14 ms·

Backyard Coffee and Jazz in Kyoto

596 points by wyclif 1y ago

ryant123 1y ago
Blog post like this made me back to 2010 lol
Mistletoe 1y ago
As a vintage audio lover, I’m legally obligated to ask what the speakers and amplifier are.
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
- js2 1y ago
  The amp is a Luxman SQ-505X: https://www.hifido.co.jp/sold/10-50554-58488-00.html?LNG=E https://www.hifido.co.jp/sold/10-50554-58488-00.html?LNG=E https://hifi-wiki.com/index.php/Luxman_SQ_505X https://hifi-wiki.com/index.php/Luxman_SQ_505X There's a pair of bookshelf speakers above the Luxman that are probably what it's driving. Very generic looking, those speakers could be almost anything. Maybe Tannoy Revolution R1 based on what appears to be an oval badge below the grill cloth? https://www.ebay.com/itm/177053328835 https://www.ebay.com/itm/177053328835 The two speakers on their side are subwoofers, likely with JBL drivers, possibly in DIY cabinets. The Luxman can't possibly be driving them (not nearly enough power). The subs may not be functional and the cabinets are just being used as a table? Here's a similar DIY subwoofer cabinet and drivers for sale: https://www.hifido.co.jp/sold/16-05245-90998-00.html?LNG=E https://www.hifido.co.jp/sold/16-05245-90998-00.html?LNG=E
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
wagwang 1y ago
I went to a cafe in kyoto near the bamboo forest where it was literally an old ladies house and in the moment, being there conjured deep resentment within me towards urban planners and zoning.
- ecshafer 1y ago
  Japan has zoning but its done very sensibly. In the US our zoning is done very restrictively: in this place you can build a detached single family home with this kind of set back and up to this height. In this spot you can build low density commercial. Etc you can ONLY build what the zoning board says. Then there are also complications from HUD, like they dont give FHA loans for condos or if developments have straight roads. In japan the national government has a zoning policy. The most common zoning is “light industrial”. But if you have a zoning policy, you can build anything at that level or below. So in light industrial you can build a coffee shop, or a house or an apartment or a machine shop.
- bravesoul2 1y ago
  Hey what. Near the bamboo forest they didn't build high rises. So. Kyoto has excellent density in general. The transit is excellent too.
SSJPython 1y ago
There's just something about Japan that makes its simplicity so beautiful. Yes, we all know Japan has dealt with economic problems, lost decades, declining fertility, etc. But they still manage to keep the beautiful simplicity of life that makes their culture one of the world's richest.
- bamboozled 1y ago
  It’s a great place but what’s on the surface is a total illusion to the complexity and rules Japanese people have to deal with to make it seem this way. I’ve always believed that the beauty of Japanese society comes at the cost of the Japanese themselves. They have to sacrifice a lot to make it what it is. Conformity is huge, there was even a row a few years ago when a school demanded to inspect girls underwear and make sure they're wearing the correct colored panties. Asking children to dye their hair black or straighten it is also not unheard of. Shukumōkyosei literally means “to shrink and correct hair”. It’s a permanent straightening treatment that removes 70 to 90% of curls, volume, and frizz by chemically restructuring hair bonds. My theory is, the level of rules, bureaucracy, and society pressure is why innovation and having children is just too hard. It's very hard to find the space live, but the rules based high pressure society is all they know since the end of WW2. If you're interested, have a read about the Zen period, and the way it sort of liberated society. It's faced challenges since the Kamakura period (it's golden age) but it was a fascinating period of brilliant art, innovation and reform. I hope what I said doesn't come across as negative either. Like I said, it's a wonderful place and fascinating culture, it truly is, but it's as I said, not free nor is it at all simple.
mupuff1234 1y ago
It all goes back to zoning laws and regulations.
- SSJPython 1y ago
  I think that is part of the reason. Japanese zoning is very liberal and loose compared to the US.
- Cthulhu_ 1y ago
  And economic viability; can the owner make a living wage with this setup, or do they have other income sources? What is their total cost of living?
  - 1776smithadam 1y ago
    Again, goes back to zoning laws. Housing is the biggest expenditure for people in America and many parts of the world. Housing is cheap is Japan so people can get by on much less.
    - asimpletune 1y ago
      That's interesting. So at least in this sense Japan seems like an excellent place for one to sell their home and downsize.
      - joshmarinacci 1y ago
        That is indeed what's happening. The countryside is emptying out and people are moving to the big cities.
    - deleted 1y ago
      [deleted]
    - spacemadness 1y ago
      The one country that seems to do housing right and not consider it an investment vehicle. Unlike our depressing situation that is tearing society apart.
frereubu 1y ago
This reminds me very much of one of my favourite series on Netflix, Midnight Diner (not Midnight Diner - Tokyo Stories, which is a Netflix remake with many of the same cast, but not as enjoyable as the original in my opinion). Most of the action centres around a group of regulars talking while at a small izakaya in Shinjuku, Tokyo, which is run by someone known only as "Master" and only opens from midnight to 7am. You see a bit of their lives outside, but it always reverts back to the izakaya where they debate on various topics. Given the setting, each episode feels a bit like a theatre play.
- flobosg 1y ago
  The show is based on a manga, by the way: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin%27ya_Shokud%C5%8D https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin%27ya_Shokud%C5%8D
  - frereubu 1y ago
    TIL - thanks!
- sho_hn 1y ago
  I tend to react a bit allergic to the Japan-everything fetishizing so prominent on Hacker News (although I've come to realize that it's mostly Americans holding up an example of everything they feel they lack domestically, and in that sense isn't so much about Japan as it is about America), but perhaps it's an interesting data point that at as a grumpy cynic I still want to second this recommendation. :) For one reason or another, the Japanese school of story-telling has a pretty prominent streak of this type of low-stakes, downtempo "slice of life" premise like this, that I find very satisfying. The director Hirokazu Koreeda has made many films of this type as well. For a while my wife and I would alternate watching Spanish films by Pedro Almodóvar and Koreeda on movie night, working through both catalogs, which somehow made a lot of sense together.
  - latexr 1y ago
    > Japan-everything fetishizing so prominent on Hacker News It’s far from exclusive to Hacker News. In fact, it doesn’t seem to be that prevalent here, as when it’s mentioned it at least tends to be in relevant context. Reddit, Tumblr, Imgur, and plenty of other communities both on and offline have an appreciation for Japanese culture. > although I've come to realize that it's mostly Americans holding up an example of everything they feel they lack domestically, and in that sense isn't so much about Japan as it is about America Also not related to America at all. It’s just as common in Europe and western countries in general. Generation probably plays a role. Find anyone who had their mind blown by an anime at a formative age, and you’ll find someone who to this day is likely to have some degree of fascination with Japan.
