Kintame, a pickle shop from Kyoto, has a restaurant in Monzen-Nakacho. The walk up the pedestrian path towards the Tomioka Hachimangu temple is a reminder that this is shitamachi—characterful old Tokyo. The path is lined with shops selling osembei rice crackers and Tsukudani sweet, salty sea vittles from the neighborhood of Tsukuda on the nearby Sumida River. Inside the rustic restaurant, diners sit around an irori hearth that heats an iron kettle.

If you think a meal of pickles is all salty veggies, you’re in for an education—and a treat. The variety of tastes and textures is mind-boggling: Aromas vary from an earthy fuki no to (butterbur bud) to a minty shibazuke (myoga, or Japanese ginger, and shiso), to the citrusy yuzu daikon; flavors contrast from delicate bamboo to burnt caramel Narazuke (from Nara) and sweet umeboshi; textures range from crunchy daikon and tender fish to a slippery konbu; and the rainbow of colors is a delight for the eye.

Ochazuke (rice in green tea), Kintame’s signature dish, includes a variety of pickles—more than 12 on my most recent visit. 

A personal favorite is fish, either salmon or gindara (sablefish cod), pickled in either miso or sake lees and lightly grilled. The best way to end the meal is with chirimenjako (whitebait) and umeboshi over rice with a cup of green tea, made using water drawn from the iron pot in the hearth.

There is often a queue on weekends, so consider coming for a late lunch or early dinner. Kintame is the perfect place to eat alone, and the service is friendly. The pickles and rice are both tabehodai (all you can eat)—a bargain at ¥1,500 as part of the ochazuke set, which also includes fish. Anything you are particularly enchanted with can be bought at the store next door.