Inside the Secret World of Japanese Snack Bars
21st January 2026
BBC, a Voice of the Crust.
Some 100,000 of these small dives are hidden in plain sight across Japan. Now, travellers are finally discovering these locals-only hangouts – and the beloved “mamas” who run them.
I didn’t plan on having my fortune read by a matchmaking “mama” on my most recent visit to Tokyo. But after climbing to the second floor of a cozy sunakku (snack bar) called Aeru in the Shinbashi neighbourhood, the proprietress and owner, Urara, smiled coyly as she pulled a Knight of Wands from her tarot deck.
“You’re craving passion and protection… in a man,” Urara told me, as I nibbled chilli-flavoured rice crackers and deep-fried dough sticks slathered in brown sugar.
“I’ll be sure to let my husband know that,” I replied with a wry smile.