THIS PLACE HAS NOW CLOSED DOWN. INFO IS LEFT HERE FOR SOME UNKNOWN PURPOSE
Post by James
This place is very close to Shinjuku station’s south exit or Shinjuku Sanchome. There are apparently 42 seats so it is a relatively big place considering its location. There is a very small counter that can sit three but it faces the window, not the bar. I chose to sit at this counter and watch all the passersby. There were ten American craft beers and one cider and there were ten Japanese craft beers. Plenty of choice so you would have to be pretty fussy not to find something you like.
Most beers come in two sizes; Regular which is 350ml and Large which is 470ml. American beers are typically ¥1300-¥1350 for a large and around ¥1100 for the regular. Japanese beers were slightly cheaper in most cases (large, ¥1120-¥1300, regular, ¥790-¥1110). A bit on the expensive side but I guess you are paying for the convenient location. [New Prices Oct 2016: After briefly toying with lower prices and presumably attracting some more customers, they have changed their prices again. There is now a ¥300 charge and a different pricing system. Imported beers are now ¥1200 a pint, ¥970 for a medium and ¥680 for a small. Japanese beer is ¥1050 for a pint, ¥850 for a medium and ¥600 for a small. This makes it considerably more expensive and, because of the charge, a really bad choice if you only want one beer.] [Update: March 2017: And when you thought things couldn’t get any pricier, they now add tax on at the end. So, ¥1660 pints. There can’t be many places in Tokyo that are more expensive. Crikey!] One thing which I didn’t like is that the one really strong beer on tap (Old Rasputin Imperial Stout) was only served in a 250ml glass and was the same price as an American pint of the other beers. I’ve seen this beer sold at normal pint prices in other establishments. At least there isn’t a charge. There is a fairly big food menu but I didn’t try the pizzas which were mostly slightly unusual ones e.g. Wagyu pizza. I will definitely try one if I go again.
I went in just as it was opening at 17:00 and it started to fill up quite quickly. There is a constant stream of people passing and quite a few stopped to at least look at the sign. Some even came in. I think this passing traffic will keep Tap Stand in business though it won’t have many people who consider it their favorite bar. It isn’t really a good place for a session but it was a pleasant smoke-free, though a bit uninspiring, place to spend an hour listening to Dylan and other American tracks. With this location they really should open more during the day.
Japanese breweries recently seen on tap:
Tokorozawa
Shonan
Coedo
Ushitora
Minoh
Shiroyama
Brimmer
North Island
Opening Hours:
Who knows? Everywhere they are stated they seem to be different. I guess aim for a time when all three sources say it’s open. If I make it here myself, I’ll try to clarify this.
Option 1 – Daily, 15:00-23:30
Option 2 – Daily, 12:00-15:00, 17:00-23:30
Option 3 – Daily from 17:00 till late, 03:00 at weekends
Location/map:
新宿 3-35-3, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
Telephone:
03-3226-0566
I stopped by there a week or so ago. I got the chilli beans pizza which turned out to be quite good. I like the place.
Thanks for the comment Charles. People definitely seem to be talking more about the pizza than the beer, so maybe we should consider it more a pizza place with craft beer rather than vice versa.
Please consider two Dogs Taproom in Roppongi.
It's good beer & pizza and cheap 🙂
Thanks for the comment Mike. A few people have mentioned Two Dogs as somewhere we haven't covered. Think I've been there a couple of times.
Will definitely consider adding your bar! Cheers
Craft beer is all the rage today – you'll find it being served everywhere from your local brewpub to the White House. With that popularity has come an incredible diversity of brands and styles, too.
Craft beer
Thanks for the comment Rumon. Are you looking to start a debate or was it just an excuse to put a facebook link in to your bar? I guess you know what Craft Beer is well enough if you have a bar!