places also give a small additional discount for tourists but it's usually 3-5% on top, not 10% total
for grand seiko, skip the big dept stores in ginza and go to the boutique in shinjuku isetan men's annex instead. way less crowded and they actually let you sit down and look at stuff. kurono tokyo is all online raffles only, no physical stores, but you can sometimes find them used at jack road in nakano broadway for 20-30% above retail
osaka's shinsaibashi has a few good watch shops packed together near the apple store. yodobashi camera in umeda has a solid seiko section too but their staff can be pushy about selling you a spring drive vs a high-beat. just say "mita" if you want to end the convo lol
kurono is tough to find in stores but there's a small shop in tokyo's kanda area called ishida that sometimes has them secondhand, usually the older limited editions people flipped fast. they're on a side street near the akihabara border, google maps can be weird about it so look for the sign with a pocket watch on it
for grand seiko i'd actually hit the seiko boutique in the hankyu department store in tokyo's yurakucho area, it's connected to the station and way less busy than ginza. they had a few of the 44GS reissues last time i was there that the bigger stores were out of stock on, and the sales guy let me try on like six different models without hovering
osaka has a place called watchnian in the amerika-mura area that's mostly vintage but they get some interesting JDM citizen and orient pieces that scratch the same itch as GS if you want something well-made without the price tag. the owner is a bit eccentric but knows his stuff, cash only though so hit an ATM first
load 8 more replies
Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.