ape4 1y ago
Turntable on a speaker - I thought that was not advised.
- BowBun 1y ago
  Why though? Because vibrations from a speaker can cause the turntable to move and move the arm or cause the needle to move. In a jazz cafe, I assume the music plays low most of the time and so it probably doesn't matter much.
  - 2b3a51 1y ago
    Depends how well the turntable is decoupled from its plinth. Think in terms of a lumped systems model with a mass on a spring being driven by (probably lower frequency) vibrations from the speakers. "Now that I think about it, there was nothing in this shop that would tell you it isn’t still, say, 1960." I'd go for 1980s based on the amplifier, turntable and speakers. It would be a radiogram, probably valve based, in actual 1960s. Nice though.
  - buildsjets 1y ago
    The motion of the speaker feeds signal back to the needle/input device. It matters even more in Jazz/syncopated music. The needle tracks with a force of only 1.5 grams or so, and any motion is greatly amplified. Also if you listen to jazz with the volume low you are doing it wrong. Do you link the volume was low in the club when Sun Ra was recording? But besides that, those speakers are placed terribly for stereo imaging. Even tucked in the cubby, why place them with the drivers together rather than apart? And those speakers appear to be dreadful anyway. A single 12" driver in a vented / untuned baffle with no midrange or tweeter elements? So this is definitely set up for aesthetic, not sound quality.
    - pnut 1y ago
      I've got Genelec studio monitors in my kitchen. I care very much about sound. I would never set foot in your anechoic, soffit mounted cafe blasting jazz at 100dB.
lubujackson 1y ago
It doesn't feel run down because it isn't run down. No dust in the corners, no dents in the wall - this is the difference between patina and "old crap": a lifetime of care.
- jamestimmins 1y ago
  Thought similarly. It looks very clean, is well lit, the decisions look purposeful (no random crap on the shelves), and the materials wear well (wood vs e.g. cheap plastic chairs).
- munificent 1y ago
  This is a really excellent observation. In addition: > It’s such a curious, almost uncanny, feeling to enter one of these places. The inside feels much bigger and grander than the outside. It makes sense for people to have an innate desire to be in places that are, you know, good for people to be in. The most obvious way to tell if a place is good for you is if it carries evidence that it has historically been good to other people. Maybe we have some subsconcious processing that picks up on signs of human activity. That means wear and tear, built things, modifications. The way humans leave their mark on an environment when they spent time on it. All of that spent time is like accumulated votes that "yup, this is a good human place." At the same time, we don't want to find ourselves hanging out in a dumping ground, slag heap, or other environment that humans have left their mark in by expoiting it. That's not a good place to be, because it's not just used, it's used up. So what we want to look for is not just signs of human activity (which a landfill has in spades), but a certain kind of caring activity. Marks in the space that seem to have been done to leave it more appealing to be in. I think that's what the author is picking up on here. These tiny, aged spaces have a deep accumulation of caring attention. They feel bigger than they are because we pick up on that huge information density of all of the past people that have left their mark on a place. The place isn't large spatially, but it's large in time. It's the exact opposite of how walking into a giant mall or corporate office can still feel claustrophobic because there's nothing—no things—there, no sense of history or connection to any lived experience.
  - 0xbadcafebee 1y ago
anon-3988 1y ago
Man, I know it is a meme but Japan simply have mastered "aesthetics". It is especially incredible given that they achieved this in an urban area. For example, consider the vines that are growing on that shed. Is that dirty? Should we clean them to get a pristine shed? Yes, you have to sweep the floor everyday to clean the dust, but should you cut down that small plant growing between the cracks of your building? Or the vines overtaking the roof? I think if you answers no to this, then you understand that sense of aesthetics. For some people tho, they think its a bad thing (1), which I simply don't understand? I don't understand how people can willingly spend every couple of hours every week to trim their lawn to a pristine, perfect cube of grass. Is this beautiful? I think not. In my apartment, I have trees growing from the cracks of the building, and I think that's beautiful. I don't know how they do it, it is not simply just being clean. I think parts of it is "allowing nature to take its course" which gives a typical structure depth and age. 1. https://www.reddit.com/r/landscaping/comments/vs1n0n/help_what_are_these_vines_taking_over_my_garden/ https://www.reddit.com/r/landscaping/comments/vs1n0n/help_wh...
- TechDebtDevin 1y ago
  I've never been to Japan, but lived in Norway for a couple years and I always felt like they had mastered western "aesthetics". Norwegians seemed to really appreciate Japanese/zen styles as well. One thing I always found interesting is most homes in Norway will have fresh flowers, despite living in a climate not conducive to that at all. They have this word called koselig that we don't have in English that means cozy plus a lot more things, and these Japanese coffee shops really do embody that word.
  - Swoerd 1y ago
    We have a word for that: Japandi. "Japandi is an interior design and architecture style that blends Japanese minimalism with Scandinavian functionality."
  - SoftTalker 1y ago
    It's all of Scandinavia really. Denmark is the same, probably Sweden also (though I have not been there).
criddell 1y ago
How was the WiFi?
- low_tech_punk 1y ago
  Probably faster than Starbucks in the US
MarkusWandel 1y ago
What's also magical is that businesses like that can exist without being run aground by bureaucracy. In my city it is nearly impossible to even get a permit for a mobile food stand.
renewiltord 1y ago
Beautiful. I think a lot of what makes Japan wonderful in this respect is: * Poor economic mobility * Individual compliance with the social contract * Liberty to run small businesses * Good land use laws Perfect mobility is awful because all the capable people get to maximize earnings. The better The Sort (as patio11 calls it) the more capable people move out of doing things with high positive externalities.
- spongebobstoes 1y ago
  romanticizing poverty is a privilege that the poor don't have
  - renewiltord 1y ago
