Shimokitazawa Croquette Festival

Shimokitazawa is renowned for its annual curry festival, which invites you to follow the curry trail and stuff yourself at the more than 150 participating restaurants. That autumn classic is now getting competition from this celebration centred around the humble croquette: a whopping 101 local eateries have come up with their own versions of the supermarket staple and are now peddling these deep-fried delights to adventurous foodies. The creations include smoked, Okinawa-style and teppanyaki croquettes, but our favourite is the duck meat croquette, flavoured with port wine. When taking into account that participating restaurants range from French and Italian joints to udon shops and seafood shacks, such diversity comes as no surprise. Check out the full list (and maps) here.