Nakano Broadway Guide: Tokyo’s Subculture Paradise

Nakano Broadway is a shabby, quirky department store in Tokyo. A subculture haven, the complex is an institution in the underrated area of ​​Nakano, accessible via a stroll to the rather grandiosely named Sun Mall from one side. It can be quite daunting if you don’t know where to start.

Nakano Broadway is famous for its collection of anime shops, but it also consists of all sorts of other things: antiques, bookstores, bric-a-brac, record stores, kimonos, its famous ice cream and even a key-cutting machine.

This guide will give you a brief overview of Nakano Broadway, past and present. That is, what Nakano Broadway was and is like, and what you can find there.

History of Nakano Broadway

Founded in 1966, Nakano Broadway was originally designed as an upscale department store selling luxury fashion items for the upper echelons of society. It is a 10-story building, with the lower five floors open to the public and the upper floors housing expensive apartments overlooking the magnificent Nakano development. In fact, even today, the upper floors are reserved for residential use only, and the secret garden on the roof remains exclusive. It has a swimming pool, well-manicured walkways, and pristine flower beds.

By 1980, in addition to luxury goods and high-end fashion stores, a second-hand comic book store, Mandarake, opened on the third floor. The brand flourished, and in the 1990s, as the Japanese economic bubble burst and surrounding luxury stores closed, Mandarake began to expand.

Soon, many luxury brands disappeared from Nakano Broadway. In their place were shops that complemented Mandarake.

Today, Nakano Broadway’s rich history is told through its diverse array of shops and restaurants.

Floor Guide

It’s hard to pinpoint an exact theme for each floor. In short, there is no theme. In the basement, though, you’ll find more corporate branding and lots of restaurants and food places.

On the second floor you will find many collectibles including antiques, cards and Homebody gear.

From that point on, it was basically free for everyone.

Right of use

Note: The escalator on the first floor goes directly to the third floor, skipping the second floor. If you want to shop on the second floor, you need to take the stairs.

Anime Store

There is a Mandarake store on almost every floor of Nakano Broadway. From comic book stores to toy stores with giant aliens outside, Mandarake is hard to miss.

There are also many private collectors and enthusiasts who own their own shops.

Subculture Collectibles and Antiques

In this complex you can find every imaginable collectible subculture, from antique doll shops (where eyes follow you everywhere) to Kewpie dolls (Kewpie Egg Babies), anyone?

Of course, thanks to the numerous Mandarake shops, there are also every kind of figurines and collectible toys you can think of.

Fashion

Nakano Broadway is rooted in fashion, so it’s no surprise that there are many shops selling the latest fashions as well as some older styles. There’s market-style clothing on the first floor, ramen socks on the fourth floor, a second-hand kimono shop in the basement, and a store specializing in Sukajan The jacket is placed on top.

Luxury watches

Nakano Broadway is also an unexpected center of Tokyo’s second-hand watch culture, where you can even find expensive vintage watches worth millions of yen.

There are even shops selling antique dolls

Sex Shop

Sex does sell. At least two stores on Nakano Broadway sell sex toys. Anything else you can think of that has to do with sex, except the act itself.

Restaurants and Cafes

Going deeper into the building, you can find some high-quality food. In the basement, there are hand-rolled udon noodles and the famous eight-color ice cream. On the second floor, there is Kohrinbo, a 40-year-old Taiwanese restaurant. Two floors above, there is the Instagram cafe of artist Takashi Murakami.

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