Bread in Japan
Like all other asian countries, Japan is a land of rice. If you pass through the country side your bound more fields of rice then of wheat, or perhaps any other crop. However, Japanese do love their bread. It is one of the most common items you'd find at a combini. If you take a stroll through Ginza and end up in one of the massive department stores like my personal favorite, Mitsukoshi, and travel down to the basement food floors you're bound to see a European bakery's outpost.
Living in San Francisco most of the time, we have our fair share of good bakeries and the quality is excellent. I do think that we do take ourselves too seriously here sometimes, our quality is great, but some of the bakeries in Tokyo put us to shame. For example a chain store called Choco Cro, produces some amazing croissant buttery and flakey, cooked perfectly. For a chain store to maintain that level of quality is astounding especially since my perception of chain food is McDonalds and other fast food that is horrible.
When I was living in Roppongi there are too major urban developments in walking distance, the now famous Roppongi Hills, and the up and coming Tokyo Midtown. Both contain excellent bakeries. In Roppongi Hills just outside the main complex near Hollywood Plaza on the main street is a bakery called Pompadour. This small shop produces a number of classical French breads as wells as some more imaginative japanese varieties. Japanese varieties include one of the best version of curry pan that i've tasted, another deep fried bread stuff with tarako, and some corn mayo bread. The last one may sound really strange, and believe me its not one of my favorite flavors of any bread, but this version is pretty good.
Chain restaurants can have good food too
Curry pan is a deep fried bread that is stuffed with Japanese curry
Classic Pastries done with precision