Olivia Munn’s five favourite places in Tokyo


By Abbie Kozolchyk
New York Times
Sushi Gotoku Shibuya is one of Olivia Munn’s recommended spots for dining out in Tokyo. Photo / Noriko Hayashi, The New York Times

The actress, who stars in the new Apple TV+ series Your Friends & Neighbours, guides a treasure hunt though the city where she spent much of her childhood.

The baronial manors, rolling lawns and private clubs in the fictional suburban backdrop of the new Apple TV+ series Your Friends & bear little resemblance to the buzzing sidewalks, neon lights and hidden warrens of Tokyo. But for actor Olivia Munn, who plays an outsider-turned-socialite on the show, her childhood years in the city helped inform the role.

At age 8, Munn, now 44, moved from Oklahoma City, where she was born, to Yokota Air Base in Tokyo, with her mom, then stepfather (an Air Force major) and four siblings. Suddenly, she was the odd kid out, “thrust into new worlds” where she became determined to find her place, she said in a recent video interview. “I really got good at observing people.”

Over the better part of a decade, she explored the now Instagram-famous alleys of Omoide Yokocho, where packed, tiny restaurants served “the most amazing yakisoba”; teeming Harajuku, where “everyone dressed up like anime” on Sundays; the warren of games and gadgetry in the Akihabara electronics district, where she and her brother combed through the bins for Casio watches; and Mt Fuji, about 95km away but visible from the city’s high-rises, where she and her family twice hiked to the summit and were rewarded with steaming ramen and stunning views.

Munn moved back to the United States at 16 and attended the University of Oklahoma before going on to a career that has included the HBO series The Newsroom and the superhero blockbuster X-Men: Apocalypse. Although she minored in Japanese, her language skills have slipped a bit, she said, but “it all comes back to me” with a little practice when she makes one of her regular trips back to Tokyo.

Olivia Munn is married to the comedian John Mulaney, and they have two young children. Photo / Krista Schlueter, The New York Times
Olivia Munn is married to the comedian John Mulaney, and they have two young children. Photo / Krista Schlueter, The New York Times

And now that she and her husband, comedian John Mulaney, have two children, 3-year-old Malcolm and 7-month-old Méi, Tokyo tops the couple’s international travel list. “I would really like them to experience and absorb the structure there, the patience there and the politeness there,” Munn said.

A few of these places might well be perfect for kids. Others will require some babysitting while the grown-ups hit the town.

1. Hakuhinkan Toy Park

The four-story Hakuhinkan Toy Park in the Ginza district has around 200,000 items for sale, including games, dolls, puzzles and action figures. Photo / Andrew Faulk, The New York Times
The four-story Hakuhinkan Toy Park in the Ginza district has around 200,000 items for sale, including games, dolls, puzzles and action figures. Photo / Andrew Faulk, The New York Times

As even a casual observer of Hello Kitty or Pokémon knows, Japan takes toy culture to new heights, and Munn is a fan. Her favourite monument to the make-believe is Hakuhinkan Toy Park in the Ginza district, a four-storey megastore where you’ll find worlds (and subworlds) of action figures, plush toys, race cars, games, dolls and puzzles, as well as the occasional pop-up magic show. Despite the daunting number of items for sale – about 200,000 at last count – “it is worth going through methodically,” she advised. “You’ll find some really cool things that you’ve never seen.”

2. Ginza Tsutaya Books

Not far from Hakuhinkan Toy Park, this art-heavy bookstore with a gallery, a stationery department and a cafe is another of Munn’s beloved hunting grounds. She recommends stopping in even if you don’t read Japanese because so many of the books are works of art. Her most prized possession from the shop: a fortune-telling book by former Japanese TV personality Kazuko Hosoki, who holds the Guinness World Record for bestselling author in the genre. “She was so brutally honest, she got a lot of hate for it,” Munn said. “But also, people were obsessed with it because if she’s willing to tell them the bad stuff, then they assume that they can believe her when she says something good.”

3. Sushi Gotoku Shibuya

Hokkaido uni, a dish served at Gotoku Shibuya. Photo / Noriko Hayashi, The New York Times
Hokkaido uni, a dish served at Gotoku Shibuya. Photo / Noriko Hayashi, The New York Times

Growing up, Munn loved the city’s low-cost yakisoba and yakitori vendors – and still does. But she also has a taste for the high end of the culinary spectrum, she said, citing Sushi Gotoku, in Shibuya, where she orders the Hokkaido uni, or sea urchin (“it’s going to melt in your mouth”), and the tiger prawns.

4. Shimokitazawa

Thrift stores in the neighbourhood sometimes have hidden treasures. Photo / Andrew Faulk, The New York Times
Thrift stores in the neighbourhood sometimes have hidden treasures. Photo / Andrew Faulk, The New York Times

Known for its vintage clothing stores, this bohemian district west of Shibuya draws treasure hunters such as Munn, who said she had gotten lucky with Chanel and Hermès finds on her visits. But even if you’re not a fashion hound, you can always discover one of the area’s cute record shops and cafes.

5. The Peninsula Tokyo

The lobby of the Peninsula Hotel, which has a “really lovely, multilingual staff,” Munn said. Photo / Andrew Faulk, The New York Times
The lobby of the Peninsula Hotel, which has a “really lovely, multilingual staff,” Munn said. Photo / Andrew Faulk, The New York Times

If you haven’t already gotten the sense that food figures prominently in Munn’s favourites, consider the first reason she offered for loving this five-star hotel in the central Marunouchi district: “It’s actually right next to a Krispy Kreme.” But even if not for the doughnut shop (about a five-minute walk away), “it’s a super convenient location,” said Munn of this tower opposite Hibiya Park and the Imperial Palace. “They also have bigger rooms and a really lovely, multilingual staff,” she added, perhaps envisioning a visit with her budding world travellers.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

Written by: Abbie Kozolchyk

Photographs by: Noriko Hayashi, Krista Schlueter and Andrew Faulk

©2025 THE NEW YORK TIMES

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