[THIS POST WAS GETTING TOO LONG SO I’VE NOW STARTED A PART 2 HERE. AND THERE’S NOW A PART 3 HERE. AND A PART 4 HERE. AND NOW A PART 5 HERE TOO! YOU CAN VIEW ALL OF THE POSTS ON THE SAME PAGE USING THE DIGEST TAG OR JUST CLICK HERE
This will be a constantly updated post with brief descriptions of places that possibly deserve to be on here but which I have no time or inclination to visit. I have tried various ways of keeping up to date with the crazy amount of places that are opening and have been struggling with deciding which places warrant including and which don’t. This seems to be a reasonable way of dealing with them. They will remain on the map with a question mark as I can’t vouch for any of these. The map will link to this post where places will be listed in alphabetical order with a short description and link which should give you some idea of what to expect and whether it’s worth going to. There will be no tags, as that will just confuse matters I think. If I end up going to any of these places and they are worthy of a full write up, I’ll remove them from here and make them a post of their own. Not everything on the backlog will be on here. This is mainly intended for what I imagine to be a bit less interesting but still worth mentioning places.
Beer Pub Ishii – Sendagi
Seems like a small place with just three taps, but looks pretty nice and I’ve heard good things about it. Good option if you’re in the area I reckon.
Facebook
Berg – Shinjuku
Little food and drink place inside Shinjuku station in the basement of Lumine Est. Bit difficult to find and always seems busy and smoky, but usually has some good stuff on.
Facebook
Beerich Yeast – Kinshicho (pictured above)
Five taps of Japanese craft. Occasionally have seen interesting stuff on here.
Update: Have now actually visited so can update this a bit. Counter downstairs with some low tables upstairs in an area with a very low ceiling so beware! ¥300 cover charge. Beers served in one size and all for ¥990 with some interesting breweries. Would guess the glass was somewhere around 350ml so not the cheapest place. Beer list is updated on their website daily! In my mind this was a small one man bar kind of place, but there were actually three smartly dressed staff and it felt quite different to what I expected. And judging by the stickers in their toilet, they’ve been around for years so deserve some respect for that. (Actually, you can probably tell that a bit from the decor too). Was a kind of fun place, but not sure when I’ll be back there as I’ve only been to Kinshicho once in almost 11 years in Japan, so presumably it won’t be that soon. Oh, it’s open till 2am!
Website
Brussels – Kanda
The rival Belgian bar chain to Delirium. Beers on tap are predominately very boring. Selection of bottles, but they’re unsurprisingly expensive. I’m a big Belgian beer fan and have never been to one of them which says something I think. Shame though, as they seem to like beer and have some special events with very good stuff sometimes like when they did the lambic trailer.
Facebook
Brussels – Kagurazaka
See the Brussels Kanda listing above. Amusingly seem to have made a mistake with the spelling of their own name on their facebook page.
Facebook
Brussels – Otemachi
See the Brussels Kanda listing above, but add in a permanent Kyoto brewing tap which I’d say gives it the edge over the other two places.
Facebook
Comme La Gueuze – Tamachi
Belgian dining place and bar with an averagely interesting selection but semi-high prices and a cover charge. As far as I can tell, not as exciting as I thought it would be from the name.
Facebook
Craft Beer & Wine U – Tachikawa
One of quite a few mysterious places in Tachikawa that I am unlikely to get to soon. Judging by untappd, they have a mix of Japanese craft and imports.
Facebook
Craft Works – Hongosanchome
Not to be confused with the many similarly named places in Tokyo, 10+ taps of Japanese craft and imports and from what I can tell a kind of Craft Beer Market feel to it, although not with the same bulk purchasing enabled low prices.
Facebook
Dragonfly Beer Hall – Kiyosumishirakawa
Seems like another Baird franchise type place with six taps of Baird beer. Usefully, it’s in an up and coming place with not much in the way of beer at the moment.
