Kamon Rakuza

Turn into a backstreet in a part of Kawagoe lined with stately warehouses and you will find the quiet Teramachi Street. Along this street lies a warehouse of white plaster, Kamon Rakuza. Here, one can brush shoulders with merchants and artisans specializing in brewing soy sauce and local sake, in making dango (sweet dumplings), and senbei (type of rice crackers), and in glassblowing. There is a gathering of shops ranging from long-established shops dedicated to preserving traditional recipes, to shops that have their eyes on new products. If you book in advance, you can go on a tour inside the soy sauce factory and the sake distillery, or view senbei making, for free. The second floor of the senbei shop is a warehouse that is now a cultural asset of Kawagoe City, and displays pictures, photos and handmade works. It is a 15- minute walk from Kawagoe Station on the JR Saikyo Line. Alternatively, you can take the Tobu bus bound for Shinmeicho-shako at the east exit, get off at the Nakacho Station bus stop, and walk for 1 minute.