Otsuka 大塚

Otsuka sits on the Yamanote loop between Ikebukuro and Sugamo, and almost no tourist itinerary stops here. That's the appeal: it's an ordinary, lived-in north-central Tokyo neighborhood with a vintage streetcar (the Toden Arakawa Line) running through it — and a one-Michelin-star ramen shop that draws pilgrims who'd otherwise never visit.