Facebook
East 57 Hostel & Cafe – Asakusabashi
Not much in the area and the concept is something of a rarity. 10 taps, a mix of Japanese and imports. Interesting!
Facebook
The Griffon – Shibuya
Been around for ages, popped in once and didn’t feel like adding it, but probably deserves to be on. Large, if a little random selection and smoking allowed… Very late opening.
Facebook
Haneda Bar – Kamata
Another brewery tap, so will make a full entry when I manage to get here. Their beers are not really seen around, so if you want to drink them, you’d better come here. Bit of a mystery.
Facebook
Jollys Liquor Store Sound Studio – Ebisu
Another original concept! Bottle shop with drink on site possibilities and also a rehearsal studio. Sounds like a great idea if you are rehearsing there. Beers are all US imports by the look of it.
Facebook
FacebookØL by Oslo Brewing Co. – Shibuya
Wasn’t sure if this should be added even to the digest post. Pricing is ridiculous, selection dubious. But according to the brewery, they are aware and it’s a work in progress so I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt for now. We’ll see, but approach with caution.
On The Marks – Kawasaki
Hotel with a Kyoto brewing permanent tap. Apparently opens in the daytime but have yet to confirm that. Heard it’s a little pricy too.
Facebook
Petit Delirium – Shinjuku
Used to be called Little Delirium but then had a makeover. Apparently more focused on draft beers now. As you’d expect, it’s Belgian stuff that’s available here. Nice little terrace if the weather is good and pretty near Shinjuku station.
Facebook
S-46 Beer Market – Chigasaki
Beer and dining type place with a heavy focus on Shonan beers and Italian food. Will visit when I get to Gold ‘n Bub and add it if it deserves a full write up.
Facebook
Screamin’ Hop – Kanda
Four taps of US imports from various importers. I guess the theme is IPAs looking at the name and the selection I saw on the facebook.
Facebook
Sidewalk Stand – Nakameguro
Coffee shop with some beers. Two taps, usually Ushi Tora and Minamishinshu. Bottles and cans from AQ Bevolution too. Pretty trendy place with a riverside location.
Website
Vector Beer Kinshicho – Kinshicho
Another Vector place but quite a long way from the other two. I guess the same kind of thing going on though, so you can check what that is here.
Facebook
Wurst Haus – Toranomon
Just down the road from the Toranomon CBM. German themed bar serving German imports and Japanese craft in German styles.
Facebook
I’ve been to Tap & Tap in Kanda several times for lunch. As you say, Kanda has loads of choice already but this place is cheap. 20 taps and it is 500 yen for 250ml, 800 yen for 400 ml and ¥1,100 for 600 ml. Nearly all Japanese beers with one or two Belgian and German (not rare ones). At lunch time (basically Karaage) you might well be the only drinker but I guess people who go at night drink. The food menu at night is much bigger too.
I have some data here.
Beer Dining The Griffon (Shibuya) is one I got from Chuwy all the way back in 2005. I was pleased that I managed to find it without a good map, camera, or laptop computer. The night I was there it was 'emptying out its store room' – putting on each of its one-off kegs. {There was an American military person also drinking.} Yes, it could get very smoky. I did not stay there long enough to be confronted with that. In my Foursquare description, the key sentence was, "If the unimaginable has occurred – you missed the last train from Shibuya – this venue is open until 29:00."
Also, looks like The Griffon has a coupon in the HotPepper Japanese-language magazine freely distributed.
On The Marks in Kawasaki. In April 2017, on the day before I returned to the U.S.A., I migrated from the Tokyo Fuji Hostel to here. You see, it is also a hostel – seemingly like East 57 Hostel & Cafe in Asakusabashi [not yet visited]. The reason was because my flight from HND was early enough in the morning that if I left Tokyo Fuji in time to get to the airport, I would not get my deposit returned.
Its print menu is in English. The sizes of each glass are annotated. Prices are average.
I might stay here again (There is a Lawson 100 Shop close nearby.), but the vibe I got from the restaurant staff was a touch icy.