The Art of Japanese Sweets at Okamatsu

Published: February 26, 2018

The vast array of confectionery available in Japan is well known and Koto-ku is no exception, with a whole host of venerable shops, both ancient and modern, plying their trade in the area. Just a few yards from Monzen-nakacho Station is local landmark Okamatsu, a Japanese confectionery maker that has been operating on the same spot for over a hundred years. On a recent bitterly cold afternoon third generation owner Mr. Yukio Saito took some time to discuss the history of his emporium and its products.

 

 

“My grandfather opened the shop in 1910,” said Mr. Saito. “He’d learned the trade at a famous Japanese confectioner’s called Okano Eisen and then decided to go into business for himself. His name was Matsujiro Saito; as was the custom in those days he took part of the name of his mentor’s shop and part of his own to create the name Okamatsu. I started working here with my family when I was 18, after I finished high school.”

 

 

The shop has a warm and comfortable atmosphere, redolent of Old Tokyo. “We make an assortment of sweets, some all year round and some depending on the season. For example, dorayaki and torayaki (stuffed pancake sandwiches) are regular items while sakuramochi and kuzuzakura are for the cherry blossom season,” he says.

 

 

“We make kashiwamochi for the Children’s Day (Kodomo no Hi) on May 5th, followed by mizuyokan (mashed azuki beans mixed with gelatin and served cold) for summer. In autumn it’s kuri manju (chestnut cakes) and kuri yokan (mashed azuki beans and chestnuts mixed with gelatin and served cold).”

 

 

But Okamatsu is perhaps best known for its monaka, a sandwich of crisp wafers around a filling of mashed azuki beans.

 

 

The wafers are made from sticky rice dough (mochi rice), baked in iron trays that imprint pictures on them. Okamatsu first made these monaka in 1924 in response to a newspaper appeal for “Eight views of Fukagawa.” They were selected by the newspaper as winners and have been in production ever since. Okamatsu uses azuki beans from Tokachi in Hokkaido, an area renowned for the quality of its produce.

 

 

The views include the lumber yards of Kiba in the rain, Mount Fuji, mist on the Onagi River, the autumn moon over Aioi Bridge, the evening bell at Reigan Temple and so on.

 

 

Mr. Saito kindly offers a dorayaki to taste. It’s wonderful, the pancakes soft around the edges but slightly firmer in the middle, lightly moist with honey. The azuki bean paste is rich but not overly sweet. Deliciously perfect for an afternoon or mid-morning treat at only 180 yen.

 

 

Okamatsu sells a variety of popular Japanese sweets, including the evergreen strawberry daifuku. You’d better hurry though as they are only available until April!

 

 

Mr. Saito is well known in the Japan confectionery world, having won awards at the largest Confectioners Exposition in the country.

 

 

As winter moves into spring sakura manju become more popular. These are steamed flour dough confections with salty cherry blossoms on top. Whatever the season, Mr. Saito has tasty treats on sale in his shop. If you’re in the area why not drop in to sample the real flavour of old-town Koto-ku!

 

 

 

Story and Photos by Stephen Spencer