Today it’s Okei Brewing, the first craft beer brewpub in Arakawa-ku! But they don’t quite seem to be up and brewing yet as none of their beers were on tap. When we visited though, there was someone hanging around in the brewery and it looked like things were in place so maybe that’s starting soon. Recently, I’ve been consciously trying to go to some different parts of the city I’ve now lived in for ten years. Those ten years have gone quite quickly and I’ve definitely recently settled into something of a routine, so it’s nice to try new things for a change. Anyway, here’s what you need to know about Okei.
- A short walk from Nippori station, Okei is a pretty compact place that somehow manages to cram in a brewery, a couple of counters, some tables and a kitchen. The decor and atmosphere is pretty much what you’d expect from a recently opened craft beer place in Tokyo. 27 seats in total apparently. The food was very nice and was reasonably priced general beer pub kind of dishes which included a really nice pasta dish. Good stuff!
- 10 taps, nine of Japanese craft and one macro. None of their own beers as of yet, but I’m sure there will be when they’re up and running. Slightly unconventional sizes. Can’t remember seeing the S, but I’d say the M was about 350-400ml and the L looked massive, maybe 600ml. With that in mind, I’ll pointlessly pluck a figure out of the air and say that maybe the S could be around 250ml. Prices ranged from ¥600-¥700 for the S, ¥800-¥950 for the M and ¥1300-¥1500 for the L. Without knowing the exact sizes it’s difficult to comment on value, but it seemed fair enough to me. The selection of breweries was pretty unusual! Sometimes this rings alarm bells, but on this occasion there were some pleasant surprises. I’d say that there is a focus on smaller and less often seen breweries though. The names are listed below, so see what you think.
- No cover charge, daytime opening and no smoking. As I’m a bit out of touch with adding new places, I forgot to check for WiFI. Please forgive me.
What’s not to like when a new brewery opens in a place where there are no other breweries? This was a fun place to visit and was pretty popular on a Friday night, perhaps because it’s the only place in the area. I’d like to revisit when they are making their own stuff and see what their beer is like. But even without their own beer the place had a nice feel, where both staff and customers seemed to be exuding a vibe of being happy about having somewhere to drink in their area. The breweries might put some off, but those looking for new ticks of unusual beers would be advised to pop in here. They publish their tap list on their Facebook every day so have a look and see what you think.
Japanese breweries on tap when I visited:
Grow Brew House
Ushitora
Vector
Romantic Mura
Sankt Gallen
Batsuji
Farcry
Kanpai
Opening Hours:
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday, 15:00-23:00
Saturday & Sunday, 12:00-23:00
Closed Wednesday
Location/map:
東日暮里 5-37-4, Arakawa-ku, Tokyo
Telephone:
03-5615-2080
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