beyond the auction
The market walk: what's worth your twenty minutes
Toyosu isn't only the auction floor — the specialty shops around it are where professional cooks actually shop.
Reserve the tuna auction tour ↗What the walk covers
| Stop | What it's for |
|---|---|
| Knife shops | Professional-grade Japanese knives |
| Tea merchants | Tea sold to restaurants and households alike |
| Kitchen suppliers | Equipment and ingredients for working chefs |
| Fish-purchasing experience | Buying fish yourself, with your guide's help |
Past the auction floor
Once the bidding winds down, the tour moves into the streets and buildings around the wholesale halls, where shops serve the professional kitchens that buy from the market every day.
The knife shops
Several shops specialise in professional Japanese knives, the kind sushi chefs and home cooks alike come to Toyosu specifically to buy.
Tea and kitchen supplies
Alongside the knives, merchants sell tea and the everyday equipment that keeps a working kitchen running.
Buying fish yourself
With your guide's help, you can buy fish directly — a sushi chef nearby can prepare what you buy for an extra fee, or you can simply take it with you.
Why this part matters
The auction is the headline, but the market walk is where most of Toyosu's working relationships with Tokyo's restaurants actually happen, day in and day out.
Timing it
This stretch of the morning moves at a slower pace than the auction itself, after the adrenaline of the bell and the bidding.