Tokyo · Akasaka
Toraya Akasaka
Toraya was founded in Kyoto at the end of the Muromachi period, and has supplied sweets to the Imperial Palace since the reign of Emperor Go-Yozei (1586 to 1611). In 1869, when the capital moved to Tokyo, the company followed the emperor and opened a shop here too, without closing the shop in Kyoto. The Akasaka shop is the main store, and it was fully rebuilt and reopened in 2018.
The product most linked to Toraya is yokan, a sweet bar made of red bean paste. It is sold in different sizes, from the small yokan to a large bar wrapped in a bamboo leaf. According to Toraya, unopened yokan keeps at room temperature for one year from the day it is made, and also one year after the date on the package.
On floor 3 is the Toraya Karyo tea room, with anmitsu, oshiruko (sweet bean soup) and light meals. In the basement is a gallery of the Toraya archive. The 83rd exhibition, on the advertising of sweet shops in the Edo period, is open 7 October to 30 November 2026, and entry is free.
Good to know
- A small yokan is a gift that survives the flight: it does not need refrigeration and does not spoil on the way.
- Opened yokan dries out: close the opening and eat it soon. According to Toraya, after about a week in the air the sugar crystallizes and mold may appear.
- At the tea room, last order can be earlier than 17:00 when it is busy.
- All floors are wheelchair accessible, and there is parking for 9 cars.
What is nearby
Approximate walking minutes from the entrance of Toraya Akasaka.
- HereToraya Akasaka
- ~4 min
Takahashi Korekiyo Memorial Park More to see
A small park with a pond in Japanese garden style, across Aoyama-dori from the Akasaka palace grounds. This is where the house of Takahashi Korekiyo, prime minister and finance minister, stood, and the house itself was moved to the Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum in Koganei. Free entry.
- ~11 min
Hotel New Otani Japanese Garden More to see
A Japanese garden of about 33 thousand square meters inside the outer moat of Edo Castle, with a 6-meter waterfall and a pond with about 350 carp. In the evening it is lit from about half an hour before sunset.
- ~12 min
Hie Shrine More to see
A shrine on a hill in Akasaka with a tunnel of red torii gates on the stairs (Tokyo's version of Fushimi, without the line).
- ~14 min
The Capitol Hotel Tokyu (Akasaka) More to see
A 251-room luxury hotel designed by Kengo Kuma, next to Hie Shrine in Nagatacho, near the parliament and the Prime Minister's residence.
- ~14 min
ORIGAMI, The Capitol Hotel Tokyu Food
An all-day restaurant on floor 3 of The Capitol Hotel Tokyu. The signature dishes are paiko-men (ramen with a fried pork chop) and nasi goreng, served since the days of the previous hotel on the same site. Not kosher.
- ~18 min
State Guest House, Akasaka Palace More to see
The official guest house of the Japanese government, open to the public on days published in the calendar on its website. The main building and garden ¥1,800, the garden only ¥300, with no advance booking. You enter by the West Gate, on the Yotsuya Station side. Opening can be canceled at short notice because of an official visit.