If there was a Super Bowl of grocery store events, Emeryville had it this weekend with the grand opening of Tokyo Central.
The long-awaited Asian supermarket celebrated its debut on Saturday, Jan. 31, and Sunday, Feb. 1, with lines jumping down the block, the store clerk at the door lets in one or two people at a time.
The security guard monitoring the crowd estimated that they would enter on Sunday afternoon at two o’clock. “It’s a good thing I didn’t work yesterday,” he said. “Yesterday was very bad. It was being thrown on the ground in the parking lot.”Tokyo Central is the first supermarket to come to Emeryville in more than 30 years. The ground floor store is located at 5603 Bay St. in a new 40,000-square-foot-plus, roofed building with approximately 110 parking spaces.
“The opening of Tokyo Central is an important part of Emeryville. It demonstrates the city’s continued commitment to being a welcoming, diverse and economically vibrant community,” said Emeryville Mayor Sukhdeep Kaur. “This store delivers quality groceries, creates jobs and serves not only the residents of Emeryville, but the East Bay as well.”
“We are very excited to welcome Tokyo Central to Emeryville,” said David Mourra, Emeryville city council member. “Their focus on Japanese specialty foods is unique to the East Bay and fits well with Emeryville’s growing retail scene.”
The market is owned by Japanese company Pan Pacific Retail Management, which also owns the Gelson’s and Don Quijote grocery chains. There is only one other Tokyo Central in the Bay Area, in Cupertino, although Southern California has several others.
The store sells fresh and imported Japanese products, beer and sake, as well as custom-made and take-out food, health and beauty products. Inside is also a restaurant, the Hand Roll Factory, which prepares eat-in or take-out rolls with fresh fish, Hitomebore rice, “shiny Ariake nori” and “balanced vinegar made from Rishiri kelp stock.”
Thousands of people turned out on the first day on Saturday – some sleeping outside the night before – for “a turnout the size of an IKEA opening 25 years ago,” the E’ville Eye reported. The Eye adds more details:
“Prior to the Ribbon Cutting, opening remarks were made by 2026 Emeryville Mayor Sukhdeep Kaur, Marukai Corp. President Koichi Toyo and Japan’s consul general in San Francisco Kotaro Otsuka.
“Performances included the Japanese dance group Uzumaru (“Whirlpool”), which mixes traditional movement with contemporary music, and a taiko performance of Emeryville Taiko’s music.”
Besides stocking Japanese goods, Tokyo Central is known for hosting special sales and events. In 2025, its various locations played food stalls from different regions of Japan and threw a “Bluefin Tuna Cutting Show” with sashimi tasting.
Details: Open 9 am-9 pm daily at 5603 Bay St., Emeryville; tokyocentral.com and baystreetemeryville.com
