These are our favourite places to visit when visiting Shinagawa with kids.
Please be aware that this area is quite large and suggested spaces and restaurants can be a decent walk away from one another. So I recommend setting up a list of the places that interest you and then use google to plan your Shinagawa with kids strategy.
For breakfast, I highly recommend a visit to Breadworks (opens from 8am) and a walk along the river. If you hang around a few more hours I also highly recommend the beautiful TY Harbor Brewery for brunch or lunch (I talk about it later in this post as a dinner suggestion.)
If you really like this bakery, there is another breadworks in Omotesando too.
BREADWORKS, TENNOZ
品川市東品川2-1-6
2-1-6 HIGASHI-SHINAGAWA, SHINAGAWA
OPEN 8AM-9PM
5 mins walk from Breadworks Tennoz, you can find Art Supply Store called Pigment Tokyo.
This beautiful store is also 3 mins walk from Tennozu Isle Station on the Rinkai Line.
PIGMENT TOKYO
品川市東品川2-5-5 TERRADA HARBOR ONE ビル1F
TERRADA HARBOR ONE BUILDING, 2-5-5 HIGASHI-SHINAGAWA, SHINAGAWA
OPEN 11AM-7PM
CLOSED MONDAYS
And if you need a little supermarket near here for snacks or fresh fruit or bentos etc I recommend popping into My Basket Tennozu Isle.
MY BASKET SUPERMARKET, TENNOZU ISLE
品川市東品川2-2-20
2-2-20 HIGASHI-SHINAGAWA, SHINAGAWA
OPEN EVERYDAY 7AM-11PM
And if you wanted a breakfast closer to the station, I recommend Sarabeths.
It is a lovely western breakfast/brunch.
This is right above/in Shinagawa Station.
I’m from Melbourne, Australia, and, to me, this kind of breakfast is very very old school. It was yummy and good quality but a bit like having breakfast out in the 80s.
The menu is on their website if you’d like to check ahead. My egg white and cheese omelette was delicious.
They do have high chairs for babies.
They also allow you to bring your own baby food into their restaurant.
SARABETHS, SHINAGAWA
港区 港南2−18−1 アトレ品川 4階
4F ATRE SHINAGAWA BUILDING, 2-18-1 KONAN, MINATO
OPEN 9AM-MIDNIGHT (UNTIL 11PM ON SUNDAYS)
WEBSITE
In the same building as Sarabeths in Shinagawa is Blue Bottle Coffee – great coffee for even the snobbiest of coffee snobs. It’s on the 3rd Floor.
And literally next to this coffee shop in Shinagawa Station is a pharmacy and a gourmet supermarket. Not the cheapest but fantastic if you need some lovely fresh fruit and snacks for the road.
If your kids need a wriggle before or after breakfast, I recommend the green (well..greenish.. this is pretty built-up area but … it’s green-is) strip just near the station.
It’s called Shinagawa Central Garden (once again ‘Garden’ is a BIG call. ) It is a long green strip just near the station ‘s east exit.
It’s runs for a good ten minutes walk and is perfect for kiddies who need a run around or a place to eat lunch outdoors.
There are lots of restaurants along the outside of this park. Including Starbucks and McDonalds too.
It would also be a great spat for kids on scooters.
The large Shinagawa Aquarium is 2 mins walk from the Takanawa Exit of Shinagawa Station. It is called Maxwell Aqua Park and I have written about it in detail here.
Just 10 minutes walk from the Konan Exit of Shinagawa Station via the “Skyway” (overhead walkway) is the Kura Sushi sushi train restaurant. It’s open 11am-11pm. I’d budget for approx 1500 yen per adult for lunch or dinner. Kurasushi accepts most major credit cards, offers takeaway and is a smoke-free restaurant.
Not far from the aquarium is the Wing Takanawa West Shopping Complex ( right across the road from Shinagawa Station.)
If looking for somewhere to eat with children within this complex, I recommend the Italian /Mozzarella Bar restaurant Obica (several of these restaurants can be found all over Japan.) It is located on the ground floor. Please note that there is a 500 yen table service charge ( not charged at lunch time.) The entire restaurant is non-smoking. There is an English menu and a kids menu.
GROUND FLOOR, 4-10-18 TAKANAWA, MINATO
港区高輪4-10-18 ウィング高輪WEST – II 1F
OPEN EVERYDAY ( EXCEPT JAN 1st) 11AM-10PM ( LAST ORDER 9PM)
OBICA WEBSITE
And a beautiful luncthime option for families right next to the station is El Caliente. The cuisine is “Modern Mexican.”
Please note that this restaurant only allows kids under 6 years of age at lunchtime on weekdays. You can make reservations in English via their website.
At lunchtime I would budget around 2000 yen per adult and 5000 yen for dinner. You can see the El Caliente entire lunch menu here.
