Santoku Shinjuku Main — Supermarket in Shinjuku, Tokyo

Santoku Shinjuku Main is a branch of the Santoku chain, and what sets this one apart is its position on Shinjuku, a short walk from Shinjuku station, with a food floor that carries enough to cover a full meal rather than a snack. You walk in and the aisles are clean and easy to follow, spread over two floors.

The first thing to put in your basket is the tuna sashimi, sold in several varieties in the evening, including whole chunks at a discount. The prepared foods and bento boxes are the other reason to come: ready-made meals and lunch boxes that are convenient to carry back to a hotel room. Chicken skewers turn up too, tender enough to grab when you see them, and the store now stocks A2 milk.

The layout works in your favour. Two floors keep the food selection on one level and the rest upstairs, and the store has been renovated, so the aisles are clean and easy to navigate. Sunday mornings bring a market on the ground with vegetables and mushrooms at lower prices than the shelves; the line forms before it opens, and joining it at 9 AM means close to a 30-minute wait.

A basket lands somewhere between ¥1,000 and ¥3,000, and the timing is what keeps that figure down: come late in the evening for discounted sashimi and prepared food. Rice and household goods sit high, with 5kg of rice around ¥4,000.