Taito City, Tokyo, Japan｜Bar Bookshelff

As a former bar program manager, I find this to be one of my favorite spaces on the planet. Cozy is an understatement. The warmth and soothing vibe of this room is uniquely charming. The owner/bartender is quiet, respectful and engaging. Luckily, one of the two gentlemen at the bar spoke English and I was able to communicate to the owner (donning a proper bow tie) and share our love of good booze. A lot of the bottles sit in front of you on the bar, and once served, the bartender will start handing you books in order to strike up conversation. Unfortunately my Japanese isn’t great. If I lived in Tokyo, this would easily be my happy place. If you don’t truly appreciate proper cocktails, do not go here.

Such a lovely experience! We hopped in here for a quick drink before dinner and were so sad to have to go so quickly! The bar is high end and elegant, but also super cozy and intimate. Seeing how we were obvious tourists, Dai chose the most curious but also fascinating books for us: a book on wagashi and on Japanese gestures (both of which I will be purchasing before the end of my trip). Before long we were talking everything from our trip, to the movie bullet train. There is no menu, so I fully trusted Dai and had the most delightful cocktail, cannot recommend this bar enough!

Very cool place! Bartender was very nice. The concept of being handed books while sipping on some great whisky was very cool. So glad we stumbled upon it!