A new ‘corner store’ opened in Harajuku in April
Tokyu Plaza Harajuku, also known as Harakado, opened on April 17, 2024 at the Jingumae intersection along Omotesando Street in central Tokyo. The brand new 9-story facility recreates a space where creators and creatives can gather, in a nod to the time from the mid 1950s till the 1970s when the Harajuku Central Apartment block, which used to stand in the area, became known as a hub where creatives lived and had their headquarters.
Harakado is diagonally across from its sister facility the Tokyu Plaza Omotesando or Omokado - formerly known as the Tokyu Plaza Omotesando Harajuku - which opened almost 12 years ago to the day on April 18, 2012. Kado translates to corner, and both Harakado and Omokado refer to their locations at the Jingumae intersection along Omotesando Street. Omokado is best known for its mirrored entrance, which makes for an interesting photo subject.
Retail shops offering an eclectic mix of small design labels and well known brands can be found from the ground floor through to the third. An interactive art space can be found on the fourth floor. The fifth and sixth floors are where majority of the restaurants are located, and cafes can be found on the lower floors.
An outdoor terrace offering nice views of the Jingumae junction is located from the 5th-7th floors. Terrace seats are available on the 5th and 6th floors; some restaurants offer take out, which visitors can get to enjoy outdoors.
The basement floor contains Kosugiyu, a public bath and a branch of the one which opened in 1933 in Koenji, a neighbourhood about ten minutes by train west of Shinjuku. The presence of public baths were quintessential in Japanese neighbourhoods until bathtubs at home became commonplace. Nevertheless, public baths have stood the test of time, albeit dwindling in numbers. The opening of Kosugiyu in Harakado brings back a touch of nostalgia and fills an otherwise missing service spot in the Harajuku area. Kosugiyu in Harakado will be open to the general public from May 13. Until then, it is open only to those who study, live and/or work in the Jingumae area. It costs 520 yen to use the baths at Kosugiyu; towels are available for rent.
Access
The closest station to Tokyu Plaza Harajuku and Tokyu Plaza Omotesando is Meiji-jingumae "Harajuku" Station on the Chiyoda and Fukutoshin subway lines. Exits 4 and 7 are the most convenient for accessing Tokyu Plaza Harajuku. Alternatively, Harajuku Station on the JR Yamanote Line is approximately five minutes away on foot.
