Sometimes spelled in English as Nihonbashi and other times “Nihombashi.”
Personally, it is, to me, Nihonbashi.
This area is near Tokyo Station, Ginza and Hibiya. So use my Ginza with kids and Tokyo Station Area with kids articles in order to see additional kid-friendly restaurant, playground and shopping areas nearby.
It only takes 8 mins on the train to get to Tsukiji from Nihonbashi and only 13 mins to Team Lab Planets.
Please remember that, from Nihonbashi, you can easily walk to the Hatchobori area.
If you are looking for Gluten Free soy sauce in Nihonbashi then I recommend going to the Nihonbashi Mitsukoshi Main Store Food Court (just north of Tokyo Station) for gluten free Tamari.
PLEASE NOTE: This article contains some affiliate links. If you make a reservation through one of these links, I will receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
WHERE TO EAT IN NIHONBASHI WITH KIDS?
365 Days Bakery
This place is so good but it’s also really really popular so you might need to line up for a minute. It’s 1 min walk from the B1 exit of Nihonbashi Station. They accept most major credit cards.
365 BAKERY
中央区日本橋2-5-1 日本橋髙島屋 S.C.新館 1F
GROUND FLOOR OF TAKASHIMAYA – IN THE NEW BUILDING ANNEX
OPEN EVERYDAY 8:30AM-8PM
DEAN & DELUCA Cafe Nihombashi Takashimaya S.C. is a good option for coffee, cookies and sandwiches. (Open from 7:30am on weekdays and 10:30am on weekends.) They accept most major credit cards and the whole cafe is non-smoking.
Izakaya
Japanese izakaya & hot pot restaurant Iinoji is also a fabulous place to go to eat Japanese food as a family. As with almost all izakayas in Japan, the idea is that you order lots of small dishes to share and then order more as you go (of the same things you enjoyed or different dishes.) I recommend ordering the wagyu beef sukiyaki bowl (this dish is actually designed to be one per person,) the sweet potato or shrimp tempura, edamame, wagyu sukiyaki croquette, the grilled miso rice ball. You can see the full Iinoji dinner menu here.
You can see the full lunch menu for Iinoji here.
This restaurant welcomes babies and children. They also have space for strollers. This is a wonderful place for parents to try different types of sake (hot and cold.) They accept most major credit cards. There is a 550 yen per person cover charge on top of your bill when you dine after 5pm. When eating lunch here, I recommend budgeting for 2000 yen per adult and more like 6000 yen per adult for dinner. When making a reservation, you can choose to sit at a table at a counter, at a counter or at a booth. I don’t recommend a counter seat with kids – with smaller kids, get a booth and seat kids on the inside so they can wriggle a bit more and colour etc.
Book using this ByFood link now if you have allergies or want to choose your exact course ahead of time. You can tell them exactly what you can and can’t eat and order your exact course online. This is also a great option if you’re worried about any language problems while in the restaurant – it can all be done in English ahead of time.
To get to Iinoji, take a train to Mitsukoshimae Station or Shin-Nihonbashi Station (you can walk underground from both stations directly to the restaurant.) It is 14 mins walk from Tokyo Station or 11 mins in a taxi from Ginza Station.
IINOJI
日本橋室町3-2-1 コレド室町テラス 1F
GROUND FLOOR, COREDO MUROMACHI TERRACE, 3-2-1 NIHONBASHI MUROMACHI
OPEN EVERYDAY FOR LUNCH 11AM-3PM
OPEN EVERYDAY FOR DINNER 5PM-10PM (UNTIL 11PM ON FRIDAYS)
Izakaya with Wagyu on the menu (walking distance from Tokyo Station)
For lunch or dinner, I recommend dining at Japanese izakaya restaurant Nihonbashi Ichi no Ichi no Ichi.
Like most izakaya in Japan. The idea is that you order lots of small dishes and share – and then order more of the same or more of other small dishes as you go. It’s a great way for everyone to try new foods. At dinner time, I recommend ordering the dashi-maki (rolled Japanese omelette, cooked with a little fish broth), fried chicken, crab miso and charcoal grilled wagyu beef. See the full english dinner menu here.
While for lunch (Sat and national holidays only) , I recommend ordering the tempura or the sukiyaki lunch set. See the full lunch menu here.
This is also a fabulous place for the adults at the table to try lots of different hot and cold sake. This restaurant welcomes children. When you are making a reservation (use tablecheck link here) you can ask for seats on the terrace, in the booth or at a table (I recommend the booth if you have smaller kids as you can put them on the “inside” and they can do some colouring or stand up sometimes on the seats (with shoes off “) if they need to.
I recommend budgeting 6000 yen per adult at dinner time and more like 3000 yen per adult for lunch. This restaurant accepts most major credit cards.
The entire restaurant is non-smoking.
Nihonbashi Ichi no Ichi no Ichi is 1 min walk from exit B9B of Nihonbashi Station. It’s 10 mins on foot if you’re coming from Tokyo Station.