    I'm not romanticizing it. I'm saying that it's optimal for me that lots of smart conscientious people get limited job opportunities because then they will do small things to excellence rather than pursue personal gain. This is good for me because I get to experience the results of these. The guy who would be a great engineer, quant, or business leader will end up making rice wine and so I get great rice wine. I don't want to be limited like that, though. I want to be sorted into my zone of excellence and then enjoy the positive externalities from the smart and unfairly limited.
    - spongebobstoes 1y ago
      i think it is romanticizing poverty. most poor people don't get the opportunity to do anything to excellence. survival takes precedence I think it is also an inaccurate view of the world that most capable people drop their passions in pursuit of a career and monetary gain. not only that, but talent is multidimensional, and being a great engineer does not imply making great rice wine under different circumstances poverty, and lack of social mobility, is largely a curse of wasted potential, not a silver lining of talent molded into artisanal goods
      - renewiltord 1y ago
boogieknite 1y ago
during our visit to Kyoto last year we noticed dozens of unmarked restaurants/bars while walking to our hotel at night. we saw packed bars through the blinds of houses indistinguishable from any other around them. we wondered if maybe they are coop bars or something? we never intruded because all were unmarked and at capacity mostly forgot about it until reading this article because there is a lot to take in while visiting Japan from the US
- timr 1y ago
  There are "unmarked", membership-only places, but most likely you just didn't see or understand the sign. Many restaurants and bars are small mom-and-pop places that gain clientele through neighborhood word-of-mouth, and don't invest in advertising.
rockostrich 1y ago
As someone who loves coffee as well as the culture around locally owned coffee shops, visiting Tokyo (and to a lesser extent Seoul) this past April was like a dream come true. When my partner and I travel, we don't do a ton of planning for specifics so if we're in a big city we'll usually pick a neighborhood or 2 for the day and bebop around until we're tired. The start to any day is almost always finding a coffee shop and doing the crossword during our first cup. In Europe depending on the city this can be difficult because a lot of coffee shops just pump out overextracted espresso and then give the option to add water for an americano. There's still tons of amazing cafes in the European cities I've visited. Some really memorable ones are Café Tacuba in Lucerne, Faro in Rome, and Monks Coffee Roasters. in Amsterdam. In Tokyo, we actually started off with a pretty mediocre coffee because nothing opened before 10 besides a cafe chain, but after we got adjusted we couldn't stop finding great spots. The first day we were going to the national museum and found AOYAMA COFFEE ROASTER in Yanaka. At first the owner was a bit standoffish because we were 2 Americans coming in at the very beginning of the day and I assume she has a lot of bad experiences with tourists, but we started talking after she noticed my portafilter/coffee plant tattoo and had a really great time. For the rest of the week, we walked into shop after shop that had at most 4 or 5 seats with one barista making drinks and each one felt special. The one that connected me most to this post was the one from our day in Sumida City when we were going to a bunch of small museums (highly recommend the Hokusai museum). We stopped into CHILL OUT COFFEE &...RECORDS and it was one of the coziest coffee experiences I've ever had. The shop is a coffee bar with a couch and a couple of chairs. I forget what kind of cup I had but I remember it being just a really balanced cup with a little bit of berry and chocolate notes. I wish we could've stayed longer but after about 15 minutes a family of tourists with 2 toddlers came in and we figured it was time to go after we finished our drinks. In Seoul, the shops we visited were all a lot bigger but one thing I couldn't help noticing was that all of the baristas were so deliberate in their movements. This is something that was probably true of folks in shops in general in Tokyo and Seoul, but I noticed it with baristas because I tend to think about it a lot when I'm making drinks at home. You could show me a silhouette of baristas making drinks in Tokyo and some western city and it would be night and day. I feel like that goes a long way in illustrating the differences between eastern and western culture even though we're all making and enjoying the same hot bean water.
timr 1y ago
Hah, hilarious. I used to live not far from this place. [1] I don't know the story behind the structure, but it was a re-purposed storage shed [2] that someone was either subletting or owned outright. Probably the former -- the area is not remote, and is surrounded by new housing. Most likely is that some landowner is making a little bit of cash by renting out the space, and the business owner is exploiting the niche of having a cheap property so near to Nijo castle (a tourist black zone in Kyoto). Setting aside the aesthetics, the most "Japan" thing about this is that it's possible at all to get a license to run a food establishment, electricity service, etc. in such a marginal space. It would never be allowed in the US. Secondarily, leaseholder rights in Japan are pretty different than in other parts of the world. It's fairly common, even in major cities, to find underdeveloped, tiny little plots of land where there's a lessee who has a ~perpetual right to the space, independent of the "owner". Landowners will buy and sell the underlying rights to the rental cashflow, almost like a long-term bond, with no hope for redevelopment, and the lessee can independently sell the rental rights [3]. Again, I don't know if that's what is going on here, but it wouldn't surprise me. These kind of situations make it feasible for a business owner to invest in creating a business in what is essentially a potting shed -- one of the major risks would be that no one rationally would want to keep that old building in place in an area of Kyoto that could be more fully developed. But as you can see, this building is completely surrounded by new construction, and has been for many years. [1] It's here: https://maps.app.goo.gl/3KtWnTAkmatMqN9b6 https://maps.app.goo.gl/3KtWnTAkmatMqN9b6 [2] I could be wrong about this part. The roof is tiled, which is pretty fancy for a shed. My recollection was that it was far too small to ever have been a house, but it's possible that it was originally a section of a larger machiya, which would make sense for the area and the geometry of the lot. [3] This is sort of like mineral rights or air rights in the US. It's not a totally foreign concept to us, we just don't do it for houses or...shacks. This streetview gives a better perspective on exactly what is around it -- you have new development in front and behind, and the area immediately to the front of the shop is a dedicated parking area for a nearby business. I suspect that the shop and the parking area are part of the same parcel, owned by the business. https://www.google.com/maps/@35.0112669,135.7504895,3a,89.9y,243.59h,90.13t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s7JrXFju7iVlIfoqhwH01lA!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D-0.12812999420681592%26panoid%3D7JrXFju7iVlIfoqhwH01lA%26yaw%3D243.58725341210118!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MDYxNy4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D https://www.google.com/maps/@35.0112669,135.7504895,3a,89.9y...
