Where to eat and drink in Tokyo
Let me tell you upfront, people: I’m not an expert, when it comes to where to eat and drink.
I’m not a foodie. At. All. First of all I’m a very fussy, non-adventurous eater. Secondly, I have diabetes and I’m on quite a strict diet because of that. In short: I’m pretty boring, as far as food and drinks concern.
This list is just a summary of the places that I liked in Tokyo. Either for the food or coffee, for the ambiance, the views, the decor or the atmosphere. Some of them were on my bucket list, others we ran into by accident.
Because of the large number of pictures, I am splitting the list in two parts. Here is part 1 of “My 10 favourite bars and restaurants in Tokyo”.
My 10 favourite bars and restaurants in Tokyo - part 1
- Omoide Yokocho aka Yakitori Alley aka Memory Lane aka Piss Alley
It’s a bit hard to find, this tiny block with a handful of alleys, filled with hole-in-the-wall restaurants and bars.
No need to go here before noon, because then everything is still closed.
But as the day progresses, people are lining up for a meal at their favourite place. Like for this 8-seater. See the people on the left against the wall, patiently waiting?
The alleys and restaurants get even more lively and atmospheric around dinner time. Busy!
Lots of yakitori-restaurants, hence the first of the nicknames of this area. Lots of history and couleur locale, hence it’s second nickname. No room for toilets, hence it’s third nickname. Most of the places can seat between 4 to 14 customers. Some have a second floor where they can put a few more people.
Peek inside one of the micro restaurants.
It doesn’t get much more local than this, folks. We went there for yakitori twice and we loved the food and the ambiance.
We chose this restaurant. It can seat about 14 people and apparently also has some seats upstairs. Foreigners are welcome there and the food is just perfect.
I struck up a small conversation with the Japanese couple next to me. Their English was very poor, but they were super nice. The man offered to pour me my sake, as is customary in Japan. And they both looked impressed and surprised that we westerners somehow had ended up in Yakitori Alley. “Wow, you’re in Deep Tokyo! Deeeeep Tokyo!”. LOL
The BBQ where the food was prepared before our eyes.
In preparation….hungry!
Ready and yummy!
2. Albatross
Almost next to ‘our’ yakitori place, you find bar Albatross. Hard to spot, so look out for a deer head above it’s entrance door. Oh my, what a fantastic over-the-top bar! Kitsch, bordello, red walls, chandeliers, Mona Lisa, Mona Lisa and more Mona Lisa, deer heads and Venusses of Milo galore. The Louvre meets Moulin Rouge on 6 m2.
The small bar has three levels: the actual bar on the ground floor that can seat about 4 - 6 people, then a lounge area on the second floor that can seat around 5 - 7 people and above that the roof terrace where around 7 people can hang out. When we were there they played like a whole album of Tom Waits. Who’s music I happen to love. So cool! Frits and I sat for an hour on the couch on the second floor, had some sake and some pizza. It felt like a private room, since we were the only ones there.
Second floor of Albatross.
“Uhm…. I’ll have …uhm….”
The roof terrace above us -way too cold for my taste; it was autumn, man!- was occupied by two big aussies dressed up in animal onesies (it was around Halloween ) and at the bar on the ground level were two Japanese women. One of them was completely wasted as in drunk. We had to worm our way behind her to get to the exit, since it was all so cramped. Right away she hung around Frits’ neck and was all over him. It was not until the bartender pointed out to her: “Uh, I think that that’s his wife behind him….” that she let go of him, ready to hang around my neck now. At least she was friendly ;-).
3. Nana
Like Yakitori Alley and bar Albatross, Nana is located in Shinjuku . This tiny bar seats 5 - 7 people. Nana claims to be the worlds smallest flamenco bar and is one of 250 micro bars in Shinjuku’s Golden Gai. Another small, maze-like area with alleys, that seem so characteristic for Tokyo.
Entrance of Nana, flamenco bar in Golden Gai.
View from the bar to the alley. That’s how small it is! See the flamenco guitar on the wall?
On the wall behind Frits, you see a picture of the Japanese woman that started Nana more than 50 years ago. She was Japanese and crazy about Spain and flamenco. She ran the place for over 40 years, during which she slept in a small room above the bar. When she died, the guy behind the bar in the next picture took over Nana. When we asked him what made him buy the bar, he answered that he was there all the time anyways, only as a customer.
The current owner of Nana. Can you spot him?
The line up of the customers was: Frits, me and the two Japanese people next to me. Behind them you see the alley. So this gives you an idea of the size of Nana.
Not all micro-bars in Golden Gai welcome foreigners. And many bars ask an entrance fee. So do your homework in advance to find out which bars are foreigner-friendly and which bars have no entrance fee or at least a reasonable fee. Better safe than sorry!
4. Little Delirium
After some serious (window-)shopping in Times Square mall in Shinjuku, we stumbled upon this little restaurant-bar with a handful of tables outside. A Belgian place in Tokyo; why not?
We enjoyed the autumn sun while having a lovely lunch.
French fries and fresh orange juice for adventurous li’l ol’ me, and mussels and Belgian beer for the hubby. Yum!
5. Antique Cafe Shimokitazawa
We came across this cafe-restaurant when we were exploring Shimokitazawa. It’s a lovely place, where you can eat and drink -obviously-, but you can also buy the furniture that you’re sitting on.
The word ‘cafe’ has almost disappeared;-).
I love the cosy, informal atmosphere of the cafe.
They have the tiniest terrace in front of the cafe with just two tables.
We were lucky enough to scoop up one of these small tables, so that -again- we could have our lunch in the warm autumn sun. Ideal for people watching too!
Enjoying a relaxed, sunny lunch.
My pumpkin soup was creamy and delicious.
Nothing fancy, but I like small places like this.
The rest of “My 10 favourite bars and restaurants in Tokyo” will be on the blog in a couple of days. Stay tuned for more.
Great post on all the holes in the wall where you can eat. Haha. I love the liveliness of these little places. I think it’s a pity that our city hall would never approve such cool places with all the regulations in place. I look forward to part 2.
No, it wouldn’t fly in Holland either, Melanie! Glad you like my series!
What great experiences! Although I have to say personally I’d avoid an area called piss alley! LOL I wonder about the hygiene.
The other thing I find odd is the overt racism. I can’t imagine in Canada saying simply “no foreigners allowed”.
bisous
Suzanne
It did not bother me one bit, that nickname and the hygiene there;-).
I did not even consider it being racist.
Although people often say that Japanese are racist, I did not experience this myself.
I thought the aversity against foreign customers had more to do with the micro-scale of the places, combined with the fact that most people don’t speak any english. I could imagine that a foreigner or two foreigners amongst a crowd of 5 people in total, could ruin and complicate the social interactions in that small space.
But maybe I’m mistaking and maybe you are right. No idea…
Oh, Suzanne, I found that people in Japan in general are much more polite to other cultures/people than in Canada. I have stories about me and O in Canada that would make your toes curl!! No kidding!! At least in Japan they don’t shove their dislike in your face.
Really? I had no idea that you encounter racism in Canada!