If anyone in your family studies Japanese – take note of the address and try and work out where they got the name from…
NIHONBASHI ICHI NO ICHI NO ICHI
日本橋1-1-1 国分ビルディング 1F
GROUND FLOOR, KOKUBU BUILDING, 1-1-1- NIHONBASHI
OPEN WEEKDAYS 5PM-11PM
OPEN SAT & NATIONAL HOLIDAYS 11:30AM-3PM & 5PM-10PM
CLOSED SUNDAYS
Western Style Diners (called “Family Restaurants” in Japan)
Gusto (I’ve written about Gusto Family Restaurants here), Nihonbashi Branch
Japanese Gyudon Fast Food Diners
Matsuya ( Beef on Rice Bowl) Nihonbashi-Ningyocho Branch
Pizza
Pizza and Wine Restaurant Kayabaru. This casual restaurant accepts most major credit cards. You can walk-in if you like but it’s probably a good idea to ask the hotel to make a reservation on your behalf. For adults, they offer an all you can drink (nomihoudai) in 2 hours menu. Pizzas are all less than 1500 yen (even cheaper on Saturdays.) Please note that there is a service charge of 380 yen per person to dine here.
PIZZA & WINE KAYABARU
中央区日本橋茅場町2-11-1
2-11-1 KAYABACHO , NIHONBASHI, CHUO-KU
OPEN WEEKDAYS 5PM-11PM (LAST ORDERS 10PM)
OPEN SATURDAYS 11:30AM-3PM & 4PM-10PM (LAST ORDERS 9PM)
CLOSED SUNDAYS
THE POKEMON CAFE
The Pokemon Cafe in Tokyo is located inside department store Takashimaya in Nihonbashi.
See here for information on how to book the Pokemon Cafe in Japan.
Please don’t stress if you miss out on a reservation here – as instagrammable as this place may be – the food is notoriously average and it’s a hard place to go with kids as many of the customers are actually hard core poke-adults. Here are some other pokemon related things you can do instead.
The Pokemon Center DX Store in Nihonbashi (there is another in Shibuya.)
FUKUTOKU SHRINE
This is a small neighbourhood shrine right in the middle of Nihonbashi. Many people visit this shrine to pray for good luck.
PLEASE NOTE: This article contains some affiliate links. If you make a reservation through one of these links, I will receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
SUPERMARKETS IN NIHONBASHI
For even more international or more specialized imported food supermarkets
I recommend Seijo Ishii Supermarket, the Nihonbashi Itchome Branch ( address: 1-14-7 Nihonbashi, right next to the D2 exit of Nihonbashi Station, open from 8AM-11PM).
Seijo Ishii also has a pretty good wine selection. Seijo Ishii supermarkets also stock gluten free bread. *This supermarket stocks a rice flour bread made by a company called “Happy Bakery.” OR you could take a 10 minute walk to Kinokuniya Entree Supermarket in the basement of Takashimaya Department Store in Nihonbashi ( open from 7:30AM weekdays and 10:30AM on weekends and closes at 8PM). OR you could visit Meidi-ya Supermarket in the same building (B1 floor) which also has more international options than a Japanese supermarket.
What are the differences between these three?
Seijo Ishii has more imported products and a larger delicatessen as well as nuts and herbs etc. Kinokuniya Entree is like a higher end supermarket/convenience store. Both of these grocery stores often stock imported, mostly American, sweets and chips ( if this is what you’re going for, I would check Seijo Ishii first.)
Warning: these three supermarkets have lots of imported items which means it will be more expensive than a regular local supermarket.
This is at Seijo Ishii.
You can use google translate while you’re there but to give you an idea of what is on offer:
Top shelf:
Tuna & Spring Onion Sushi Handrolls, Ham & Egg Sandwiches, Cooked Shrimp & Brocolli Sandwiches, Mixed Veg Sandwiches, Colourful Veg Sandwiches ± a range of salads (sorry I can’t read the labels in the pic)
*Dressings for salads are sold seperately – get the sesame dressing . Trust me!
Second shelf; Corn & Locally Sourced Colourful Veg Salad, Locally Sourced Green Veg Salad (sold out in this pic), Vermicelli Salad made with Okinawaーgrown Mozuku Seaweed, Burdock Root, Carrot, Sesame Mayo Salad, Crab & Quinoa Coleslaw Salad, (Can’t read this one in the pic- sorry!), Seafood Pasta Salad, (Can’t read the rest of the salad labels here -sorry!)
Second from bottom shelf:
Green & Yellow Veg Duck Salad, Quinoa & Walnut Ingredient Grain Salad, Chicken & Quinoa Salad with Olive Oil Dressing, (can’t see the other salad labels here – sorry!)
Bottom shelf:
Taco Meat Tortilla Wraps, Mixed Tortilla Wrap Pack with Ham & Egg and Cheese & Chicken, Yakiniku Beef & Root Veg Tortilla Wraps, Shrimp Fresh Spring Rolls with Coriander, Steamed Chicken & Egg Salad Spring Rolls, Salmon & Cheese Spring Rolls with Coriander, Shrimp & Steamed Chicken Spring Rolls, Smoked Salmon &Avocado Spring Rolls, Potato Salad.