FuriouslyAdrift 1y ago
Biggest thing I miss from Osaka is the vinyl record izakaya that I frequented (I do not remember the name but there are a bunch in the area). Just a little hole in the wall where the owner/baretender/chef/dj would spin whatever the heck he wanted.
- FuriouslyAdrift 1y ago
  Not the same place, but definitely the same vibe: https://archive.thevinylfactory.com/features/kankodori-karaoke-bar-osaka-records/ https://archive.thevinylfactory.com/features/kankodori-karao...
dataviz1000 1y ago
I entered a jazz izakaya in Kanazawa with only two stools and no room for anyone else. There was an old man on one stool and a bartender in his 70s or 80s. It is rude to tip and they will not except it but offering to buy a drink for the bartender is encouraged. I ordered a Japanese whiskey and offered the old man and bartender one. There were piles of knickknacks and maybe $15,000 worth of stereo equipment including a record player, planar magnetic speakers and a vacuum tube amplifier in this little room. I heard the distinctive sound of Sonny Rollins saxophone and used the translation app to say I saw Sonny Rollins play live at the Monterey Jazz Festival and he played an encore of La Cucaracha for close to two hours where his band eventually left the stage and he kept playing and playing. The bartender pulled out a Sonny Rollins record from his stack of vinyl and put it on the record player. The three of us sat there for 40 minutes not saying a word listening. If you are in Kyoto, I recommend a similar style bar called Brown Sugar. They tend to have these types of names, for example, in Sapporo there is one called Jim Crow. [0] However, if in Sapporo, I recommend the half note. [1] Most bars and restaurants for that matter will not serve me because I do not speak Japanese, so they say. If I wanted a drink I would stick to Karaoke and jazz bars. I made some friends in Kyoto who were finishing their 4th year studying engineering at University of Kyoto who were from Africa -- these kids are African royalty. They spoke perfect fluent Japanese and they couldn't get access into bars that would let me in. So the names are fitting and likely they know exactly what they mean. [0] https://www.google.com/search?q=sapporo+japan+bar+jim+crow https://www.google.com/search?q=sapporo+japan+bar+jim+crow [1] https://www.google.com/search?q=sapporo+japan+piano+ba+half+note https://www.google.com/search?q=sapporo+japan+piano+ba+half+...
- criddell 1y ago
  I recently heard Craig Mod[1] in an interview. He has walked thousands of miles in Japan and has produced books that document some of what he has seen. The photographs he has published online are beautiful, but I've never seen any of his books so I can't comment on those. Anyway, in the interview, he talked about places that sound like what you are describing in the first paragraph but he called them kissas. [1]:https://craigmod.com/ https://craigmod.com/
  - 1y ago
agcat 1y ago
I am bookmarking this for my visit! :D
- sjftokyo 1y ago
  When are you visiting? I live here and love this city. If you need recommendations of anything to see or do whilst here I'd be more than happy to help.
shermantanktop 1y ago
Jazz—classic jazz, not Kenny G- is common in urban Japan. Very common to hear Miles Davis or Dave Brubeck in a restaurant, coffee shop, etc.
Dracophoenix 1y ago
These small cafés/bars are called kissa (kee-sah). Unlike a regular café, the kissa is designed to create an atmosphere allowing for a quiet appreciation of the music while drinks are served as an accompaniment. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz_kissa https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz_kissa For the interested, Chris Broad (Abroad in Japan) interviewed the owner of such an establishment (Basie) located in Ichinoseki: https://youtube.com/watch?v=1-9RMSbl_Uo https://youtube.com/watch?v=1-9RMSbl_Uo > (There’s one that’s chock-full of Star Wars memorabilia, for example.) I'd definitely like to know where this one is.
- altairprime 1y ago
  Nijo Koya, at 382-3 Mogamicho, Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto.
  - Dracophoenix 1y ago
    That's the subject of the article. Not the other place with Star Wars memorabilia the author parenthetically referred to.
    - altairprime 1y ago
      Welp, better one than neither, anyways!
      - Dracophoenix 1y ago
        Thank you anyways.
- fennecbutt 1y ago
  Chris Broad is an inspiration.
- jffry 1y ago
  > (There’s one that’s chock-full of Star Wars memorabilia, for example.) Tavern Pachimon Wars in Osaka seems like it fits the description
fitsumbelay 1y ago
This ROCKS Wabi-sabi spaces are awesome regardless where in the world they are. Portals? Even better. Awesome post.
carabiner 1y ago
I went to a cafe in Niseko that looked straight out of a ghibli movie. Stacks of older records in the corner, pothos vines draped over window sills. If you know Niseko, you know this is not the vibe at all since the whole town is mostly Australians (who are louder and more boisterous than Americans). I went in there and it was only a few Asian tourists. So peaceful. Then one American came in, and the entire vibe shifted for the worse as he tried talking over me and shouting across the room to the other table. Sigh.
nomilk 1y ago
> on the vibrant business and street culture in Japanese cities and the seemingly very, very low barriers to entry for regular people to participate. An astute observation that allowing markets to operate without onerous licensing schemes and regulations often has wonderful upsides, allowing quirky and niche interests to survive and even flourish. A similar situation was true of Melbourne's small bar scene vs Sydney's. Sydney's more expensive/onerous licensing requirements were prohibitive for tiny bars. Whereas Melbourne's licensing was more permissive and less expensive, resulting in an abundance of quirky and interesting venues. Possibly my favourite example was a tiny indy video game bar (it shut down during covid, I think). https://barsk.com.au/skgames/?p=done https://barsk.com.au/skgames/?p=done
- morleytj 1y ago
  A similar situation in the US can be seen in Boston. Historically terrible nightlife and for easily explained reasons. Liquor licenses are distributed by the state at a capped amount that can potentially be increased each year, meaning the majority of new businesses wanting to have alcohol sales will need to purchase an existing liquor license from another business, often at an exorbitant price (over 500k USD on average I believe) This makes it extremely difficult for any new businesses to start, and massively advantages large chain businesses that have the ability to make the initial investment in securing a license, versus small or quirky businesses which just have no chance getting started.
  - xyzhut 1y ago
    This makes so much sense to me. I've always thought Boston's nightlife was terrible when compared to places in Texas. You go to Austin and there are the most random bars, clubs, and restaurants. Most have their own quirks and personality, making it so no one place is exactly like the other.
  - charcircuit 1y ago
    Why do you need a liquor license for nightlife. There is more to life than just drinking alcohol.
b0a04gl 1y ago
