It’s been quite a busy year for Tokyo Beer Drinker so far. There is almost a feeling that we’re ticking off places so quickly that we might be able to catch up with the backlog. But then again, I’m going to places that I find interesting, and there are a lot of places that don’t look particularly interesting but are still worthy of inclusion on here and those are going to be the ones that are tricky to find time or enthusiasm to do. I guess I’ve always considered this to be a slightly curated selection of places. With that in mind, and looking at the places that are being added recently, you can probably get an idea of what kind of things I’m interested in and what kind of places I like to go to. Hopefully there is some correlation between these places and places that readers are interested in. I’m due a digest post soon with lots of places that fit into the ‘a bit interesting but maybe not very conveniently located’ category. But some places are jumping up and waving at me, tempting me with things that I’m interested in which are bypassing the digest post and jumping straight to full post territory. And that is the case with today’s place. Tregion Port, (not sure what the name means), lured me in with the promise of Tohoku beers, particularly one from Brewccoly and I liked what I found there. Here’s what you need to know:
- Located on the second floor of a fancy looking building, (just go up the staircase near the entrance), in the main eating and drinking street of Akasaka. I hadn’t been to this area for a long time. Maybe the last time was to go to the now long closed Beer Horn. This place is quite near where that place was. It’s pretty big for a Tokyo beer place with loads of seats and tables. I couldn’t count them but Tabelog says 70. There were a lot of nice soft vintage looking sofas to sit on. Perhaps it seems weird that I mentioned the details about the sofas, but I did quite enjoy them. The atmosphere was nice and relaxed and the staff were very helpful and friendly.
- They had nine taps, but only six were on, which is totally understandable on a weekend in COVID times. All beers were from Tohoku, which is no surprise as that is the theme of the place. Beers are served in two sizes, 380ml and 250ml and were priced at ¥990 and ¥770 respectively. There were three breweries I’d never had before and the majority of the six were also breweries that you don’t see in Tokyo very often so they have something really unique in that respect. There is also a decent selection of bottles and cans. Beware that the can and bottle prices don’t include tax, but the taps do, which could be a little confusing. There’s also a cover charge of ¥550 if you visit after 17:00. This is quite a high charge, but the food offered for it looked pretty fancy.
- Along with the beers they have Tohoku themed food, Tohoku Nihonshu and wine, Tohoku everything basically. The place is no smoking and there is a lot of daytime opening. They usually serve lunch and dinner and are open all through the day which is a real rarity. I suspect when tourists are back in Japan, this will be a popular destination for them. I didn’t check for wifi, but I’d imagine they have it.
Honestly, the beers were all great here. It was unique not only in terms of the breweries but also the fact that all three we had were delicious. The prices seem pretty reasonable. The sizes are a little smaller than usual but those sizes work for me and the prices are accordingly also a little lower than usual so things balance out at around normal. The food was really nice too, but if you are a vegetarian or have dietary needs I would mention this right at the start and they will direct you to things that you can eat, as there was a bit of ‘bonus meat’ going on. Not sure if I’ve used that phrase here before, but basically I mean that meat is added when you might not expect it or maybe not want it. The otoshi costs a bit more than usual as well, but when it arrived I knew it would, as it looked pretty fancy. I’m really interested in going back, but I think I will do that during the daytime, as my dietary peculiarities mean it would make more sense for me to do so. With no cover charge before 17:00 this is a great place to drink beers that you won’t find in many other places. They list their taps on their social media so you can easily check what they have on before you go. It’s not an area of Tokyo I often find myself in, but given that it’s pretty easily accessible, maybe Tregion Port will be the reason that changes for me in the future.
Japanese breweries on tap when I visited:
Brewccoly
Zumona
Be Easy
315 Beer
Nagai Brewery Craftman
Hop Japan
Opening Hours:
Monday-Saturday, 11:30-00:00
Closed Sunday
Location/map:
赤坂3-12-18第8荒井ビル2F Minato-ku, Tokyo
Telephone:
03-6807-4242
This place comes highly recommended. I’ll be guilty of not showing up for the hair of the dog. Strolled over during lunch to avoid the cover charge. Great selection of brews but honestly, I was more enticed by their food menu. Will be back to check out their 1000yen lunch special!
Great service and it helps that the manager spoke some English.
P.S. They may be closed on a public holiday.
P.P.S. Beware of the sofa seats. Let that sink in!