Sasamoto

Omoide Yokocho is a ramshackle collection of tiny bars and eateries on the west side of Shinjuku Station, crammed between the railway tracks and the Ome-kaido. Some of the buildings here have survived the frequent fires and other disasters of past decades, as evidenced by the burns and similar damage visible on the walls. You'll find everything from yakitori joints to cafés and soba eateries lined up, but most of them are really boozing joints. Sasamoto is one such place, which has the benefit of a young manager who speaks excellent English, and who told us this hole-in-the-wall dates from 1945 – it certainly looks it, and the dark wood panelling probably hasn’t had a lick of varnish or wipe with a damp cloth since the Occupation. The menu is verbal. Best start with yakitori, but if you’re feeling adventurous and time your visit right, you will find some far more unusual dishes on the menu. These might include miso-flavoured, stewed giblets cooked in big woks, chicken giblet sashimi, intestines of various sorts, raw liver, cow uterus cooked with miso, and pork testicles. Faced with these options you may prefer to just have the onion soup and some more yakitori, plus of course some more bottled beer. Sasamoto’s a fun and lively place – one of many such options in the area.