Sando Lab Tokyo

You know those moments when you’re just casually scrolling through Instagram, minding your own business, and suddenly a video of really good food appears?

You watch it once.

Then again.

Then suddenly you’re thinking about where you can find it.

Yeahhh. I’m one of those people. 

I’m easily influenced by food videos. 

Whenever I’m bored, I’ll scroll through Instagram Reels and look for food to try. I don’t even need to be hungry. If the food looks good enough, that’s already enough reason for me to start searching for it.

Before my Japan trip, I kept seeing this fried sandwich all over my feed.

Every time I opened Instagram, another video of it would appear.

Crispy bread, strawberries, cream, eggs, beef..

And after seeing it for so many time, I finally thought,

Okay. I need to try this.

So I started looking for the nearest shop.

And that’s how I found SANDO LAB TOKYO in Akihabara.

I was already in Electric Town, so I thought finding the shop would be easy.

Nahh It wasn’t.

I walked around once.

Didn’t find it.

Walked around again.

Still nothing.

Then I checked Google Maps. 

Again.

I walked another round and started wondering if I had somehow misunderstood the location.

So I Googled the shop one more time.

And then I realised.. 

The shop was literally across the road from where I was. 😂

I don’t know why my brain becomes so slow when I’m looking at maps in Japan.

Maybe because my brain had already reached its limit. 😆

If you’ve travelled around Japan before, you’ll understand what I mean.. 

Japanese train stations alone can make you question every decision you’ve ever made. 

Google Maps, 

underground exits, 

different buildings,

and several levels of shopping centres..

Everything just makes things feel even more confusing.

Anyway, I finally found SANDO LAB.

There was a huge queue outside.

And yessss.. I got the last spot in the queue.

There were so many people waiting that I immediately knew this wasn’t going to be a quick food stop.

I joined the queue and of course, I was right at the back.

I looked at the line.

Then I looked at the shop.

Then back at the line.

Okay. We’re really doing this. 😰

I ended up waiting for almost 30 minutes.

Which actually made me realise something about myself.

I’m not a patient person.

Especially in my own country. Malaysia.

If I have to queue for more than 5 minutes just to buy food, there’s a good chance I’ll leave.

If I go to a restaurant, order something and my food hasn’t arrived after 5 minutes?

I’m already thinking, 

Okay. never mind. I’m going home. 

😂

I’m much happier ordering food online than standing around waiting for it.

But here I was.. standing in Japan, waiting for a sandwich.

And I wasn’t leaving.

That’s when I realised something.

Japan really does humble me. 😂

There are so many things I’ve done here that I probably wouldn’t have the patience to do back home.

Waiting in long queues.

Walking much further than expected.

Getting lost.

Figuring out train stations.

Doing things even when they’re slightly inconvenient.

And now, standing in a queue for almost half an hour because I wanted a sandwich I’d only discovered through Instagram? lol This is crazyyy.

I guess travelling really does teach you things about yourself.

One of them, apparently, is how to be patient. 😂

Because the shop was so popular, 

I waited for almost 30 minutes before it was finally my turn.

I had waited this long.

When I finally reached the counter, I ordered the Strawberry Shortcake.

By this point, I’d already spent almost half an hour standing there, so my expectations were pretty high.

The staff were really friendly and welcoming, which I appreciated :)

After standing outside for so long, getting that kind of service made the whole experience feel much better.

And I always think good customer service makes such a difference.

You can have great food, a beautiful shop and a popular product, 

but if the people serving you aren’t nice, customers will remember that too.

So honestly, I think this is something every business should remember..

Be nice to your customers.

It sounds simple, but it really changes the experience :)

After paying, I thought I was finally done.

Nope.

I had to wait another 15 minutes or so for my sandwich.

At this point, I had spent almost 45 minutes waiting for this one sandwich.

😂

But I stayed.

Because I really wanted to know if it was actually worth all that waiting.

And then..

My sandwich finally arrived. 😍

And yes, it was worth it :)

The first thing I noticed was the amount of cream.

There was so much cream.

This might sound dramatic, but I think this was one of the besttttt sandwiches I’ve ever had!

The bread was crispy on the outside but still soft inside, and the strawberry shortcake filling was exactly what I wanted.

And thankfully it wasn’t overly sweet.

The fresh strawberries gave it that little bit of freshness, while the chocolate topping made everything feel slightly more indulgent.

The combination of the crispy fried bread, cold cream, strawberries and chocolate was actually really good.

I took the first bite and immediately understood why this thing had been all over my Instagram feed.

Sometimes viral food really worth the hype :)

So, what exactly is SANDO LAB TOKYO?

SANDO LAB TOKYO is a fried sandwich specialty shop in Akihabara,

located on the 1st floor of Don Quijote Akihabara. 

The shop opened on 1 September 2025 and was created around the idea of “reinventing Japanese sandwiches” and turning them into a new kind of Japanese street food. 

What makes it different is the bread.

Instead of simply making a regular sandwich, they fry the bread to create that crispy outside, fluffy inside texture. 

According to the company, the bread is frozen first and then fried at high temperature, which helps reduce oil absorption while giving it that crunchy texture. 

And the menu isn’t just desserts.

They have both sweet and savoury sandos, including things like Triple Egg, Japanese Beef Steak, Ham & Cheese, and several dessert style options.

The Strawberry Shortcake was the one that caught my attention, but if you’re more into savoury food, the beef and egg options looked really tempting too.

Would I queue again?

For the strawberry one?

Yes.

Would I happily queue for another 45 minutes?

Hmm..

Let’s negotiate that part. 😂

But if I happened to be in Akihabara again, and the queue wasn’t too crazy, I’d definitely go back and try another flavour :)

Maybe the Triple Egg next time.

Or the Japanese Beef Steak.

Or maybe I’ll just order the Strawberry Shortcake again because I already know I like it.

I think this was one of those random moments that made the trip more memorable. 

I didn’t plan to spend almost an hour waiting for a sandwich. I just saw it on Instagram, thought it looked good, and decided I wanted to try it.

I stood at the back of a long queue and waited quite a while for my order..

damnnn honestly, I’m glad I did.

Japan has given me quite a few lessons on this trip.

And apparently one of them is,

Be patient. Good things sometimes take time.

Even if that good thing is just a fried strawberry sandwich. 😂

It also made me realise how travelling can change the way you do things. 

You become more patient, more willing to wait, and less bothered when things don’t go exactly as planned.

Either way, it was worth the wait :) 

and yesssss. if I see another food video on Instagram, 

I’ll probably save it to my Japan food list again :)

If you love trying street food when travelling, you can definitely add SANDO LAB TOKYO to your list when you’re in Akihabara.

Here’s the shop information if you want to give it a try:

📍SANDO LAB TOKYO

Address: 4-3-3 Sotokanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-0021

Location: 1F, Don Quijote Akihabara

Nearest station: Suehirocho Station (about a 3 minute walk)

Speciality: Japanese gourmet fried sandwiches

What I ordered: Strawberry Shortcake

Opening hours:

Monday–Friday: 10:30 AM – 9:30 PM

Saturday–Sunday: 10:00 AM – 9:45 PM 

Opening hours may change, so make sure to check before you go :)

p/s : please don’t blame me if you end up waiting in the queue too. 😂