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TomuuA shopping center with all the shops but little of the fun
You can find shopping mall SUNAMO about a 5-mins walk from Minami-sunamachi Station (Tozai Line).
As shopping malls go it's got enough of the shops one would need to get by; UNIQLO, a bookstore, stationary shop, MUJI, Lush, drug store, food court, AEON supermarket. The list goes on. It must also be an important resource for a station area that has almost no distinct features.
To be brutally honest, this is the kind of place I hate to spend a Sunday afternoon. It's very much full of families, but when the idea of quality family time is to spend hours/a day in a place like this, it makes me not want to start a family. There's little reason to go out of one's way to come here, but if you're in the area and in need of a UNIQLO or some warm air conditioning, then maybe it'll do.
SUNAMO does have a few interesting restaurants on the 4th floor, which is also where you'll find the food court.
Maybe I've been a bit harsh with this review. SUNAMO is spacious, clean, warm, and has a range of stores, but on a personal level, it just isn't for me.
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In the Area
Kiba Park - Nice small park in the center of Tokyo
Koto-kuThe Kiba Park is just a view stations away from Tokyo Station. Take the Tozailine to Kibastation and walk around 100 meter to the park.The park is very beautiful with many cherry blossomtrees in spring and very nice autumm leaves viewing spots in autumm. You also can visit a small flower garden, which has many seasonal flowers.Families can enjoy the big adventure playground and a very nice barbequespot. There is also a big field for playing soccer or tennis. Just right next to the park you can visit to the modern art museum, which offers nice exhibitions.
Great gelato Ice cream at Rocco from Okinawa
Koto-kuIce cream from Okinawa in Tokyo? Yes that is possible. The Ricco gelato ice cream store just opend at the east side of Tokyo a few minuts away from Monzen Nakacho station. It is a small store but you can sit outside on a small wooden bench and enjoy the flair of the area.Their ice cream is really good and fruity. They have many diffrent kind of ice cream especially from okinawa. They chance their variety depending on the season. Also their corn/waffle is selfmade. My recommendation is blood orange it is very sour and bitter at the same time. You really feel like eating a really blood orange. The price for around 500 Yen is a little bit high but you will really love it if you try it one time.
BBQ in Tokyo
Koto-kuA place where you can have a real BBQ experience in the Tokyo urban area; the-third-park. A two-minute walk from Shin-Toyosu Station. You don’t need to worry about bringing your own equipment here, it’s all laid on for you. For this reason, you could come here straight after work it you wanted. You get the BBQ started from scratch here, so it’s a fun place to come with colleagues or the family.
Aussie pies that will put a smile on your face
Urayasu-shiAustralian-style pies are delicious. Nice then to find a branch of Pie Face not far from home. Actually, I'd lever heard of Pie Face (always went with the cheap ones from Woolworths when I spent time in Australia) but this branch has always seemed popular so thought it was time to give the pies a go. Glad that I did.Pie Face has about 8 different fillings for its collection of savoury pies and 7 fillings for the sweet pies. I went with a Classic Mince Beef. My friend chose Chicken and Mushroom. Both 390 yen individually, but we had a 'juice' set (apple or orange juice) for 600 + yen. Both pies were delicious. Fillings are rich, thick and smooth and the pastry is light enough but still with a bit of grease to remind you of the working-class origins of the humble pie.At Pie Face you order your pies from a display counter and then move on to order drinks at the the cash register. Collect your drinks/pies from the counter at the end after paying. Clear away your own trays after eating.This particular branch of Pie Face is cozy but still with enough space to stretch out a bit. It looks new (although I don't know how new), and aside from the pies, is itself a nice place to hang out (although it has the potential to get very busy given how close it is to Disneyland, and the fact that it's in the popular shopping center IKSPIARI). Anyway, regardless of decor and atmosphere, the pies here are delicious and well worth a visit should you be in the area. There is also am option to take out as well.
No fuss, cheap and fast hair cuts
Urayasu-shiCut Factory is a short walk down one of the side streets that branch out of Urayasu Station (Tozai Line). For some reason (and I don't know why), Urayasu is stocked full of hair salons, most of which look quite fancy or bohemian. Cut Factory is definitely not one of those. This is salt-of-the-earth hair cutting. Plain and simple. When you go in, you'll see a super cramped waiting area (there are chairs for people to wait outside, too). In front of this is a touch-screen panel through which you place your order. It's all in Japanese. Struggle for long enough with this, and one of the staff will come over and do it for you. I come here for a cut only, which costs 1,080 yen (money into the ticket machine). The cuts here are those 10-min jobs so don't expect anything fancy. There are 3 'cutting stations' here, each of which had a place on which you can put any bags that you may have with you. The cuts are done efficiently, and the chances are rather than being asked specifically what style you want, you'll just be given a shorter version of what you go in with! That's fine for people like me, who hate getting their rug cut and just want it over and done with as quickly (and cheaply) as possible. In this regard, Cut Factory takes some beating. I also really like the use of a kind of vacuum cleaner type device that they run though your hair at the end, to suck up and loose strands. The staff here aren't freaked out by foreigners but it's unclear whether or not they can understand English (I wouldn't bank on it). Once again, in my experience, this place is really 'no frills', but they get the job done, you don't have to engage in chat, and you can be out of there pretty fast. Perfect for some!
