Kii Peninsula
Along the Nakahechi trail halfway between Hosshinmon-ōji and Kumano Hongū Taisha – about an hour's walk from each – is this inviting pit stop run by a…
Must-see nightlife in Japan
Harajuku & Aoyama
Expect a crowd dressed like they don’t care that wine by the glass starts at ¥1540. The wine is good (and the bottle list deep), but more importantly, the…
Kōbe
This standing bar has a daunting selection of 90 kinds of sake, including about 50 from local brewers, on its (Japanese-only) menu. Anticipating your…
Roppongi, Akasaka & Around
Pronounced teh-zeh, but often just referred to as 'the library bar' (because the walls are lined with books) this long-time favourite haunt has a classic…
Shinjuku & Northwest Tokyo
Eagle has established itself as a popular hang-out in Shinjuku-nichōme, thanks to friendly staff, happy-hour prices (¥500 drinks from 5pm to 8pm;…
Shinjuku & Northwest Tokyo
Goldfinger is a long-running ladies' spot in Shinjuku-nichōme (but open to all, save for Saturdays). The bar has a lowbrow-chic decor designed to look…
Takayama
You'll feel like you're walking into a friend's living room in this cosy, dimly lit basement bar. The hip and happy owner, Hisayo, deftly adjusts the vibe…
Japan Sake & Shōchū Information Centre
Ginza & Tsukiji
This isn’t a bar, but who cares when you can get 30mL thimbles of regionally brewed sake or shōchū for as little as ¥100 a shot? There are dozens from…
Tokyo
Part of the collective of spaces run by the Kōenji-based activist group Shirōto no Ran (Amateurs' Riot), Nantoka Bar is about as uncommercial as a place…
Beppu
This retro snack and dessert spot is best known for onsen kōhī (coffee made with hot-spring water; ¥550) and ogura toast (topped with azuki beans and ice…
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
Circus, the Tokyo offshoot of an Osaka club, is aggressively underground: small, out of the way, in a basement (of course), with no decor to speak of and…
Osaka
Frenz Frenzy calls itself a 'rainbow haven' and it means that literally: the whole place is awash in colour (including the front door, thankfully, because…
Ginza & Tsukiji
This venerable tea seller's main branch is closer to Tsukiji, but this classy outlet in the Kabuki-za Tower has a Kengo Kuma–designed cafe where you can…
Kagoshima
This new, surf-themed beer and burger bar brings the California wave across the Pacific. A friendly, just-off-Huntington-Beach vibe of surfboard art,…
Shinjuku & Northwest Tokyo
With chandeliers dripping from the ceiling and gilded frames on the walls, Albatross G has a louche decadence that has clearly struck a chord: the bar is…
Kōrakuen & Akihabara
This old house, completely covered in ivy, is a charmer with a welcoming owner and two of Tokyo's most famous shop cats. Seating is on floor cushions;…
Ginza & Tsukiji
If singing to a karaoke machine's tinny soundtrack isn't your cup of tea, how about having a live band strum along to your song of choice? Karat offers…
Osaka
Beer Belly is run by Osaka's best microbrewery, Minoh Beer, and features Minoh's award-winning classics and seasonal offerings (pints from ¥930). Pick up…
Tokyo
On the 7th floor of the Shin-Maru Building, this collection of nine bars and pubs is a popular after-work gathering spot. There's a wraparound terrace, so…
Asakusa & Sumida River
Kamiya is one of Tokyo’s oldest bars (open since 1880) and still hugely popular – thanks largely to the one-litre dai-jokki (大ジョッキ; 'big cups') of Asahi…
Tokyo
This takeaway counter sells matcha (powdered green tea; ¥800) from Uji (near Kyoto) in biodegradable cups, which you can enjoy on terrace with sofa…
Kyūshū
Anbai is a sophisticated izakaya with more than 350 varieties of shōchū, well-chosen local dishes and cool background music. Not much English is spoken,…
Shinjuku & Northwest Tokyo
La Jetée, named for the Chris Marker film, is classic Golden Gai. Running for over four decades, the tiny bar (max occupancy: eight) is known as the go-to…
Ginza & Tsukiji
This is one of the few parts of the Imperial Hotel to feature some of the designs and materials used in the original 1923 Frank Lloyd Wright building …
Kyūshū
This hub of the expat community and its local friends draws a cheery mixed crowd who are proud of the city and keen to welcome visitors over Miyazaki…
Shinjuku & Northwest Tokyo
Part of the new generation of Golden Gai bars, the Open Book is run by the grandson of award-winning novelist Tanaka Komimasa (whose collection of well…
Kōrakuen & Akihabara
Sabōru checks the boxes of a classic mid-20th-century kissaten (coffee shop): dim lighting, low tables, lots of dark wood and strong burendo kōhī ('blend'…
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
This Tokyo outpost of a long-running Oslo coffee shop serves its signature light-roast coffee by day (from ¥370) and craft beer and cocktails both…
Kōbe
A big chain wouldn't normally be worth listing, but this Starbucks is different: it's housed in a beautifully preserved former ijinkan (foreigners' house)…
Ueno & Yanesen
Sample a cup of paint-thick matcha (powdered green tea; ¥450) at this tiny teahouse on the edge of Ueno-kōen. Tradition dictates that the bitter tea be…
Yokohama
Heady with the malty aroma of beer-making, this is Japan's first craft brewery (c1995) in the modern sense , where you can sample around eight beers (¥800…
Yokohama
Soak up the old Yokohama vibes at this former trading company building turned cafe-bar and French restaurant. You can join the well-to-do regulars for tea…
Tokyo
Daikaijū are the 'large strange monsters' of Japanese popular cinema, including the likes of Godzilla and Mothra. Get intimately acquainted with them at…
Ginza & Tsukiji
Down a side street of Higashi-Ginza is this tiny third-wave coffee shop serving single-estate brews with side orders of onigiri (Japanese rice balls) or…
Craft Beer Market Mitsukoshimae
Tokyo
If trawling Nihombashi's shops has given you a thirst, this craft-beer pub has some 30 kinds of ales and Japanese snacks available, such as fried chicken…
Ginza & Tsukiji
As well as French chef Thierry Marx's restaurant here, there's his casual bistro-bar where the outdoor terrace has a dress-circle view across to Ginza's…
Asakusa & Sumida River
This charming cafe occupies an old house on an alley running parallel to Kappabashi-dōri. Exposed beams are whitewashed and an atrium has been created,…
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
Part of a new wave of Shimo-Kitazawa spots run by the aptly named Nomouze (Let's drink) crew, chill spot Arena has a rooftop terrace and hosts the odd DJ…
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
Nonbei-yokochō – literally 'Drunkard's Alley' – is another of Tokyo's anomolous strips of tiny wooden shanty bars. This one in the shadow of the elevated…
Hokkaidō
This is brilliant: a cafe with an ashi-yu (foot bath) so you can soak your feet while sipping coffee (¥250). There's food available, too; try the 'zari…
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