March 2020 Update: First time back here in over 10 years. One of the quirkiest sento around and the best takoyaki of any sento that I know. Seriously, this is also an eat in or take out takoyaki stand. The tako motif is strong here with 2 huge murals with octopus on the outdoor walls. Inside on the main rear wall between the men and women's indoor bath is also a large octopus mosaic. The outdoor bath (rotenburo) that this sento puts in its name is a bit small, but it is well designed with a lot of the floor space reserved for the two baths. Inside this is also a smaller sento with a tight changing room and bathing area. That said, it is well designed and flows well. Nice cold water bath in the grotto under the stairs and a strong wide jet massage bath round out a lovely sento. Maybe due to the takoyaki shop or maybe not, you take off your shoes after paying at the front and before you enter the changing room.

It's hard not to find Tako-yu thanks to its giant namesake octopus painted on the side of the building. Tako is the Japanese word for octopus. If the giant mural on the outside doesn't impress you, the giant tile mosaic of an octopus on the inside should. There are many more unique features of this sento besides the murals. First off it has a very odd layout where the shoe boxes are inside the building behind the front counter, opposite of the normal design where the shoe boxes are at the front door. The changing room of this sento is quite small, actually the entire place is smallish but it's high ceiling and more than ample skylights give the baths a wide fresh feeling. The baths are also well kept and comfortable. They have, quite possibly, the best jet bath I’ve ever experienced with its 5 strong jets hitting my back in just the right spots. I was amazed. The lovely cold shower and second floor outdoor bath round out a near perfect design. Of course, they also have takoyaki, a dumpling with a piece of boiled octopus in the center, for sale.