Souvenir Shopping in Hamamatsu
Hamamatsu City is located in western Shizuoka Prefecture, a city rich in culture and history known for Lake Hamana and as a city of musical instruments. When visiting as a tourist, you’ll want to pick up local specialties and crafts as souvenirs. Hamamatsu offers a wide selection, from long-established traditional foods and sweets made with local ingredients to long-lasting confections and culturally valuable crafts.
Souvenirs are not only mementos of your trip but also precious items that allow you to share Hamamatsu’s charm with family, friends, and colleagues. Here, we introduce Hamamatsu City’s most recommended shopping spots and their distinctive products in detail.
Overview and Access to Hamamatsu Station
Hamamatsu Station is a key transportation hub where the Tokaido Shinkansen and conventional lines intersect, serving as a base for tourism and business in western Shizuoka Prefecture. The station area features a tourist information center, car rental services, and bus and taxi stands, enabling tourists to move smoothly. Additionally, the station building and grounds house numerous souvenir shops and restaurants, allowing visitors to purchase souvenirs even with limited time.
Main Souvenirs Available at Hamamatsu Station
Hamamatsu Station’s signature souvenir is “Unagi Pie.” This butter-flavored pie uses Hamamatsu’s famous eel extract, featuring the flavor of eel and a moist texture. Individually wrapped for easy carrying, it makes an ideal gift for colleagues and friends. Limited-size mini pies and stylishly designed packages are also available, offering visual appeal.
Other Recommended Items
Local Fruit Jams & Jellies: Jams made with Shizuoka-grown mikan oranges and strawberries feature a perfect balance of refreshing sweetness and tartness, perfect for breakfast or dessert.
Hamamatsu Hand-dyed Tenugui: Hand-dyed tenugui made using traditional dyeing techniques are beloved crafts for daily use or as interior decor.
Music-Motif Accessories: Hamamatsu is home to Yamaha and Kawai, making cute music-themed goods popular souvenirs.
Experience-based tea and souvenirs at Muramatsu Shoten
Shizuoka Prefecture is one of Japan’s leading tea-producing regions, blessed with rich natural surroundings and a warm climate. Its sencha and matcha teas are particularly renowned for their high quality, characterized by a fragrant aroma and refreshing taste. The tea leaves are hand-picked and carefully processed to preserve freshness and umami flavor. Shizuoka tea is not only enjoyed at home but also widely used as an ingredient in confections and sweets, making it a popular specialty product both within and outside the prefecture.
History and Features of Muramatsu Shoten
Muramatsu Shoten is a long-established tea specialty shop founded during the Meiji era, located in Naka -ku, Hamamatsu City. It handles high-quality tea leaves from Shizuoka Prefecture, offering not only sencha and matcha but also seasonal blend teas. The shop also sells tea ware and tea utensils, making it appealing to experience tea culture while selecting products.
How to Enjoy the Tea Kabuki Experience
A signature feature of Muramatsu Shoten is the Tea Kabuki Experience. This interactive activity challenges participants to identify multiple types of tea solely by their aroma, allowing them to learn about the differences in the scents and flavors of Japanese tea while enjoying the experience. After the experience, visitors can purchase tea leaves that match their preferences, taking home a special souvenir along with their travel memories.
Recommended Products Available for Purchase
Sencha & Matcha: Made with highly aromatic, fresh tea leaves. Also popular as gifts.
Matcha Sweets: Matcha financiers, cookies, chocolates, and more. Visually stunning and perfect for gifts.
Teaware & Tea Utensils: Matcha bowls, teapots, small plates, and other items featuring practical yet beautiful designs.
Meijiya Soy Sauce: Rich, Traditional Flavor
Soy sauce is a quintessential Japanese seasoning made by fermenting and aging soybeans, wheat, and salt. It adds umami, aroma, and color to dishes. Its production relies on fermentation processes using koji mold and yeast, with deep flavor developing through long, careful aging. In Shizuoka Prefecture, including Hamamatsu, long-established soy sauce makers founded during the Meiji era continue to uphold traditional methods, carefully selecting locally grown soybeans and wheat. Dark soy sauce is versatile for all types of cooking, characterized by its robust umami and aroma. Light soy sauce is ideal for simmered dishes and clear soups where a pale color is desired. Tamari soy sauce, with its rich, flavorful taste, is perfect for sashimi and grilled dishes. Recently, soy sauce-based dressings and sauces have also been developed, expanding its role as a beloved seasoning that broadens home cooking possibilities. Shizuoka soy sauce is not only a seasoning that enhances dishes but also a popular specialty product for gifts.
The History of Meidi-ya Soy Sauce
Meijiya Shoyu is a long-established soy sauce maker founded in Hamamatsu City during the Taisho era. We carefully select soybeans and wheat, then slowly brew them using traditional methods. Our signature feature is offering various types—dark soy sauce, light soy sauce, tamari soy sauce—allowing you to choose the perfect one for each dish.
Recommended Products as Souvenirs
Gift Set: A combination of dark soy sauce, light soy sauce, and dashi soy sauce. Ideal for home cooking or as a gift for cooking enthusiasts.
Dressings and Sauces: Soy sauce-based seasonings that effortlessly elevate everyday meals.
Mini Bottle Soy Sauce: Conveniently portable for travel and easy to sample.
In-Store Experience and Purchasing Tips
The store features a tasting corner where you can sample products before buying. Each item comes with usage examples and recipes, allowing you to start using them immediately after purchase.
Finally
Hamamatsu offers a wide array of appealing souvenirs, ranging from classic items easily purchased at the station to tea enjoyed alongside experiences at long-established shops, and even soy sauce crafted using traditional methods. What I find particularly charming about Hamamatsu souvenirs is that they allow you to experience the local culture and history, not just through taste or appearance. When visiting Hamamatsu, I encourage you to pick up some of these items to enrich your travel memories.
