In my ongoing quest to complete a new year’s resolution that I set myself for 2021 but failed to complete due to the ongoing pandemic, and then restarted at the beginning of this year, I have been venturing to some places a bit of my usual beaten track. Tokyo is a huge city and it’s fair to say that there is plenty of it that I have never really explored. And exploring new neighbourhoods means visiting bars and shops that have long been on my ’to visit’ list but have fallen victim to my laziness and the abundance of more convenient options. We ended up doing a mini east Tokyo pub crawl with lots of short journeys on different rail operators’ lines and a fair bit of walking in between drinks. But it was all worth it and has encouraged me to keep doing similar things. Kameido beer was the first stop on the crawl and here’s what you need to know about it:
- Quite small and nice and comfortable feeling brewpub with a small counter for two or three and seating for maybe 10 more at a nice variety of types of tables. The brewery is located next to the bar area and you can look at it though the windows if that’s your kind of thing. The place is about 10 minutes walk from Kameido station which is on the Sobu line.
- Five taps of their own beer on. Beer is served in two sizes, medium and large and prices ranged from ¥750-¥800 for the medium and ¥900-¥1000 for the large. I’d say the medium was about 300ml (if my guessing is accurate) and maybe the large is about 450ml (but I only saw that glass from a distance. They also do a flight of what I guess are their three most popular beers for ¥1100. I would estimate that the glasses in the flight were about 150ml. I think they have the same five beers on at all times and they are listed on their website. There is a bit of a Belgian influence to their brewing as far as I could tell. Nice!
- No cover charge, some daytime opening at the weekend (but be careful, the place has quite limited hours so check before you go) and no smoking. Couldn’t find any WiFi. I should also say that they had some food, but I think aside from snacks their only dish is a beef stew/soup in a Belgian style, which I have to say smelled pretty nice, but as I’m a vegetarian, I didn’t sample.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen their beers on anywhere other than at their brewpub so if you’re looking to try them you’d better come here. I really liked the feel of the place. It felt like somewhere that locals often come as the customers seemed to know the staff quite well. Although Kameido is the closest station, it’s not much further to come from Kinshicho (or even Oshiage) if it suits you better. We had a nice time here and will be back if we’re in the area again. It’s nice to go out of your comfort zone and visit places in different areas. I’d recommend doing so to anyone who’s feeling a bit bored by their own regular routine.
Japanese breweries seen on tap:
Kameido
Opening Hours:
Friday, 17:00-20:00
Saturday & Sunday, 13:00-20:00
Closed Monday-Thursday
Location/Map:
亀戸 3-4-11, Koto-ku, Tokyo