This restaurant has an English menu and accepts most major credit cards. The entire venue is non-smoking.
This place feels quite “special occasion” so, if your kids aren’t great at staying in their seats for a meal – then maybe give it a miss until they are a bit older.
Please note that this restaurant charges 220 yen per person as a service charge on weekends and national holidays between 11:30am-5pm. There is also a daily service charge for all diners who visit after 5pm of 440 yen. There is also a 10% additional charge on top of your bill if you dine after 10pm.
This restaurant is just a few minutes walk from Shinagawa Station.
EL CALIENTE, SHINAGAWA
港区港南2-18-1アトレ品川4F
4F ATRE SHINAGAWA, 2-18-1 KONAN, SHINAGAWA
OPEN 11AM-11PM (CLOSES AT 10PM ON SUNDAYS & NATIONAL HOLIDAYS)
Ty Harbor Brewery is a beautiful waterfront restaurant in the Shinagawa area. There is lots of outdoor seating and a very family friendly menu. It is also extremely English-friendly. It’s also a lovely spot for a date night or an outdoor brunch.
TY HARBOR BREWERY
品川区東品川2-1-3
2-1-3 HIGASHI-SHINAGAWA, SHINAGAWA-KU
OPEN 11:30AM -10PM (SEE WEBSITE AS DIFFERENT AREA OPENING TIMES VARY)
Then there is the Dinosaur Park (Kodomo no Mori) which is 8 mins (approx 800 yen) in a cab from Shinagawa Station OR you can take a 3 min train ride to Shimbamba Station and then walk for 7 mins. It’s quite small but my kids absolutely love coming here and then it’s always hard to get them to leave (!!) I’ve written about and included lots of pictures in my blog post on the Dinosaur Park in Shinagawa here.
Happoen Japanese Garden
Also a little bit outside of this area – this beautiful garden, Happoen is just 8 minutes from Shinagawa Station by taxi ( approx 1600 yen) or 23 minutes on foot.
Happo-en is our favourite ‘hidden’ Japanese garden. It’s a famous wedding and shichigosan (children’s coming of age ceremony) venue and is open early in the morning. Entrance to the garden is free and there is a bakery/cafe for breakfast, tea time and lunch.
I’ve written about visiting Happoen with kids in detail here.
Another option (that also isn’t exactly “just around the corner” but could be a hop, step and jump or a nice walk while a child sleeps in a stroller) for a follow-on activity is Futo Park.
This Futo neighborhood playground is :
– 4 mins walk from Shibaura-Futo Station
– 9 mins ( approx 1000 yen) in a cab from Shinagawa Station or 30 mins on foot
– 5 mins ( approx 600 yen) in a cab from JR Tamachi Station or 14 mins on foot
– 8 mins (approx 800 yen) in a cab from Mita Station or 15 mins on foot
I have written about Futo Park & Playground in detail here.
Also 15 minutes in a cab (approx 1800 yen) from Shinagawa Station is Shinmei Children’s Playground …also known as the Octopus Park.
I’ve written in detail about Shinmei Children’s Playground here.
The across the road from the Octopus Park is Shinagawa Chuo Park (Extension section) The majority of the park is taken up by a helipad which makes for an excellent spot for scooter and bike-riding practice . On the edge of the park is a little bakery as well called Petit Reve. And down the other end? A big adventure playground. This playground also doesn’t have any shade so you might want to avoid it in Summer. Restrooms are next to the helipad.
And then another 5 minutes away (on foot) is another little playground called Soyokaze Park. Its small ..but if you’re looking for an extra play spot – this suburban playground has swings, slides, a little sandpit, a moomin bouncer and public restrooms.
SOYOKAZE PARK
品川区西品川2-17-8
2-17-8 NISHISHINAGAWA, SHINAGAWA-KU
Then there is Honshiba Park. It is 8 minutes from Shinagawa Station by car (approx 1200 yen) or 33 minutes on foot. You could also take the subway for a 5 minute trip to Mita Station from Shinagawa, although you will need to transfer once (and at this time I’m unable to confirm if there are elevators for strollers etc.)
I’ve written about Hoshiba Park with kids here.
It’s a little, thin, long park with a play area, a great view of the train tracks and a water splash area in Summer.
For dinner ( or lunch) there is a Wolfgang Puck restaurant. Near the Konan Exit.
They have a kids menu & also highchairs.
There is a 350 yen table charge per adult. Warning: we do find this restaurant to be overpriced.
WOLFGANG PUCK PIZZA BAR
港区港南1-9-36 NTTデータビル アレア品川1F
GROUND FLOOR, NTT DATA BUILDING, AREA (PRONOUNCED A-REY-A) SHINAGAWA COMPLEX,
1-9-36 KONAN, MINATO
OPEN 11AM-11PM
WEBSITE
