Had a fun time exploring here with a friend while walking around in SF japantown! It's such a whimsical and small shop filled with gacha machines from popular fandoms like Hello Kitty, Tamagotchi, and anime! They have niche machines like rings, foods, and so much more. Everything is self service with a credit card/money slot machine that only accepts $12 at a time. NO change is given if you pay cash, so please use the exact amount. Each token is $3 so a $12 purchase gives you 4 tokens. Each slot machine has an indicator of where it needs 2 or 3 tokens. They also have a great photobooth for your pulls! Definitely go to this place if you love gacha machines! read more

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It's similar to the other Bandai Gachapon locations that I've seen all over, but it does have an added feature of the photobooths. There's a Bleach one outside and a Fruits Basket one inside, as well as another fancier one inside, though I didn't get to see what it exactly was. Like the other Gacha set ups, there is also a photo area for you to take pictures of your new little figures in, so that's neat as well. I'm going to say that what I've seen here is mostly what I have seen all over SoCal at the Bandai locations, at Shibuyala, Mitsuwa, etc. so it's not THAT unique, but there are a few machines that I have not seen such as a bottle clip that was a pair of glasses among some other things. I believe you can use these tokens at other Gachapon locations, so keep 'em if you don't want to use them all here. Also know that on busier days this place gets super packed! Also see if you can trade with others if you have a specific one you'd like too! read more

I love gachapons but their gachapons are expensive. Their items are overpriced. I only liked that it's official Bandai Gachapon shop. It was still fun to browse around. read more

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This place is great to bring kids brought my 13 year-old daughter for her birthday here very fun and nice people read more

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Why doesn't this place have more reviews? It has a wide collection of derpy capsules and the perfect 9 cube scenario for taking pictures of your new dopamine figurine. I love it. Yes it is a bit pricey but I love the wide bizarre selection of goods. The setup is beautiful. My fav is the snow filled shrine (tori bridge). It is mostly an automated no service unmanned place. Though there's one staff hanging around. Introvert friendly I guess ? read more

Many cute gashapon. We got the tri-color dango, mochipoyochan keychain, and a rimuru sip mat. A bit pricey but highly recommend going here if you're into exploring a slice of Japanese culture, and gashapon. read more

If you know Japan, you know the gachas are everywhere there. I'm glad they found a way to fill the empty spaces in Japantown with these fun gachas. There's plenty of variety but the price is quite expensive. Each token is 2 dollars and you need at least 2 tokens to get something here. Most of the more desirable items are 4 tokens each ($8) which I don't think is worth at the end of the day. The credit card has a minimum of $20 charge. There are cute cubbies where you can take photos of your items. read more

Tokyo Anime Center - Toy Stores Near Me - San Francisco, California

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I'm not sure when the price hike happened, but the tokens used to be $2 each, which was still pricey compared to what they actually cost in Japan, but was still doable do to availability here in the states. Typically even the pricier gachas in Japan are 4-5 coins, which is 400-500 yen, which is around $3 in total. Now the tokens are $3 each and a lot of the machines are 3-4 tokens. Some are even 5-6. It saddens me that this place is extremely overpriced. I would pop in every now and then to pick up one or two for myself and a bunch for my kids, now I'd rather just go on ebay and get a complete set of 5 of whatever series looks fun for around $25-30 instead of getting half the value in this store. Most of the time I see the people that are working there on their phones or preoccupied with things other than servicing customers. I've never gotten a greeting on coming into the store, thank you for your purchase, or how's it going? This place has really gone down hill. read more

We passed by the Tokyo Anime Center while in Japan town. It's a pretty cool concept, with rows and aisles full of machines where you put tokens in to buy toys. My youngest son loves these types of toys so he really appreciated the store. They also have little background stages where you can place your toys and take pictures of them. read more

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So fun!!! Great treat to do with kids before dinner! Lots of things to collect! Cheaper than a flight to Japan! read more

Tokyo Anime Center - Toy Stores Near Me - San Francisco, California

ok. i LIVE. i love that this space that has been vacate for so long, has become one of the most trendy and hype-st spot in jtown that really capitalizes on the love for anime and gamba :') what really makes this place great are the following: -they change out their items/stuff every now and then to suit everyone's tastes. from animals, food, anime, and just obscure things, they really have a bunch to choose. the pro and con is that there are many gacha that do repeat. good if it's something the eye of the beholder likes, not good if they don't. -they take card and cash. the only caveat to credit card is that they do automatically charge $20, while with cash you can choose how much to spend. (and you can only put in $1, $10, and $20) -the cute lil photo ops/background for the gacha pulls. they have 12 lil backgrounds for folks to put what they've won into a great place to post pics. LOVE. why not five?: -it's really easy to spend a lot of money by using the token system, but that's too be expected. 1 token =$2 and most machines require 2 tokens. so $4 per spin isn't too bad BUT-- -if like me, folks only have card and get $20 worth of tokens, then wallets n hearts will be cryin and hurtin from spending all this money ESPECIALLY if i wasn't intentionally trying to spend that much money on gachas. -staff do not refill empty machines/ nor do they look friendly either as they are just on their phones. if the staff were to be walking around and see a machine is empty. i wonder if they can put a sign to say when they will refill it (if there are patrons who may want to return) -it can get super crowded. just be warned that if covid or crowds make you feel uncomfortable, try going on a weekday in the morning. weekends i bet can get packed and when i went on a thursday in the evening, there would be waves every 10 mins or so. i will definitely come back but with cash next time cus $20 on just gacha really hurts my heart :') read more