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kazinator 1y ago
I went to such a small pasta restaurant somewhere in the Gunma Prefecture's countryside. Record player, vacuum tube amplifier, jazz. I'm down the rabbit hole of trying to find it now. Searching, in Japanese, for restaurants specifically in the Gunma country side that feature jazz, I found instead something else: "Cafe Front Load": https://blog.goo.ne.jp/azuminojv/e/bbfb2695ee73ee9c27c2e4ba644b6e01 https://blog.goo.ne.jp/azuminojv/e/bbfb2695ee73ee9c27c2e4ba6... Not the same one. But there is a record player with jazz. The amp is not tube, but it is exotic for the purpose: a Yamaha PC2002M PA thing that requires 3U racks space. These jazz vinyl -> record player -> exotic amp -> speakers type restaurants seem to be like mushrooms under the rain in Japan or something? It may be like trying to find a replacement record needle in a haystack.
pinoy420 1y ago
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bravesoul2 1y ago
Love it. I would have loved to stumble across that on my trip. I also googled for coffee but the only place open early enough near me was 7-11. Most seem to open ar 12pm for some reason. I was slightly out of downtown to the north. But had a similar experience with a restaurant. It didn't look like this and was more conventional but it did feel like we were guests at someone's home rather than a restaurant and the food was fantastic. It felt different to the normal! I've had that experience in London too but it is very uncommon there. I think the true quirk exists in every city but you have to hunt it down more in western cities.
- davidcelis 1y ago
  Craft coffee is a luxury item that isn't part of Japanese culture in the same way that it is in the west. In the early morning, when you're a salaryman trying to get to work as fast as possible, you get coffee from a vending machine or convenience store. Craft coffee is something to enjoy leisurely, which is why most specialty coffee shops don't open until much later than we're used to
  - bravesoul2 1y ago
    Thanks. I guessed that. I got downvoted so I assume people think I am complaining. I am not. Just observing and curious as to why they open later I assume there are different rituals and I never found out. Thanks for replying!
mtalantikite 1y ago
> I suppose, religion aside, that that feeling is wonder. That is not a feeling I often feel running errands and going out in America. But it’s a feeling that the Japanese business landscape and built environment is able to spark frequently. On our Friday stand-ups we generally chat for a few minutes about what we're up to for the weekend, and my update is usually something along the lines of "I'm going to go outside and let New York happen to me". I'm feeling that wonder less and less here in the city as all the quirky, niche things have been driven out due to rent increases and are being replaced by their private equity owned, multi-national versions. But the ability of the city to spark wonder certainly exists in our environment here more than in most in the US since we navigate by foot and not typically by car. I'd prefer optimizing for wonder than most other things. Edit: Actually there used to be a Japanese cafe in my neighborhood called "House of Small Wonder", which was attached to an omakase spot. They had a big tree growing out of the middle of it, going up out the roof, with space for maybe 15 or less. It's now a Glossier makeup store.
- cg5280 1y ago
  NYC is the only "real city" in the US (that I have visited; Chicago seems similar) and yet NYC is not an easy place to live unless you make a lot of money. I have traveled abroad extensively (including to places like Japan) and think the state of American cities is a genuine shame. We are missing out on so much.
  - mtalantikite 1y ago
    Absolutely. And whenever you bring up wanting to build cities more like NYC the discussion inevitably devolves into people clutching their cars and complaining it would be tyrannical to make people walk and take public transit. It'd be great if we had more options here, rather than everyone that wants to live in a big city piling into just NYC (which is still a small city in the global scheme of things).
- eleveriven 1y ago
  There's something irreplaceable about those odd little spaces that surprise you, especially in a walkable city
chem83 1y ago
Nice, I was there last month! Found it completely by accident.
michiman 1y ago
This was one of my favorite attributes while visiting Japan. I loved seeing all the small coffee shops and other small businesses, several which were seemingly attached to the owners' homes.
fizx 1y ago
I miss SF in the early 2010s. - gorgeous 3-seat wine bar inside my laundromat - hidden sushi restaurant in friends garage - hole-in-the wall coffee shop with only cushion seats on the floor and $1.50 breakfast sandos, frequented almost exclusively by writing clubs - corner store with half-stocked shelves, still using a cash register that printed receipts with a mechanical typewriter
socalgal2 1y ago
Some of this I believe is possible because of rent price. Especially in places like Kyoto where I believe the population is slowly going down. That said, there are small places all over. this one might be relatively famous. It's next to a train track so not "quiet" but it's also in busy Tokyo. https://maps.app.goo.gl/FMY9QwWyiibWn9CcA https://maps.app.goo.gl/FMY9QwWyiibWn9CcA Another thing there are lots of are small restaurants that hold 5-12 people. There are of course the famous bars in Golden Gai and a few other places but there really are 1000s of these places if you know where to look if you're language skills are up for it. Often there is person running the "bar" but they have a menu of food they'll cook for you. Things like grilled fish, pork salad, omelette rice, etc... Basically Japanese home cooking. Lots of people become regulars at a place and it's like their 2nd home. If you watched Odd Taxi, they hang out at a place like this. There's one I was introduced to recently right here (https://maps.app.goo.gl/Tgsfou4HMbKiiD3L8 https://maps.app.goo.gl/Tgsfou4HMbKiiD3L8). It's not going to be around much longer because it's run by a 96yr old lady who lives there. She doesn't speak any English. She ran it with her husband until he passed away. IIRC she's been there 57yrs Another, I was introduced to bar recently, not far from the coffee place above. I found it interesting in particular because it was only open weekdays from 5pm to 10:30 on weekdays. Not open on weekends. I haven't asked if that brings in enough or if the person has other sources of income. I'll ask next time I visit. But 5.5 hours a day, 5 days a week + prep sound nice. Another thing I find appealing about these small bar/restaurants/snacks, they seem like not a bad life. Working a USA style sports bar in the USA or beer restaurant like in Germany or regular restaurant with 10+ tables seems like a not so interesting job. Just running from table to table taking orders, carrying orders, being "busy". These Japanese places are a place to socialize and in particular to socialize with the owner so the owner generally has a nice time as well.
Caelus9 1y ago
It reminded me of the last time I walked into a random little cafe in a strange city and heard some live jazz music. The whole atmosphere was quiet and relaxing. When you are not in a hurry, not thinking about taking pictures or posting on social media, you will really start to "see" the place.
