It’s the perfect location for a pub crawl, with strings of drinking establishments packed closely together along the narrow side street. The term “ yokocho” refers to the alleyways off of busy main roads where one can find and drinks in the evening. Many karaoke joints offer a range of food and drinks, including a “ nomihodai” (all you can drink) option. They’re found all throughout Japan and typically are open late into the evening, until the early light of morning. While most Westerners’ experience with karaoke involves drunken singing in front of a large crowd at a bar, karaoke establishments in Japan are designed as halls of private-although not totally soundproof-rooms.
Japan, the country that invented the art of singing along to canned music, has evolved its own unique way to enjoy karaoke and a good drink. A night at this type of Japanese bar is an unmissable experience! One trait that is common across most izakaya, however, is the practice of offering “ otoshi” or a small dish of food to go with your first drink that doubles as a sort of table charge. The style may range from the traditional, where you take off your shoes to sit in a section with tatami flooring, to the modern and polished. Today, they are one of the main food and drink establishments in Japan. They first appeared as sake bars during the Edo period, which over time began offering small bites of food to customers to enjoy along with their drinks. Izakaya are Japan’s traditional epicurean gastropub, a place to enjoy beer, Japanese spirits, and good food. Read More: Tachinomi 101: Your Guide to Japan's Quirky Standing Bars Izakaya
Be sure to order drinks right away, and leave as soon as you finish your drinks, to allow other guests to enjoy the bustling experience. Tachinomi bars are usually crowded, so if you visit one, try to grab an open table or look around for a space to squeeze in. Although these were traditionally Japanese bars catering to the working class, in modern times tachinomi establishments have become a hip place for drinking, and you can find chic tachinomi sake bars and epicurean tachinomi wine bars offering a selection of charcuterie. Tachinomi, or “standing bars”, offer a lively, no-frills environment for grabbing a casual drink and a few bites after work. Read on to learn all about the different kinds of bars in Japan.įeeling Thirsty? Here’s 10 Types of Bars in Japan Tachinomi This was followed centuries later by shochu from the 16th century, and then beer, which was brewed in Japan from the 17th century.ĭrinking is still central today in daily life, for both social occasions such as office nomikai (drinking parties), and festivities such as hanami (flower viewing) picnics in the springtime. At the time, the first alcoholic beverage produced in Japan was sake (rice wine), known in Japanese as “nihonshu”. The earliest record of the Japanese enjoyment of alcohol dates back to the 3rd century classical Chinese text “Records of the Three Kingdoms”, which describes the ancient people of Yamato drinking and dancing.
Japan has long had an affinity for drinking.