When you think of Japan’s favorite carbohydrate, you probably think of rice, right? Guess again! Since 2014, we’ve started consuming more and more bread, even more than rice! We love bread, and we love western-style breakfasts, too.

If you find yourself craving some yeasty goodness, I recommend these bread shops around Kanazawa. All are close to sightseeing spots!

Coya

If you’re not paying attention, you might miss this minimal sign, styled “COYA.” The entrance may be plain, but the enticing smell of baking bread will call you in from the street. The space in which customers can move is quite small. Even so, it’s packed with different kinds of bread, rolls and other baked goods.

I chose a sausage roll for 150 yen, cranberry prosciutto for 180, a French baguette with chocolate chips for 220 and a small walnut and cheese loaf with cheese black pepper for 250. I was delighted to find such one of the more interesting and delicious bread shops so close to my hotel!

The second floor is open to customers on Sundays. It’s often a lovely café space, but depending on the circumstances, you might find it’s an exhibition space! The last time I went, they had some handmade ceramics displayed.

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Eden

You wouldn’t think there was such a lovely little shop in an old apartment like this. The layout is typical of Japanese apartments, but it’s been partially renovated as a soup shop!

Soup is Eden’s main selling point with an emphasis on seasonal vegetables. It’s warmly decorated inside with many details, like the chairs that once served as church pews or desks that had belonged to a school.

You can choose between a 600 yen or 900 yen soup-of-the-day set. The former comes with one of Coya’s wares —Yes, the same Coya from above!—and the latter with two mini sandwiches.

Ingredients change seasonally. When I went in midsummer, I savored a chilled corn soup, and I’ve also had the pleasure of their vichyssoise. Both were rich and naturally sweet. I inquired if any sugar was used to enhance the sweetness, but the owner said they never use it. That’s impressive!

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Saka no Ue Bakery

This bakery shop is near one of Kanazawa’s popular sightseeing spots, the Ninja Temple.

Saka no Ue means “hilltop” in Japanese. If you walk up the stairway you can look right over the Sai River. Walk along the level street, and you will see even more temples. Both directions make for a nice stroll.

Old fashioned Japanese bread is light and soft, though lately, European styles of “hard” bread, with their dense flavor and crunchy crusts, have become popular. This bakery shop offers about twenty baked goods, including both Japanese and European styles of bread.

This unique cube-shaped sandwich is their best selling item, which they call “Taro’s Anpan.” The bread with Japanese sweet beans and lightly salted butter make a sumptuous combo. Don’t let it sit too long, or it will melt! Despite being small, it fills you up easily. Take your time with the three pieces of sugar-crusted rusk cake. (I’d already eaten one before I remembered to snap a photo!)

I enjoyed their melon pan and circle sucre with sugar butter, but their brioche nanterre is my favorite!

Saka no Ue has a couple of bread shops in Kanazawa! A limited-selection bakery is located in the Cross Gate shopping complex near the west exit of Kanazawa Station. If you’re too rushed to visit the original store, swing buy here to grab a taste before your next destination!