“Otaku paradise” is the most appropriate way I could think of to describe Nakano Broadway. Short? Yes. But if we went for a longer description, it would just never end. A giant multi-floor shopping complex from the 昭和 (Showa) era, 中野ブロードウェイ (Nakano Broadway) teleports you into a nostaglic world of niche fashion, hobbies, and quaint cafés and restaurants. Some otakus consider Nakano Broadway to be their true Mecca, shunning Akihabara because of its mainstream-ness.
Manga and anime (vintage and current), along with their associated goods, go without saying. Cosplay? Do you even need to ask? How about dolls of all sizes (with accessories to match? Of course. Military apparel? Yup. High end audio/video equipment? Yep. Wanna sell/buy used jewellery? Got a handful of those stores too. Need a haircut? How about some wacky t-shirts? Shoes? Sushi? They’re all here.
In this video, we walk around the 2nd floor of Nakano Broadway. You’ll see some Mandarake stores (2nd hand otaku goods), some figurine and model stores, restaurants, and even a café by Takashi Murakami – an internationally known contemporary Japanese artist.
Here we walk around the 3rd floor. You’ll again see some Mandarake stores, but we have more book stores on this floor as well as a couple really really big comic stores. Towards the middle-end of the video, you’ll see some high-end pawn shops as well as stores selling high-end audio/video equipment.
On the 4th floor of Nakano Broadway, there are again a lot of Mandarake stores (in fact more than all the other floors). The first one you see is quite special because they’ve made the entrance look like the entrance to a 神道 (Shinto) Shrine, with the 鳥居 (torii) and all. At 2:23, you’ll see a small arcade.
In this video, we walk around the special 変屋 (Henya, literally meaning Strange Shop) on the 4th floor of Nakano Broadway. Just past the entrance built like the entrance to a 神道 (Shinto) shrine with the 鳥居(torii) is a magnificent collection of dolls, action figures, nostalgic paraphernalia, and statues from famous mangas and films. Definitely a must-visit for any Japan pop-culture fan worth their salt.
Here we stroll around the basement of Nakano Broadway, named プチパリ(Petite Paris). Don’t be fooled by the name though: you won’t feel like you’re walking through the City of Love when you’re there. Half of the floor is filled with miscellaneous apparel stores, massage booths, and a pharmacy. The other half is food-related; filled with sushi/sashimi shops, grocery stores, and small. hole-in-the-wall restaurants. Oh, there are also a few fortune teller stalls just to keep things interesting.
Photospheres
- On the first floor of Broadway, close to the entrance
- On the 2nd floor, in front of an 演歌(enka) music store
- On the 3rd floor, in front of a huge used manga store
- 3rd floor again, in front of a row of ガチャガチャ(gachagacha) machines which dispense toys in a capsule
- 4th floor, in front of 変屋 (Henya)
- Just inside 変屋(Henya), under the 鳥居(torii)
- Inside 変屋 (Henya) 1
- Inside 変屋 (Henya) 2
- Inside 変屋 (Henya) 3
- プチパリ(Petite Paris) food area
3GO 