Harmonica Yokocho is a block of alleys a meter wide on the north side of Kichijoji Station, named by a writer who thought the rows of tiny shopfronts looked like the reeds of a harmonica. It started as a postwar black market and nearly died in the 1990s before a restaurateur turned the empty stalls into bars; now around a hundred businesses share the grid, from a fish shop that has been there since 1947 to standing-only wine bars.
Come twice: by day for the dumplings and the tofu doughnuts, by night when the lanterns go on and every counter has four people and a cloud of smoke. It is Kichijoji’s answer to Omoide Yokocho, smaller, cheaper and with a far better ratio of locals.
Tips
- Daytime is for the fishmonger, the dumpling stand and the tofu doughnuts; the bars open at five
- Most places seat under ten; stand at the counter if the stools are gone, it is expected
- Try Minmin for gyoza, Tetchan for grilled offal under its chaotic neon, and move on after one round