After venturing through Tokyo's famed Art Triangle, a visit to Naniwa Café will get you a well-deserved pot of soothing tea and adorable taiyaki. The classic version is a fish-shaped pastry with a waffle-like exterior and a filling of red bean paste, though there are plenty of variations encasing chocolate, cream, custard or some other luscious filling. The century-old Naniwa has perfected the art of taiyaki, which they make with Hokkaido-sourced adzuki beans.

Tokyo’s Kiyosumi Shirakawa neighborhood has been riding the third wave coffee boom, though the area still retains many signs of the old ways of life. Narrow stores selling traditional food items are a stone’s throw from gems like Ramvic. This cake shop feels like it’s been converted from an old garage, with an exterior covered in graffiti. We suggest grabbing a dessert and roaming around the neighborhood. The choux crème puffs are a popular favorite.

One of the great secrets of culinary life in Tokyo is the abundance of truly great French baked goods, and Gontran Cherrier is a dream come true. It’s the brainchild of a fourth-generation baker and, although we tend to eschew global brands, we do appreciate those that take food to a new level and merge foreign fare with local tastes. One of the bestsellers is the matcha green tea scone with white chocolate chips and the pain au chocolat is as airy and otherworldly as the plain croissant.

Former samurai Yasubei Kimura invented anpan (sweet dough rolls stuffed with sweet bean paste) in 1874 and began selling them at his bakery, Kimuraya, in Tokyo’s glitzy Ginza neighborhood. The following year, no less a personage than Emperor Meiji took a liking to Kimura’s confectionary creation, thus sealing anpan’s place in culinary history. To this day, Kimuraya maintains its reputation for baking the capital’s best anpan, which comes in several varieties.

Consider the humble meronpan, also written as melonpan (melon bread): a sweet bun covered in a thin, crispy layer of cookie dough. The name comes from its resemblance to a melon, not its flavor, though many bakers have embraced the misconception and created melon-flavored varieties. Tokyo’s best melon bread can be found at Kyuei in the bayside neighborhood of Tsukishima, where you can find popular flavors like black tea, cinnamon and chocolate chip.

Before the rest of Kichijoji awakens, a notable flurry of activity marks the entrance to Kooriya Peace, a destination for kakigori aficionados in west Tokyo. The Japanese shaved ice desserts range from the classic red bean paste filling to innovative offerings like rum raisin and "rare apple cheesecake." The store's menu embodies the childhood nostalgia of kakigori, elevating the shaved ice with a focus on sauces of natural ingredients and innovative, often opulent, presentations.

Ura Sablon, nestled discreetly between a storage locker and an air conditioning unit, might not catch the eye at first glance. But beyond its understated entrance is a dessert and noodles paradise. Hiroshi Yamazaki, once a salaryman, found his true calling in the art of pastry, drawing on his training in Europe to create innovative desserts. His shop serves up an array of beautifully crafted sweets, from silky smooth chestnut Mont Blancs to lush and rich strawberry cheesecakes.

With countless hidden independent stores, cafés and bakeries, and with very few chains, Kiyosumi Shirakawa is a cozy neighborhood combined with a laid-back trendiness. Here, Artichoke Chocolate sells high-quality sweet temptations that they temper in store. Some of our favorite chocolates are made with white wine from Fujimaru, and seasonal flavors make their way into other creations. The neighborhood solidarity is strong, with products sourced from local shops in the area.

Consistently one of the top dessert spots in Tokyo, Atelier Kohta takes no reservations and regularly has a queue out its door in Kagurazaka. The area is famed for French cuisine, which is what owner Kohta Yoshioka offers up in sweet form. You can get biscuits and fresh cakes for takeout, or order a creative dessert with theatrical flourish from the nine-seat counter. The Mont Blanc and seasonal parfaits are winners, especially the pistachio and flambéed apricot parfait topped with spun caramel.

In the serene expanse of Tokyo's sprawling Setagaya, the humble Fuji turns the traditional autumnal snack of yakiimo (roasted sweet potatoes) into a year-round treat. Slow-cooked on a bed of stones, a spectrum of sweet potato varieties from across Japan are sold by Uehara-san. While not a dessert per say, from the creamy Anno-imo from Kagoshima to the antioxidant-rich Purple Sweet Road, each bite of this seemingly humble snack is a perfect blend of sweetness and softness.