jdkee 1y ago
The turntable should not be set atop the speakers.
kmoser 1y ago
> I’m not sure why it is that this obviously aging little structure doesn’t feel ugly or rundown. It doesn’t trigger any negative feelings. It somehow feels atmospheric, like a living time capsule. The music, of course, helped. Several things help prevent it from feeling run down: 1) the music, 2) the fact that it's probably immaculate: no dust or dirt anywhere, 3) the rustic surfaces have a patina, but no physical degradation (rust/rot), and 4) it's well lit.
colordrops 1y ago
I happen to be visiting Kyoto right now. Anyone know the name of this place Edit: someone else posted the address in this thread.
- sjftokyo 1y ago
  How are you finding Kyoto so far? Hope you're enjoying it! I live here and absolutely love the city. Happy to help with recommendations if you're staying a while.
  - colordrops 1y ago
    Love it, leaving for Beijing in two more days. We are vegan so our dining options are limited, and my wife and kids haven't been before so we are doing the typical tourist things. My friend is a Buddhist monk that lives here and we have been visiting his sangha the last couple days. Did you have a recommendation or two for less visited but unique areas we could walk around? Thank you!
    - sjftokyo 1y ago
      Very nice, glad you're having a good time! Have you stumbled upon https://kyotovegan.jp/ https://kyotovegan.jp/ yet? Lots of good restaurants on there to check out in your last couple of days. I really love Shimogamo Shrine and the whole Demachiyanagi Area including over to Ichijoji. It doesn't get too busy and the Demachiyanagi Shotengai shopping street is wonderful to walk up and down and see the interesting stores inside, it's covered too so great for the rainy season! There's a cool cinema in there as well as some fascinating book shops. Queue up for Futaba if you want some traditional Japanese sweets but it might be a long wait. Also the walk up to Shimogamo Shrine from Demachiyanagi Station is so peaceful, especially during the week. I do sound tours around that area capturing interesting sound with field recorders that I provide. It's a very interesting place to find soundscapes and 'hear' Kyoto instead of just see it! If that sounds interesting: https://ohayo.substack.com/p/kyoto-sound-walks https://ohayo.substack.com/p/kyoto-sound-walks And if you're into sake there's the Fushimi Sake village which doesn't get too busy and is really nice to just stroll around and visit the shops and museums. There's also a river tour. There's another interesting old school undercover shopping street there as well. Hope you enjoy your last two days here!
prokopton 1y ago
Kyoto’s probably as bad as Barcelona for overtourism. It’s hard to enjoy Kyoto anymore. Japanese people are just too reserved to protest.
tkgally 1y ago
As the author and various commenters here note, there are many tiny businesses in Japan. In the big cities, they are often located on the upper floors of multistory buildings. Lately, for no particular reason, I've been taking pictures of the signs for bars in such places: https://www.gally.net/barsigns/index.html https://www.gally.net/barsigns/index.html
chizhik-pyzhik 1y ago
This is a story about zoning.
_1tem 1y ago
This is a function of affordability and low regulation. Another place I’ve been to which has so many lovely tiny little coffee shops and boutiques which may also happen to be someone’s home is Lviv, Ukraine.
- invalidusernam3 1y ago
  Regulation is definitely the big stopper in most of the EU. Here in Czech Republic it would be incredibly difficult to open anything like this. I almost opened a cafe/bar a couple years back, I even had a reservation deposit on a location, had the money to renovate it, had money put aside for it to fully fund the rent and utilities and staff for a year, but in the end I scrapped the idea because of the bureaucracy. I needed: a hospitality trade license , a certificate from the inspectors for food hygiene and public health, a certificate for fire/gas/electrical safety, registration with the customs office, staff needed to do training for food handling, and I needed to register the kitchen with the regional hygiene office. It's not unreasonable, but it's a lot of bureaucracy for something I wanted to do as a fun side project
low_tech_love 1y ago
I live in Sweden (as an expat), and I often struggle to explain to outsiders why I think it’s one of the least interesting places I’ve ever been to. There is something missing that I can’t usually grasp with words. This article has made it crystal clear; this kind of thing is non-existent here. Everything is impersonal, distant, matter-of-fact. Next time someone asks me I’ll link this article. (The next obvious question is always “why are you still there?” and the answer is because it’s a great place to work.)
- olelele 1y ago
  It is literally impossible to open a small "hole-in-the-wall"-kind of bar in Sweden. In order to sell alcohol you have to also serve warm food which means you have to open a restaurant, and following this means you have to have a kitchen that is approved by very strict hygiene controls. Like having a sink only for kitchen staff to wash their hands. In the early 20th century the trick in the "Ölcafé" (Beer Café) was to have a sandwich that _no one_ ate that you ordered with your beer and this then gets sent back and forth between customers and the cafe :)
- eleveriven 1y ago
  You can have all the infrastructure, safety, and efficiency in the world, but if everything is polished and impersonal, it can start to feel kind of sterile
  - olelele 1y ago
    I left for Germany for this reason
- wraptile 1y ago
  I live in Thailand as an expat and I have the inverse of your experience and more a kin to this article. There just so many examples like the ones mentioned in the article. When I lived in Chiang Mai I'd just take my bike to any direction and always find something - be it a small noodle cart or a cafe someone opened up in their back yard or a small bar right under an abandoned hotel. It's incredible how many invisible effects viability of small businesses have on a society.
andyclap2 1y ago
Surprised no one's mentioned misuyabari yet... For all your tiny kawaii miniature animal topped needle needs, hidden in a rustic shack in a courtyard in a mall. Ooh they have a website now! https://misuyabari.com/ https://misuyabari.com/
sahil_sharma0 1y ago
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Duskgmxx 1y ago
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m0llusk 1y ago
Tangential, but this is an interesting contrast with the book I am currently reading, The Trouble With Passion: How Searching for Fulfillment at Work Fosters Inequality by Erin A. Cech, which goes on in detail and at length about the downsides of matching passion with work.
eleveriven 1y ago
The way small-scale businesses feel personal and meaningful, like an extension of someone's passion rather than just commerce
mickey475778 1y ago
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seatac76 1y ago
One of my best experiences in life has been walking the back streets of Kyoto in cold winter nights and just checking into a tiny noodle shop for some warm noodles. The whole experience is just so peaceful. Highly recommend just walking the streets behind Nishiki Market.

