Singer Rina Sawayama has lived the Tokyo double life — born in Japan, raised in the UK, and back in the city for a two-year stint that clearly left a mark. Asked to map out her perfect weekend for Condé Nast Traveler, she delivered a refreshingly unprecious itinerary: farm-to-table pizza, communal karaoke, convenience-store fried chicken and an eight-floor stationery store.
Her night starts at Pizza 4P's in Azabudai Hills, which is hard to book — you have to phone ahead — and is known for its burrata and nori-topped pies. Sawayama is firmly in the camp that Japan does pizza better than anywhere outside Italy. From there it's Tremolo, a karaoke bar with an open room where strangers sing together, then a friend's small club called HVEN, which she rates for its punchy, crisp sound system. The night ends, as so many do, at a Family Mart: Famichiki fried chicken, a Ukon ginseng shot and a Pocari Sweat, a combo she swears kills the hangover before it starts.
Slow mornings are for tofu at Sorano (locations in Shibuya and Ebisu), a head spa, and wandering Japanese malls — Ginza 6, or just Muji and Tokyu Hands. Matcha comes from Wasachi in Roppongi, run by her friend Takuma, where she says you'll find the best matcha latte of your life; Anna Sawai clearly agrees, since she also featured it in a Vogue video. For a hungover browse, she heads to Itoya in Ginza, eight floors of stationery and her personal weakness.
Music is non-negotiable. Beyond Tremolo, her go-to is Rainbow Karaoke in Shibuya — clean rooms, good for groups, and she'll happily book a solo room to sing out stress. Fashion-wise she points to the Comme des Garçons, Yohji Yamamoto and Junya Watanabe flagships, the long-running Harajuku concept store Gr8, and vintage shops including Ragtag, Brand Off, Brand Collect Vintage in Omotesando, Casanova in Ginza and Amore in Aoyama. Her tip: skip shops with no reviews (they're often fake) and use Tablelog for food, where anything above 3.5 is genuinely good because Japanese reviewers don't mess around.
Drinks run through her itinerary too — she's Haku vodka's first brand ambassador, so she takes this seriously. Bar Legacy in Shibuya tops her list with gin and vodka martinis she calls the best she's ever tried, plus a pistachio "Italian martini" and a dashi martini that inspired her own Haku serve. The SG Club (with a tomato basil martini in its basement Sip bar) and Ishinohana in Shibuya round out the list.
Why it matters: this is a local's itinerary that skips the obvious temple-circuit clichés in favour of what Tokyo actually does best — obsessive craft, honest food, and contradictions that coexist peacefully. It suits travellers who want a mix of late nights and slow mornings, and who'd rather take tips from someone who lived in the city than from a top-ten list. Bring a notebook; you'll leave Itoya with one.
