THIS PLACE HAS NOW CLOSED SADLY
I was a little confused at first with this name as they didn’t seem to actually have 23 taps, but when we went the second time and sat at the bar, I spotted a couple of handpumps and felt thoroughly reassured. Behind the bar they have 20 taps in addition to the two handpumps and the 23rd is for some reason attached to a fridge out in the seating area. A real beer expert could probably tell you why this is. When we visited they had only 18 on and a few ran out whilst we were there, but it was pretty late on a Friday night, so I guess this is understandable. There were only seven Japanese beers on, so they are offering something a little different compared to the other two places we visited. The import taps were dominated by US imports. I seem to remember there was something Belgian and maybe a Brewdog, but things had got a bit hazy by this stage. In recent times we have been spoilt for choice with the amount of US imports we are getting in Japan. Some of them are definitely not so exciting though and there were a few of those on display here. However, the selection, aside from those ones which I consider to be less interesting, was still pretty good. The fact that they had a stack of Modern Times glasses makes me think that we were possibly just a little unlucky when we went. The place feels bigger than Keg, but there were round about the same amount of seats there (six at the counter, around 30 at tables). Most beers were served in three sizes, small medium and large (I didn’t ask about ml. amounts, sorry. I didn’t think I was going to post about the Nagoya places). Prices ranged from ¥500-¥800 for the small and ¥900-¥1250 for the large. Unsurprisingly, the price for the medium is somewhere in the middle. The food was nice and reasonably priced. I was delighted to find a pickled egg, as this is something I think I haven’t come across outside of the UK. If I lived in Nagoya, this is somewhere I would be visiting quite regularly. The staff were enthusiastic and friendly and I reckon that you’ll always be able to find something good to drink here.
Opening Hours:
Monday-Saturday, 17:00-01:00 (maybe from 15:00 on Saturday, but their facebook doesn’t match their website, so who knows?)
Closed Sunday
Location/Map:
内山 3-22-11, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya
Telephone:
052-753-6003
Links:
Website
Facebook
Twitter
Ratebeer entry
So, three good places, two particularly good ones. It was nice that we didn’t encounter a cover charge anywhere in Nagoya. People say that the prices are a little high, but coming from Tokyo the difference wasn’t so apparent. I think Kyoto and Osaka people might notice the difference a little more. Also, all three places were non-smoking which is nice too. There seems to be a trend towards to non-smoking recently which for me is very welcome indeed. Like I said, Nagoya is not so difficult to get to from Tokyo if you take the Shinkansen, but it guess it’s not something you could really do every week (unless you are very rich indeed), but it was definitely worth the visit. Y Market is close enough to the main station (10 minutes walk) for you to stop off there for a couple of beers if you are passing through and have a JR rail pass. Perhaps the next time I make it down to Aichi there will be more places open, but with these three, they already have enough to entertain you for a weekend of boozing.