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In all honesty this place is "meh". In the afternoon and evening this place can fill up. Especially on weekends. Not very introvert or social anxiety friendly around this time. It wouldn't be so bad if the majority of people were actually buying gashapon and not just standing around being a nuisance. The more annoying ones are there having conversations about anime and not moving. Others have their kids running around sticking their hands inside the machines. I've seen people try to use quarters on the machines. The gashapon IS expensive. On some you're paying double for it, if not close to it. If you know where to look you can buy gashapon online and even cheaper. The gashapon in this place isn't always up to date to what you see on the Bandai site. Though one good thing is that they sometimes have older sets. Not every machine in this place is unique, so expect to see multiples. They usually have 2-3 machines of the same sets. This place also has Flat Gashapon. This place uses tokens. One token is $2. The cheapest machines take 2 tokens ($4.00). The most expensive ones are 4 tokens ($8.00). Token machines accept $1, $10, and $20 bills. THEY DO NOT ACCEPT $5 bills! If that is all you have, then you are out of luck. You can also use VISA, MasterCard, American Express, Apple Pay or Google Pay. If you use any of those, you can only get $20. On a very rare occasion a machine may not dispense your gashapon. You can simply ask the staff for help if that happens (so long as someone is there). One of the bigger problems with this place is that the gashapon machines aren't always stocked up and have the "SOLD OUT" strip covering the token slot. You'd think they'd restock before opening, but no. Imagine traveling to this place and arriving early just as they open, only to see the machines are "SOLD OUT" (from the day before). Most of the gashapon isn't really for me, but every now and then there is something that catches my attention. The things that I described in this review make this place very "meh". You're not missing out on much, especially with online shopping at your fingertips. If you got money to burn and don't mind overpaying, give this place a visit. It's all Bandai gashapon. If you're looking for J. Dream, Re-Ment, Tarlin, etc. you wont find it here. A tip for anyone checking this place out for the first time: Take a look around first. That way you don't end up wasting your money on tokens, only to then find out they're out of stock on something you want or if you just don't like the selection. A quick video of the place: https://youtu.be/uS830Bc2v28?si=kqeDopqiVlDnAO9L read more

Tokyo Anime Center - Token machine. - Toy Stores Near Me - San Francisco, California

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I guess this place is interesting if you are into gachas and Japan-related regalia. I went in w/my brother who likes anime when he came to visit. It's not cheap (each token to use in a machine is $2), and the prizes are pretty cruddy (I got an Ultraman and a Kirby of middling quality), but I guess you get what you pay for (although for $2 a pop I expected a bit better merchandise). Not in a rush to go back but interesting concept I guess. read more

While entering the store, there were many selections of Gachapons from animes to even bugs. Near the entrance, there are shelves decorated with different sceneries for you to do photo ops with your prize. I selected this place in the beginning to take my family out to enjoy the little blind box experience beat, but was greeted by a unsettling, rude, ill mannered employee. The machine was malfunctioning, but she came thundering over to berate us rather than being demure about the situation. BEWARE OF THEIR EVIL MARKETING. It's $10 for 5 tokens ($2/token), but most gachapons take 2 tokens aka meaning you'll be leftover with 1. You'll have to spend more if you want to use that token up or keep as a souvenir. There are some with 3, but the selection of the machines repeat itself throughout the room. You're also not allow to keep the capsule. There's a minimum credit card usage of $10 & no $5 bill acceptations. Please go here at your own risk!!! read more

This gashapon location seems pretty expensive. They use tokens for their machines and each token costs $3. Their token machines only accepts $1 or $20 bill for cash and if you use credit card it's "accepted in $12 payments." No change is given back for cash payments. This location is large and has many gashapon machines, but there are also a lot of machines with the same prizes listed. They divide their machines into "anime" sections and "cute" sections. It looked like the minimum amount of tokens for a prize is 2 tokens with most machines I saw requiring 3-4 and one Gundam gashapon machine even required a whopping 9 tokens for a prize. That's $27 dollars for a random Gundam figurine! There was also a gashapon photo booth section where you can put your gashapon in to take photos, which is cute. There's also a counter where you can purchase tokens from an employee, but I didn't see anyone there. Overall, I think this place is asking too much money for these gashapon prizes. read more

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My daughter so happy when we come here first stop. Located downstairs in Japantown. The staff is so friendly. Huge selection of Anime.

This place is a ripoff. $2 per token per game is crazy. There were a few people playing and not once did I see anyone win anything. My kids played $20 and of course didn't win anything either. I think those games are all rigged like many other places. read more

Tokyo Anime Center - Toy Stores Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Lots of fun, wide variety of gashapon capsule toys. It can get pricey fast, so walk around and check what you want and budget accordingly.