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As the South-North line of subway was opened last month, I can get to Azabu Jyuban by train. It is the next stop from Shirokane-Takanawa station where I ride on. This noon time, I went over there the first time by subway. I was surprised to see the magnificent Azabu Jyuban station. The subway went thorough about one hundred meters in deep under the ground. I have to change to next escalators one after another. When finally I exited from the underground, it was the entrance of famous Azabu Jyuban shopping street. At this time of day, there are few business man while many sightseeing groups of aged people are walking around. And I met a few foreign ladies with two or three children with them.
The main store of famous Mamegen (a years old beans cake store) is a modern and bright store where many aged got together to get the products. There are many varieties of tea cakes from roast peanuts, sugared beans, and to Senbei (Japanese cracker.) Their products are sealed into small transparent sacks. The customers are bringing around small open baskets and pick up products which they wish to have. Then they wait for their turn at cashiers in long lines. Their system is modern and efficient. To me every product looked delicious. I picked up many of them until the basket became full. I paid about 4,000 yen for them.
As I have heard there was a famous Taiyaki ( a fish shaped pan cake filled with bean jam) shop, I asked a pedestrian where it was and he told me just to turn to right around the corner of Mamegen.The Taiyaki shop is a narrow building with an ancient style sign board written as Sohonke Naniwaya (General Main Store of Naniwaya) on its roof. Customers were coming continuously and bought two or three pieces of cake. The master of shop was in a glass walled small kitchen with a heated oven, he cooked cakes after he received orders from customers. One piece is 150 yen. A shape of fish made of flour just like pan cake but it is heated up to become crisp. And then he put enough bean jam on it from head to tail. I bought two pieces, one for take out and another one for on the spot eating at its rear small restaurant with free tea service.
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