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Millennium Hobbies & the Gundam Kitchen
125 S Black Horse Pike, Blackwood NJ, 08012
For a better look at, and more pictures from, our visit, make sure to check out our Instagram post!
You can also check them out directly on Instagram @thegundamkitchen for more pics!
An almost essential part of being an anime fan is owning anime merchandise in order to show your fandom. From figures to manga to models to Blu-ray discs, there are a lot of options that people can purchase to support the industry and remind themselves of their favorite series. It’s no secret that we at Backlog Bebop fall heavily into this, personally I love figure and Blu Ray collecting, so it should come as no surprise that we are always searching for awesome local stores where we can indulge our interests. That’s what led us to the Millennium Hobbies & the Gundam Kitchen in Blackwood New Jersey.
Initially, I was drawn to this store because I love Gunpla. For those who don’t know, Gunpla is a portmanteau of Gundam Plastic Model: Essentially, Gunpla are standardized model kits of mech from across the entire franchise. Numerous, customizable, and coming in different sizes, I’ve come to love being able to build my favorite mobile suits from the Gundam Franchise rather than buying them. More importantly, I’ve come to enjoy the community that the hobby fosters. Right off of the bat, this store hit both of those loves. With walls lined with both completed Gunpla to look at and Gunpla ready to be bought, the store’s open floor plan drew me in. Coupled with a dedicated build space, tables for displays of completed models and photo opportunities, an ever-evolving stock of model kits and tools, and (most importantly) monthly community events where people can just get together and build regardless of skill level, everything that The Gundam Kitchen offers in terms of Gunpla is in line with what we believe the beauty of our shared fandom is: The feeling of belonging.
This store is so much more beyond Gunpla, though. Other walls are lined with anime posters from across all ages, an entire section of the store is dedicated to more traditional tabletop gaming and RPG experiences, there is an awesome “Stranger Things” themed Dungeons and Dragons room, non-anime models abound, and figure displays are ever-present. Furthermore, the store is a cornerstone for the South Jersey Anime Club and, again, the stock of items are always updating. A few days after my initial visit, when I purchased a SSB Gogeta adverge figure and some Gunpla supplies, I noticed that their Instagram was showing off a new stock of goods. Suffice it to say, I had to go back to pick up
some more figures for my collection.
Like I mentioned in the beginning of this article, we at Backlog Bebop are always looking for local spots that are catered to our own individual interests and fandoms. More so than just being a store that fit this mold, The Gundam Kitchen is a store at the center of the local anime community. It’s a store with an extremely friendly and knowledgeable staff (the owner, Irad, is a genuinely good guy who genuinely loves what he does), fair prices, an ever-evolving stock of items of differing degrees of interest and rarity, and a focus on just bringing people together. If you’re in South Jersey and you need a place to relax, talk shop, or just work on some models or tabletop gaming, this place is a local destination that shouldn’t be missed.
Do you have a local store that you love to frequent and would you like to see us feature, and even visit, it? Hit us up on social media, let us know, and (who knows?) we could be checking out your favorite places at some point down the road!