596 points by wyclif 1y ago

ryant123 1y ago

Blog post like this made me back to 2010 lol

Mistletoe 1y ago

As a vintage audio lover, I’m legally obligated to ask what the speakers and amplifier are.

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js2 1y ago
The amp is a Luxman SQ-505X: https://www.hifido.co.jp/sold/10-50554-58488-00.html?LNG=E https://www.hifido.co.jp/sold/10-50554-58488-00.html?LNG=E https://hifi-wiki.com/index.php/Luxman_SQ_505X https://hifi-wiki.com/index.php/Luxman_SQ_505X There's a pair of bookshelf speakers above the Luxman that are probably what it's driving. Very generic looking, those speakers could be almost anything. Maybe Tannoy Revolution R1 based on what appears to be an oval badge below the grill cloth? https://www.ebay.com/itm/177053328835 https://www.ebay.com/itm/177053328835 The two speakers on their side are subwoofers, likely with JBL drivers, possibly in DIY cabinets. The Luxman can't possibly be driving them (not nearly enough power). The subs may not be functional and the cabinets are just being used as a table? Here's a similar DIY subwoofer cabinet and drivers for sale: https://www.hifido.co.jp/sold/16-05245-90998-00.html?LNG=E https://www.hifido.co.jp/sold/16-05245-90998-00.html?LNG=E
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wagwang 1y ago

I went to a cafe in kyoto near the bamboo forest where it was literally an old ladies house and in the moment, being there conjured deep resentment within me towards urban planners and zoning.

ecshafer 1y ago
Japan has zoning but its done very sensibly. In the US our zoning is done very restrictively: in this place you can build a detached single family home with this kind of set back and up to this height. In this spot you can build low density commercial. Etc you can ONLY build what the zoning board says. Then there are also complications from HUD, like they dont give FHA loans for condos or if developments have straight roads. In japan the national government has a zoning policy. The most common zoning is “light industrial”. But if you have a zoning policy, you can build anything at that level or below. So in light industrial you can build a coffee shop, or a house or an apartment or a machine shop.
bravesoul2 1y ago
Hey what. Near the bamboo forest they didn't build high rises. So. Kyoto has excellent density in general. The transit is excellent too.

SSJPython 1y ago

There's just something about Japan that makes its simplicity so beautiful. Yes, we all know Japan has dealt with economic problems, lost decades, declining fertility, etc. But they still manage to keep the beautiful simplicity of life that makes their culture one of the world's richest.

bamboozled 1y ago
It’s a great place but what’s on the surface is a total illusion to the complexity and rules Japanese people have to deal with to make it seem this way. I’ve always believed that the beauty of Japanese society comes at the cost of the Japanese themselves. They have to sacrifice a lot to make it what it is. Conformity is huge, there was even a row a few years ago when a school demanded to inspect girls underwear and make sure they're wearing the correct colored panties. Asking children to dye their hair black or straighten it is also not unheard of. Shukumōkyosei literally means “to shrink and correct hair”. It’s a permanent straightening treatment that removes 70 to 90% of curls, volume, and frizz by chemically restructuring hair bonds. My theory is, the level of rules, bureaucracy, and society pressure is why innovation and having children is just too hard. It's very hard to find the space live, but the rules based high pressure society is all they know since the end of WW2. If you're interested, have a read about the Zen period, and the way it sort of liberated society. It's faced challenges since the Kamakura period (it's golden age) but it was a fascinating period of brilliant art, innovation and reform. I hope what I said doesn't come across as negative either. Like I said, it's a wonderful place and fascinating culture, it truly is, but it's as I said, not free nor is it at all simple.

mupuff1234 1y ago

It all goes back to zoning laws and regulations.

SSJPython 1y ago
I think that is part of the reason. Japanese zoning is very liberal and loose compared to the US.
Cthulhu_ 1y ago
And economic viability; can the owner make a living wage with this setup, or do they have other income sources? What is their total cost of living?
- 1776smithadam 1y ago
  Again, goes back to zoning laws. Housing is the biggest expenditure for people in America and many parts of the world. Housing is cheap is Japan so people can get by on much less.
  - asimpletune 1y ago
    That's interesting. So at least in this sense Japan seems like an excellent place for one to sell their home and downsize.
    - joshmarinacci 1y ago
      That is indeed what's happening. The countryside is emptying out and people are moving to the big cities.
  - deleted 1y ago
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  - spacemadness 1y ago
    The one country that seems to do housing right and not consider it an investment vehicle. Unlike our depressing situation that is tearing society apart.

frereubu 1y ago

This reminds me very much of one of my favourite series on Netflix, Midnight Diner (not Midnight Diner - Tokyo Stories, which is a Netflix remake with many of the same cast, but not as enjoyable as the original in my opinion). Most of the action centres around a group of regulars talking while at a small izakaya in Shinjuku, Tokyo, which is run by someone known only as "Master" and only opens from midnight to 7am. You see a bit of their lives outside, but it always reverts back to the izakaya where they debate on various topics. Given the setting, each episode feels a bit like a theatre play.

flobosg 1y ago
The show is based on a manga, by the way: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin%27ya_Shokud%C5%8D https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin%27ya_Shokud%C5%8D
- frereubu 1y ago
  TIL - thanks!
sho_hn 1y ago
I tend to react a bit allergic to the Japan-everything fetishizing so prominent on Hacker News (although I've come to realize that it's mostly Americans holding up an example of everything they feel they lack domestically, and in that sense isn't so much about Japan as it is about America), but perhaps it's an interesting data point that at as a grumpy cynic I still want to second this recommendation. :) For one reason or another, the Japanese school of story-telling has a pretty prominent streak of this type of low-stakes, downtempo "slice of life" premise like this, that I find very satisfying. The director Hirokazu Koreeda has made many films of this type as well. For a while my wife and I would alternate watching Spanish films by Pedro Almodóvar and Koreeda on movie night, working through both catalogs, which somehow made a lot of sense together.
- latexr 1y ago
  > Japan-everything fetishizing so prominent on Hacker News It’s far from exclusive to Hacker News. In fact, it doesn’t seem to be that prevalent here, as when it’s mentioned it at least tends to be in relevant context. Reddit, Tumblr, Imgur, and plenty of other communities both on and offline have an appreciation for Japanese culture. > although I've come to realize that it's mostly Americans holding up an example of everything they feel they lack domestically, and in that sense isn't so much about Japan as it is about America Also not related to America at all. It’s just as common in Europe and western countries in general. Generation probably plays a role. Find anyone who had their mind blown by an anime at a formative age, and you’ll find someone who to this day is likely to have some degree of fascination with Japan.

ape4 1y ago

Turntable on a speaker - I thought that was not advised.

