What Did I Buy in Tokyo: 2024 Edition

I’ve been documenting the things I purchase in Japan for almost 20 years, and it’s really cool to see how my tastes have changed as I’ve grown up.

Back in 2008, when I went on a big tour of the whole country, it was a lot of keychains, clothes, beauty products, magazines, and Starbucks tumblers.

My trip in 2017 was different: I still bought magazines, beauty products, and clothes, but the magazines were coffee mags, not just fashion ones, and the clothing was Comme des Garçons and Yohji Yamamoto, not just thrift store finds. Also: sauces, salad dressings, and my favorite stationery brand, Delfonics.

In 2024, I went alone, and shopping was pretty much my goal—so I really made up for the years I missed and bought a lot of cool things.

Coffee

I have been buy coffee beans everywhere I visit since 2022. Unfortunately I did not like any of the beans I got in Japan - I think I just have different tastes that the Japanese.  Well, I had to try. 

Magazines

I have been buying Japanese magazines for years. My habits are mostly the same: fashion magazine with an emphasis on streetwear, coffee magazines, and now also Taiwan travel magazines.  

Food

I discovered my new favorite salad dressing ever at the market in Azabudai Hills. I also discovered that I really like Muji curry and am relieved that I can restock and order more in the US. 

Beauty Products

I discovered Le Labo in Tokyo after washing my hands with the best smelling soap in the world at Cafe Kitsune, only to realize that it was Le Labo, and that a store was mere footsteps away. I bought a lot, then realized that I can actually get it in the US too. Oh well. 

Japanese Beauty Products

I am not as into Japanese beauty products anymore, as I prefer Korres for skincare and Urban Decay for make up, but I forgot some brushes and lotion and essentials on this trip, so I bought them from a local cosmetics store.

Pride Merch

I had the good fortune for showing up in Tokyo on Pride week, totally unplanned. Last time I was at Tokyo Pride was in 2014. There was not merch for sale (not really) so we made our own T-shirts and painted them. This year Pride has become more commercial and mainstream, so there was a ton of merch. Of course I had to support my community and buy some shirts and a towel. 

Gifts

Japan is still my top destination for buying edible gifts. This time, a lot of my family members requested mochi and cookies, and cakes, so I had to make a special trip to Tokyo station to purchase these.

Delfonics Stationary

I was sad to discover that my favorite Delfonics store had closed, but the goods news is that they have expanded to having a space at many large department stores throughout Tokyo. Every since Delfonics started shipping to the US, I have not had the need to purchase so much from Japan, but I did find a few cool things. 

Gifts for my Daughter

This is the newest category on the list. Now that I have a young daughter, I cannot return home from a trip without getting her some gifts. I found lots of small cute things, and instead of giving them to her all at once, I give them out over time so she appreciates them.

Arabica of Tokyo

There are two cafés I didn’t include in my original post about new cafés in Tokyo: % Arabica. That’s because they’re so special, they deserve their own post.

I first discovered % Arabica when I visited Kyoto, where they started. During a short trip there in 2017, I managed to visit all three of their cafés. Since then, Arabica has received major investment and expanded globally. I’ve now visited their locations in Morocco, New York City, and Taipei.

At the time of writing this, there are only two shops in Tokyo—bizarrely, both are in the same mall, just four floors apart. This made visiting both incredibly easy, even if it meant I had two Kyoto lattes within the span of two hours.

One is located on the top floor of the Azabudai Hills mall, with both indoor and outdoor seating. 

The other Arabica is located on the ground floor of Azabudai Hills, near the TeamLabs exhibit. There’s very limited seating.