Atas Food Halls
Of course we had to hit the atas supermarkets in Tokyo to check out their notoriously expensive fruits and gorgeous Bentos. Behold the ¥5200 (S$63) rock melon I spotted at Tokyu, Shibuya.
I don’t even like raw tomatoes but I was so drawn to this pick-and-mix selection of seasonal cherry tomatoes in multi colours. Kawaii!
So tempted to get this pretty little platter. But ¥1800 (¥22.20) for cherry tomatoes? Nah, I’ll pass.
And look at this ridiculously pretty (and expensive) made-in-Japan somen! This was from Ginza Atas mee sua, anyone? This costs ¥5400 (S$66.63)!
Maybe it’s food for unicorns 🦄 If you eat it, you will poop rainbows 🌈
Feast your eyes on other expensive treats that you won’t buy.
More Hokkaido melons (this one is ¥6,480!) and gorgeous peaches. Celebrity chef Sam Leong once gifted me with 4 of these peaches and they really were the best I’ve ever tasted.
We bought and ate lunch standing at one of these famous food halls in Shibuya one day. You can find food halls in all Japanese departmental stores like Isetan, Takashimaya and Tokyu. We’d only planned to grab a snack but were so excited by the sheer variety we saw at Tokyu, we decided to make a meal out of it.
If, like me, you can’t make it to any of Maisen Tonkatsu’s restaurants for their famous pork cutlets, these tonkatsu sandwiches will still hit the spot (kinda). The pork, even when eaten cold, is juicy and fleshy, the crust still slightly crunchy, drizzled with an appetizing sweet-sour fruit-based sauce. Nestled in fluffy white bread and cut into a convenient size that fits nicely into your mouth, it really is very tasty.
My ¥635 mixed variety bento box came with 3 Mini pork sandwiches, some forgettable sushi rolls and a few stewed veggies. I was greedy and wanted variety, but really, I should have saved my $$ and belly space for more tonkatsu sandwiches.
My son Ayden, who LOVES his sashimi, ordered his usual Chirashi bento from one of the many sushi takeaways. This was about ¥900 (S$11.10).
Hubby had the Salmon and Ikura bento, also about ¥900 (S$11.10). Fresh, fleshy slices.
Bonus pic of Ayden enjoying his brunch.
Picked up a Currypan (fried curry bun) snack for about ¥200 I think. This one won the CurrypanGrandPrix, don’t play play. Unfortunately, the cold curry in an oily bun was disappointing. I think if we air-fry it for a bit of crisp and to force some of that grease out, it would taste great. Otherwise, it’s not really worth the calories.
Affordable supermarkets
When we arrived in Tokyo on 1 June, I was excited that a brand new supermarket by Aeon (under their ‘My Basket’ branding) was going to open on 6 June, right next to my hotel at Hundred Stay Shinjuku. Every day on our way back to hotel, I’d do a ‘stock take’ and check out how much new inventory they’d added since I last peeked in hehehe. 
On 6 June, I’m proud (and a bit embarrassed) to say that I was among the first few customers who trooped in at 8am.
Super crunchy and big Fuji apples for ¥98 each (S$1.20). So cheap!
The eggs were even more ridiculous. ¥92 for 10, or S$1.13. I almost bought a pack just because they look so pretty and white.
But our favourite thing ever was this: Onigiri 🍙!! They are usually already very cheap at about ¥100 each. My Basket was having an opening special at just ¥68. OMG. So, I bought 7 haha. And that was just on opening day. Most days, we’d pick up a few to eat as breakfast/snack.
These come with fillings like tuna mayo, grilled salmon, mentaiko and pickled plum (ume).
Actually, I don’t know why I was so excited about the opening of My Basket.
BONUS! Cheap Alternatives to Supermarkets
There were several mum-and-pop stores near Hundred Stay Shinjuku where you can get good veggie and fruit deals that are sometimes lower than Fairprice or Sheng Shiong.
I didn’t buy any though cos my luggage was filled with Pokémon and Gundam. But that’s a post for another time.
COMING NEXT:
Tokyo Part 4: Pokémon Center Shopping + Pokémon Cafe
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