What to Eat in Kawagoe: Local Food Guide

Kawagoe runs on sweet potato — it's in the ice cream, the chips, the tarts and the lattes — but the town also has a serious traditional side: it's long been known for unagi (grilled eel). Graze the sweet stuff as you walk, and sit down for eel if you want one proper meal.

What to order

• Sweet-potato treats: soft serve, chips, tarts, and even sweet-potato beer — the town's obsession
• Unagi: Kawagoe's traditional specialty; sit-down eel restaurants line the old town
• Dagashi from Candy Alley: cheap, nostalgic Japanese sweets by the bagful
• Street snacks on Kurazukuri street: croquettes, dango, senbei
• Koedo coffee and matcha in a converted-warehouse café

Local tips

Graze the sweet-potato snacks while walking, and save your appetite for one proper unagi lunch — the eel places are the town's real culinary heritage and can have a wait at peak times. Candy Alley is cash-friendly and fun for picking up cheap souvenirs to nibble.