Shimokitazawa

The neighbourhood is often compared with the backstreets of Ura-Harajuku and Koenji; smaller shop units and restricted vehicular access has limited its appeal to larger domestic and international fashion merchandisers, enabling independent retailers to survive.

The district consists of the streets immediately surrounding Shimo-Kitazawa Station, where the Odakyu Electric Railway and Keio Inokashira Lines intersect.

With numerous cafes, secondhand and vintage fashion[1] and recorded music outlets, Shimokitazawa remains popular with students and followers of Japanese youth subcultures.

Pre-redevelopment era Shimokitazawa featured as the setting for Shimokita Sundays  [ja:], a 2006 television comedy series starring Aya Ueto as a member of one of the many underground theatre troups found in the district.

An episode revolving around a member of a Shimokitazawa theatre troupe also appeared in the television series Solitary Gourmet, highlighting a well known Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki restaurant in the area.