The dumplings at Namco Namjatown's dumpling villiage were small enough that a customer could practically sample each kind. Namjatown is a kooky food themed-park inside the Sunshine City shopping complex in Ikebukuro. (Trevor Andersen/Stars and Stripes)
The dumplings at Namco Namjatown's dumpling villiage were small enough that a customer could practically sample each kind. Namjatown is a kooky food themed-park inside the Sunshine City shopping complex in Ikebukuro. (Trevor Andersen/Stars and Stripes)
This tray of ice cream at Namjatown's Ice Cream City features these flavors: sea salt, miso ramen, avocado gelato, garlic, whiskey and rum raisin ice cream. The miso ramen ice cream had bits of noodle inside. (Trevor Andersen/Stars and Stripes)
Ice Cream City in Tokyo's Namjatown offers a large selection or crazy flavors that its brochure describes as "animal and other motifs." (Trevor Andersen/Stars and Stripes)
Kid's hunt for ghosts with state-of-the-art ghost hunting equipment in the Grudge Inn portion of Namjatown in the Sunshine City shopping complex in Ikebukuro. (Trevor Andersen/Stars and Stripes)
Even a Japanese translator could not understand how the "Explosive Mosquito Killing Mission" ride at Tokyo's Namco Namjatown worked. (Trevor Andersen/Stars and Stripes)
These "spiders" with human heads at Namjatown in Tokyo might just march into your nightmares. (Trevor Andersen/Stars and Stripes)
There are plenty of activities for children at Namco Namjatown, a large food-themed park inside Tokyo's Sunshine City shopping center. Here, a child roasts a fake piece of meat over a fake fire. (Trevor Andersen/Stars and Stripes)
One of the many eating areas at Namco Namjatown in Tokyo. Much of the park is decorated in a traditional Japanese style. (Trevor Andersen/Stars and Stripes)
A science ride at Namjatown in Tokyo. The ride operators wear lab coats so you know the science it legitimate. (Trevor Andersen/Stars and Stripes)
Weird.
There’s no other way to explain Namjatown, a food-themed amusement park in Tokyo.
The attraction is tucked away inside the Sunshine City shopping complex in Ikebukuro, and for the location, it’s surprisingly large.
Visiting Namjatown feels similar to walking through a giant haunted house; except instead of using monsters and ghastly creatures to scare you, they serve you things like beef tongue ice cream.
Oh, there are ghosts, too.
The Grudge Inn, the ghostly part of the park, is based on Japanese folklore. Here, you can run around trying to take photos of ghosts with rented ghost-hunting equipment. The equipment looks like it came out of a Ghostbusters movie and it makes noise to let you know when you’re near enough to a ghost for a photo. As far as I know the ghosts were imaginary, but I couldn’t be sure. Along the walls are little statues of spiders with human faces that will visit you in your nightmares.
I brought along a Japanese friend to translate and help me understand what was happening. He was of no help at Namjatown.
The tiny but delicious dumplings at Gyoza Stadium, along with a pint of beer, made the crazy go down easier.
Then we made our way to Ice Cream City, where we ate several bizarre flavors of ice cream including miso ramen and whiskey. The whiskey was delicious and boozy, while the miso ramen was gross — there were chunks of noodles in it.
The park is mainly for Japanese children, but at lunchtime on a Tuesday it was full of college students, too.
If you don’t speak Japanese, you won’t understand much. If you do speak Japanese, you’re just as likely to be confused.
Either way, chances are you’ll have a good time, some tasty Japanese food and quite a story to tell your friends.
Namco Namjatown Directions Namco Namjatown is located in the Sunshine City shopping complex in east Ikebukuro, Toshima, Tokyo, Japan. The park is an eight-minute walk from Tokyo’s Higashi-Ikebukuro station, a three-minute walk from the Ikebukuro station and a four-minute walk from the Higashi-Ikebukuro4-chome station. Address: 170-0013 Tokyo, Toshima, Higashiikebukuro.
Times Open 10 a.m.-10 p.m. daily year round; final admission 9 p.m.; last food orders at 9 p.m.
Costs Entry costs 500 yen for adults (junior high students and older) and 300 yen for ages 4 to elementary school students. A Namja Passport, or ticket offering mostly free attractions, costs 2,900 yen for adults and 2,300 yen for children. Food prices start at 1,000 yen for dumplings and 1,000 yen for a beer.
Food Specialties from Japanese restaurants ranging from dumplings at Gyoza Stadium to ice cream at Ice Cream City flavored with, as the park’s brochure puts it, “animal and other motifs.” There is also a market that offers food to buy and take home.
Information Phone: 03-5950-0765. The park’s website is www.namja.jp, in Japanese. For information in English, go to www.namco.co.jp/tp/namja/pdf/english_guide.pdf.
