Head to the Toyosu Market and Tsukiji outside market, hubs of Japan’s food culture

The crowning jewel of the market is getting to see the tuna auctions. Seeing the traders evaluate the rows and rows of fish with stern looks on their faces and then launch into action as soon as the bell sounds in a quick, dynamic, no-nonsense battle for the best price is truly a memorable experience. The electricity in the air is palpable. You are free to watch the tuna auctions from the second-floor corridor, but you can also enter the lottery ahead of time for reservations for the first-floor deck of the Fisheries Wholesale Market Building for an even closer vantagepoint. Tickets are available for ten-minute timeslots between 5:45 AM and 6:15 AM, and can be applied for online.
Both the Fruit and Vegetables Building and the Fisheries Intermediate Wholesale Market Building have second-floor observation corridors where you can watch the trading as well. Because these are professional specialty arenas not designed for tourists, visitors are not allowed to enter the first-floor transaction areas.

Don’t miss Toyosu’s fascinating professional wholesaler tool shops and market cuisine

In addition to facilities for industry professionals, the Toyosu Market is also set up with shops and sales aimed at everyday visitors. The Uogashi Yokocho area on the fourth floor of the Fisheries Intermediate Wholesale Market Building has nearly seventy specialty shops where food professionals who frequent the market shop. You’ll find everything from food stores specializing in seasonings, dried fish flakes, pickles, and Japanese omelets to knife and cooking utensil stores, pharmacies, and more. Seeing this extensive lineup of everything professionals might want makes for a fascinating experience for visitors as well. There are also countless eateries where you can enjoy delicious cuisine made with only the freshest market ingredients. In addition to the 22 restaurants on the third floor of the Fisheries Intermediate Wholesale Market Building, there are an additional twelve in the Management Facilities Building and three in the Fruit and Vegetables Building. Get your fill of sushi, eel, Chinese food, Western cuisine, and much more. The traders also frequent these restaurants when they’re finished working, so it can get extremely crowded around lunchtime. Hours vary at each establishment, but many are open early in the morning—making it the perfect place to grab breakfast or an early lunch. Note that the market is closed on Sundays and public holidays, so plan your visit around it. There are other market closure days occasionally as well, so be sure to visit the website and take note of them before you go.

The “outside” scene at Tsukiji is still going strong 

The move to Toyosu signaled the end of 83 years of history for the Tsukiji Market. But Tsukiji was originally divided up into “inside” and “outside” market areas, and it’s actually only the inside area that has relocated. Some five hundred shops continue to operate in the outside market—from specialty grocers offering seafood, meat, seaweed, dried foods, and more to shops selling knives and other cooking utensils. The heyday of Tsukiji Market lives on in this bustling shopping district.
Once the inside market was moved to Toyosu, a new hotspot was born: Tsukiji Uogashi. It consists of two structures, the Odawara-bashi Building and the Kaiko-bashi Building. Each has about sixty shops on their respective first floors that serve as intermediate wholesalers. They sell to commercial professionals between 5 AM and 9 AM in the morning, and to the general public after that—so you can head in and enjoy some shopping yourself.