It's a long way from Tokyo to the balmy, subtropical Ryukyu Islands — approximately 1,500 kilometers as the crow (or plane) flies. But Japan's southernmost prefecture feels a whole lot closer when you're out in the residential suburbs of Suginami Ward. At least it does when you're sitting in Tinsagu nu Hana, at the heart of the bars enclave known as Little Okinawa.
Less than 15 minutes from the bustling bright lights of Shinjuku, this cluster of restaurants and bars was only created some 10 years ago. Now a growing number of people are making their way to these narrow alleys near Daitabashi Station in search of the distinctive cuisine of the southern isles.
Tinsagu nu Hana — named after a popular folk song — is the main reason they are there. Like most Okinawan restaurants in Tokyo, it is an izakaya, a tavern where the emphasis is as much on drinking and chilling with friends as actually eating. All the tried and true staples of Okinawa's distinctive cuisine are present and correct, from rich, soft cubes of melting rafuti (pork belly) and crunchy mimiga (pig's ear) to the classic noodle bowl of the islands, sōki soba.