A complete guide to enjoying Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi

Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi is LIFE Shops that offers a collection of unique items with the keywords of reading and living. It is known as a place to spread Taiwanese culture, but in fact, it has a lot more to offer than that. This time, we asked staff member Asako Takeuchi about how to spend time and enjoy Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi.

Asako Takeuchi, Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi

This is what Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi is like!

Eslite was founded in Taiwan in 1989 as a specialist bookstore for humanities and art. It has developed into a cultural hub centered on reading, and in 2019, the first Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi in Japan opened on the second floor of COREDO Muromachi Terrace. The store offers unique values that combine the culture of Nihonbashi, which has continued since the Edo period, with Taiwanese culture.

The floors of Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi are broadly divided into zones for books and stationery, Shops, food, and LIFE goods, and the attached cafes and restaurants serve Taiwanese drinks and cuisine.

Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi Floor Map

Enjoy reading in the store

The first thing you should check out when you come to Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi is the book zone, which stocks over 70,000 books from Japan and Taiwan. The store places special emphasis on specialized books such as architecture and art, but also has a wide range of books in various genres, including general books and children's books.

Be sure to check out the "Eslite Selection" corner in the northeast of the floor! Each month, eight books are introduced that staff recommend as "must-reads" from Japan and Taiwan. The "Eslite Selection" is decided by periodically holding a presentation battle between staff members, but sometimes the presentations get too exciting and the meeting goes on for a long time. This corner is the soul of the store, filled not only with best-selling books but also with elaborate suggestions every time, so we hope you will check it out when you visit!

The "Eslite Selection" corner features books recommended by staff, which change monthly.

In addition, at "Seihin Seikatsu Nihonbashi", there are spaces throughout the store where customers can sit and read books. In Taiwan, sitting on the floor of a bookstore to read a book is a common sight. Some people even lie down to read (laughs). (Laughs) That is how much bookstores have become a place where people can relax on a daily basis. I hope that "Seihin Seikatsu Nihonbashi" will become like that. Nihonbashi The ideal bookstore we are aiming for is one that serves as a SAAD place for people who come to visit or work at Nihonbashi.

The reading space between the bookshelves is perfect for when you want to concentrate.

The children's book section has large chairs so that parents and children can enjoy themselves together.

Shops are also held regularly in the space, which has tables that can seat large groups.

Drinks purchased at the cafes "HAPPY LEMON" and "Wang Dechuan" in Eslite Nihonbashi can be taken out and brought to the reading space. Pick up a book that catches your eye, enjoy a drink and relax while reading!

"HAPPY LEMON" where you can casually enjoy Taiwanese drinks

"Wang De Chuan" offers authentic Taiwanese tea. If you are a first timer, we recommend the "tasting set."

A wide selection of Taiwan's most beloved sweets

The Eslite Spectrum Market area on the south side of the floor has a wide selection of everyday snacks that any Taiwanese person would have tried. For example, there is the national snack "Guai Guai" in Taiwan. "Guai Guai" means "good kid" in Japanese, and it is so popular in Taiwan among children and adults that there is an anecdote that engineers place it next to their computers to bring good luck so that programs will run properly.

"Guai Guai" "5-spice (Taiwanese spice) flavor" (left) and "Naiyu coconut flavor" (right)

My recommendation is a peanut snack called "Yikosuhuasenggongtang." It's perfect as a treat for yourself or as a nice souvenir! You can enjoy the rich aroma and flavor of the peanut cream made with Taiwanese peanuts. It's a very popular product on online shop, with some customers buying dozens of boxes at once. You'll be addicted to the crispy texture and crumbly mouthfeel, so please give it a try.

Takeuchi's top recommendation: Fuda Foods (Taiwanese food)'s "Eekosu Hua Sen Gong Tang"

Taiwanese craft beer and highballs are also popular

Promoting Taiwan's "unique" art and products

The "EXPO" corner, which stretches across the northern aisle of the floor, introduces products from various brands collected from all over Taiwan, as well as artwork by artists. Although these are not well known in Japan yet, we have selected them with the hope that they will one day take flight from "EXPO" to Japan and the world. This is a place where you can encounter "newness," such as artists who are likely to make a breakthrough and products that shine with individuality.

"EXPO" where tables are lined with unique items collected from all over Taiwan

A large collection of Shops with a Taiwanese feel and hands-on workshops where you can experience the craftsmanship of local craftsmen

There are about 10 Shops lined up on either side of the aisle in the northwest part of the floor. The inside of the aisle is Taiwanese shops, and the outside is Japanese shops, so you can enjoy shopping by going back and forth between the Japanese and Taiwanese shops. On the Taiwanese side, there are Shops selling classic pineapple cakes, perfumes, Chinese herbal medicine drinks, cosmetics, and more, while on the Japanese side, there are shops specializing in tenugui hand towels and metal goods.

Takeuchi is holding a pair of linen pants from the brand "Dr. Zhen's Everyday Wear." Apparently many of the staff at Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi are also fans of the brand.

Many Japanese Shops also hold Shops where you can try out dyeing or make accessories. For example, at Nihonbashi Glass Studio, you can make cut glass or blown glass pieces while listening to a lecture from a craftsman. The studio inside Shops has a kiln for melting glass, and Nihonbashi Glass Studio is probably the only place in Nihonbashi where you can find something this professional (laughs).

Nihonbashi Glass Workshop: Equipped with a Full-Scale Kiln

A hands-on workshop where you can create a variety of glass works

Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi offers a wide range of unique things and experiences, including books, food, products, and Shops. Of course, you can enjoy books, but we also think it's a place where you can discover all kinds of "interesting things" in between reading, so please come and visit!

Taiwan's technology comes together! "Taiwan Excellence Pop-up Store" now open

The "Taiwan Excellence Pop-up Store" is being held at Eslite Spectrum Nihonbashi until Monday, October 9. The store is the only one in Japan to display and sell 111 products from 20 representative Taiwanese brands, including products that have received the "TAIWAN EXCELLENCE" award, given to outstanding Taiwanese brand products, as well as the world's smallest air compressor and a zero-gravity, self-supporting pen.

For more information on "TAIWAN EXCELLENCE," click here