Top five tasty bites in Tenmonkan♪

Tenmonkan is Kagoshima's busiest shopping and entertainment district. Located just a 10-minute tram ride from Kagoshima Chuo, this bustling town attracts both locals and tourists alike.

One of its most distinguishable features is the grand arched arcade that shelters shoppers from rain and volcanic ash from nearby Sakurajima, allowing visitors to enjoy shopping and dining in comfort whatever the weather conditions. The convenient location is also close to popular tourist spots such as the bronze statue of Saigo Takamori, as well as the Terukuni Shrine and Shiroyama, making it the perfect area to explore on foot.

Agetateya opened in 1993, specializing in ‘Satsuma-age’ fried fish cake. Carefully selected ingredients are used to create a succulent Satsuma-age with the perfect balance of flavors – not too sweet and not too salty. ‘Agetate’ means “freshly fried” in Japanese, so it makes sense that you can buy freshly fried Satsuma-age here. The piping hot Satsuma-age is a must-try!

Satsuma Jyokiya sells the famous Kagoshima confectionaries ‘karukan’ and ‘kasutadon’. One of their other specialties is their tasty ‘Yakidonatsu’, or baked donuts, that are not fried in oil. These decadent delights are instead baked to create a moist and moreish texture, bursting with a gentle sweetness and the rich taste of fresh eggs. Enjoy their freshly baked, hot donuts at their ‘Kakashi Yokocho’ store in Tenmonkan.

The one Kagoshima dessert that should be on every visitor‘s bucket list is of course the Shirokuma. Creamy shaved ice is topped with fruit and a generous amount of sweetened condensed milk to create an irresistible dessert loved by locals and visitors of all ages. Tenmonkan Mujaki is said to be home to the original Shirokuma, and is very popular among tourists for its fluffy shaved ice and large selection of fruits. At the store, they sell ‘Handy Shirokuma’, or travel-size Shirokuma, in takeout cups. Why not grab one of these cute desserts to eat while walking around the rest of Tenmonkan?

Tenmonkan's long-established fresh fruit haven, FRUITshop KAKOI, will relocate and reopen in October 2024. Seasonal fruits and bitesize fruit slices will be available at the newly renovated store, as well as thick and refreshing fruit juice. This store is a great way to enjoy freshly juiced seasonal fruit at a reasonable price. 

Shiroyama Seasoning is a cafe-restaurant located inside Reimeikan. The cozy store is operated by Sakura Kaneyo, a local Kagoshima manufacturer of miso and soy sauce. Among their many tasty-looking menu items and products, we recommend the soy sauce soft serve ice cream for its one-of-a-kind taste. The sweet soy sauce used in the recipe is unique to Kagoshima, with an irresistible sweet and salty tang similar to that of mitarashi sweet soy sauce glaze. For a fee, toppings such as traditional Kagoshima ‘oiri’ candies and ‘anko’ red bean paste can be added to the ice cream.