Tsukishima Nishinaka-Dori

Tsukishima is a relatively new city, established on reclaimed land next to Tokyo Bay between 1882 and 1893. Tsukishima Nishinaka-Dori runs through the center of the city, and it is also a popular tourist stop known as “Monja Street.” Presently, you can find around 85 monjayaki restaurants here.
Originally monjayaki was a snack made at dagashi-ya, small candy stores, where children would flock, and it was a simple treat made just by cooking a thin flour-based batter and topping with soy sauce. It was fun to write Japanese characters, moji, into the snack as it was cooking, earning it the name “moji-yaki,” and it’s said that the pronunciation eventually shifted to “monja.”