Ginza Tsubo-Yakiimo : Sweet Potato Shop in Tokyo

Only one type of food is sold in GinzaTsubo-Yakiimo – sweet potatoes, slow-roasted in Japanese traditional pots. Autumn is said to be the season for Japanese sweet potatoes. So for this visit to Tokyo, we had to visit this place which is said to sell the sweetest sweet potatoes in Tokyo, Japan.

The Ginza Sweet Potato Shop

Amidst the glitz and glamour of Ginza in Tokyo, there are small lanes and small businesses to explore and to experience. Ginza Tsuboyaki Imo is one such place. It has quite a central Ginza location. Five minutes walk from Ginza station and a few minutes from the trendy GINZA SIX mall we wrote about in an earlier post. But it is in one of the quieter lanes that needed Google to help us find it. The small shop front in a small building – the Ginza 7 Building could be easily overlooked if we were not looking out for it. But sufficient people know of this sweet potato shop as we observed a steady flow of customers while we were there.

Tradtional jars in which the potatoes are baked line the passageway into the shop.

According to the website, the sweet potatoes are baked for three hours in the pots with charcoal. No sugar is added and the sweetness is all natural. “Aged sweet potato” is used which is said to bring out the sweetness. Once cooked, they can be eaten hot and freshly baked, chilled, or frozen.

Walking past the row of pots, we reach the small shop space which is simply decorated. A small bench and some chairs are available for customers who wish to eat the sweet potatoes hot and fresh from the oven.

Orders are taken and payment made at the counter.

Ginza Tsubo-Yakiimo Prices and Menu

The menu is simple as there is only one type of food – sweet potato, available in three sizes: Whole piece (¥1,200 each, warm​ ​only), half  piece (¥650 each, warm or frozen) and a quarter piece (¥450​ ​each, warm or ​frozen).　Here are pictures of the Ginza Tsubo-Yakiimo menu and the three sizes on display.

Ginza Tsuboyaki Imo – like firm marshmallow

We bought a warm whole piece to be eaten in the hotel about 30 minutes later. The size of the sweet potato looked like it was around 20 cm long and felt heavy. At the price of 1,200 yen, it was rather pricey but quality Japanese produce tend to be priced accordingly. It survived the journey well and was still warm when we started eating it.

Breaking the sweet potato into half exposed a rich orange interior. It was indeed very sweet but not much sweeter than other sweet potatoes that we had tried in Japan before. What we thought was quite different was the texture of this sweet potato from Ginza. It was dense and sticky, more like firm marshmallow than potato. We think this will work very well as a dessert. Viewing it in this way, it did not seem too expensive. A slice of cake from a nice Tokyo patisserie will cost as much, but without the distinct flavours of this sweet potato. Which may explain why they have one drink item on the menu – Tsubo-imo latte. Perhaps this is substitute for coffee and cake after lunch.

Ginza Tsubo-Yakiimo
Chuo City, Ginza, 7 Chome−6−4 GINZA7BLDG 1階
Tokyo, Japan

Opening hours
Tue-Fri: 12 noon – 10 pm
Sat & Sun & Public HolidaY: 12 noon – 6 pM
Closed on Monday. Summer holidays and New Year’s holidays.

Nearest Tokyo Subway Stations
Ginza Station, 5 minutes walk from Exit C3
Hibiya Station, 9 minutes walk from Exit A13

Website