The famed Tsukiji Fish Market may have closed as Tokyo’s main operation in October 2018, but this new guy is well worth the visit if you want to take a peek inside one of the most respected seafood markets in the world. The main floor is trade-only, but that doesn’t mean you miss out on the fun. There are viewing platforms scattered throughout the complex to get a bird’s eye view of the millions of dollars’ worth of trade that comes through daily, as well as produce market stalls slinging katsuobushi, pickles, ponzu and more. Many of Tsukiji’s famed eateries moved along with the market, and there really is nothing like pulling up a chair at the legendary Iwasa for a breakfast don of ikura, sashimi or uni over warm rice, accompanied by a bowl of rich, savoury miso and green tea.

If you need proof that Japan does everything better, head to the food hall in any department store. Nihombashi Mitukoshi is Japan’s oldest department store, toting everything from high end designer goods to a multi-level food hall that will blow your mind. Here, you’ll find perfect peaches, the size of grapefruits, individually wrapped and boxed like jewellery…don’t even ask how much! More affordable gems come in the form of fruit sandos, studded with jewel-toned fruit, suspended in a cloud of cream, between pillows of sliced bread. Go for the sando, stay for the Chateau Mouton-Rothschild…if only just to look. 1 Chome-4-1 Nihonbashimuromachi, Chuo City, Tokyo 103-8001, Japan

Michelin-starred tempura exists, and it is every bit as light, crisp, and fleetingly perfect as you would expect. Here, in this unassuming 12-seater restaurant a stone’s throw from the high street high jinx of Ginza, you’ll find two generations of the Fukumachi family, some incredible produce, and a whole lot of oil. Both father and son are masters of coating everything from shiso leaf-wrapped Hokkaido uni to sweet prawns, conger pike eel and maitake mushrooms in the finest veil of tempura, ensuring a crunch that almost immediately evaporates, encasing perfectly steamed bites of seasonal delight. 2 Chome-5-2 Kyobashi, 中央区 Chuo City, Tokyo 104-0031, Japan

Convenience stores in Japan are in every way, superior. Each compact store will sell everything from the best sheet masks you never knew you needed, to condiments that any chef would froth over. And then there’s the refrigerated snack section. Sure, the karage is good, but no trip to Tokyo no matter who you are, is complete without an egg sando. And you don’t even need to be drunk for this to be the case. There’s just something about the softness of the bread, the perfect texture, flavour, and balance of the seasoned egg filling that makes you realise that simple pleasures are some of the best kind.

Gotta have something to strive for, right? We’re aware that every one of the 12 seats at Higashiazabu Amamoto is something even Tokyo locals wait years for, such is Amamoto-san’s reputation and skill at sushi omakase. Should you find yourself in the position to secure yourself a seat, accept. Because it just might change your life. Expect around 20 bites of perfection, from finely wrought okazu like raw prawns, dressed in ponzu and whipped Hokkaido uni, to Spanish mackerel with foie gras and kombu. Even and especially, the simple perfection of applying fish to flame and the genius to know what is enough. If you want to witness real genius and experience a truly transformative dining experience, you will find it right here. 1 Chome-7-9 Higashiazabu, Minato City, Tokyo 106-0044, Japan. The writer and photographer travelled as a guest of Plan Japan, planjapan.com.au