BowBun 1y ago
Why though? Because vibrations from a speaker can cause the turntable to move and move the arm or cause the needle to move. In a jazz cafe, I assume the music plays low most of the time and so it probably doesn't matter much.
- 2b3a51 1y ago
  Depends how well the turntable is decoupled from its plinth. Think in terms of a lumped systems model with a mass on a spring being driven by (probably lower frequency) vibrations from the speakers. "Now that I think about it, there was nothing in this shop that would tell you it isn’t still, say, 1960." I'd go for 1980s based on the amplifier, turntable and speakers. It would be a radiogram, probably valve based, in actual 1960s. Nice though.
- buildsjets 1y ago
  The motion of the speaker feeds signal back to the needle/input device. It matters even more in Jazz/syncopated music. The needle tracks with a force of only 1.5 grams or so, and any motion is greatly amplified. Also if you listen to jazz with the volume low you are doing it wrong. Do you link the volume was low in the club when Sun Ra was recording? But besides that, those speakers are placed terribly for stereo imaging. Even tucked in the cubby, why place them with the drivers together rather than apart? And those speakers appear to be dreadful anyway. A single 12" driver in a vented / untuned baffle with no midrange or tweeter elements? So this is definitely set up for aesthetic, not sound quality.
  - pnut 1y ago
    I've got Genelec studio monitors in my kitchen. I care very much about sound. I would never set foot in your anechoic, soffit mounted cafe blasting jazz at 100dB.

lubujackson 1y ago

It doesn't feel run down because it isn't run down. No dust in the corners, no dents in the wall - this is the difference between patina and "old crap": a lifetime of care.

jamestimmins 1y ago
Thought similarly. It looks very clean, is well lit, the decisions look purposeful (no random crap on the shelves), and the materials wear well (wood vs e.g. cheap plastic chairs).
munificent 1y ago
This is a really excellent observation. In addition: > It’s such a curious, almost uncanny, feeling to enter one of these places. The inside feels much bigger and grander than the outside. It makes sense for people to have an innate desire to be in places that are, you know, good for people to be in. The most obvious way to tell if a place is good for you is if it carries evidence that it has historically been good to other people. Maybe we have some subsconcious processing that picks up on signs of human activity. That means wear and tear, built things, modifications. The way humans leave their mark on an environment when they spent time on it. All of that spent time is like accumulated votes that "yup, this is a good human place." At the same time, we don't want to find ourselves hanging out in a dumping ground, slag heap, or other environment that humans have left their mark in by expoiting it. That's not a good place to be, because it's not just used, it's used up. So what we want to look for is not just signs of human activity (which a landfill has in spades), but a certain kind of caring activity. Marks in the space that seem to have been done to leave it more appealing to be in. I think that's what the author is picking up on here. These tiny, aged spaces have a deep accumulation of caring attention. They feel bigger than they are because we pick up on that huge information density of all of the past people that have left their mark on a place. The place isn't large spatially, but it's large in time. It's the exact opposite of how walking into a giant mall or corporate office can still feel claustrophobic because there's nothing—no things—there, no sense of history or connection to any lived experience.
- 0xbadcafebee 1y ago

anon-3988 1y ago

Man, I know it is a meme but Japan simply have mastered "aesthetics". It is especially incredible given that they achieved this in an urban area. For example, consider the vines that are growing on that shed. Is that dirty? Should we clean them to get a pristine shed? Yes, you have to sweep the floor everyday to clean the dust, but should you cut down that small plant growing between the cracks of your building? Or the vines overtaking the roof? I think if you answers no to this, then you understand that sense of aesthetics. For some people tho, they think its a bad thing (1), which I simply don't understand? I don't understand how people can willingly spend every couple of hours every week to trim their lawn to a pristine, perfect cube of grass. Is this beautiful? I think not. In my apartment, I have trees growing from the cracks of the building, and I think that's beautiful. I don't know how they do it, it is not simply just being clean. I think parts of it is "allowing nature to take its course" which gives a typical structure depth and age. 1. https://www.reddit.com/r/landscaping/comments/vs1n0n/help_what_are_these_vines_taking_over_my_garden/ https://www.reddit.com/r/landscaping/comments/vs1n0n/help_wh...

TechDebtDevin 1y ago
I've never been to Japan, but lived in Norway for a couple years and I always felt like they had mastered western "aesthetics". Norwegians seemed to really appreciate Japanese/zen styles as well. One thing I always found interesting is most homes in Norway will have fresh flowers, despite living in a climate not conducive to that at all. They have this word called koselig that we don't have in English that means cozy plus a lot more things, and these Japanese coffee shops really do embody that word.
- Swoerd 1y ago
  We have a word for that: Japandi. "Japandi is an interior design and architecture style that blends Japanese minimalism with Scandinavian functionality."
- SoftTalker 1y ago
  It's all of Scandinavia really. Denmark is the same, probably Sweden also (though I have not been there).

criddell 1y ago

How was the WiFi?

low_tech_punk 1y ago
Probably faster than Starbucks in the US

MarkusWandel 1y ago

What's also magical is that businesses like that can exist without being run aground by bureaucracy. In my city it is nearly impossible to even get a permit for a mobile food stand.

renewiltord 1y ago

Beautiful. I think a lot of what makes Japan wonderful in this respect is: * Poor economic mobility * Individual compliance with the social contract * Liberty to run small businesses * Good land use laws Perfect mobility is awful because all the capable people get to maximize earnings. The better The Sort (as patio11 calls it) the more capable people move out of doing things with high positive externalities.

spongebobstoes 1y ago
romanticizing poverty is a privilege that the poor don't have
- renewiltord 1y ago
  I'm not romanticizing it. I'm saying that it's optimal for me that lots of smart conscientious people get limited job opportunities because then they will do small things to excellence rather than pursue personal gain. This is good for me because I get to experience the results of these. The guy who would be a great engineer, quant, or business leader will end up making rice wine and so I get great rice wine. I don't want to be limited like that, though. I want to be sorted into my zone of excellence and then enjoy the positive externalities from the smart and unfairly limited.
  - spongebobstoes 1y ago
    i think it is romanticizing poverty. most poor people don't get the opportunity to do anything to excellence. survival takes precedence I think it is also an inaccurate view of the world that most capable people drop their passions in pursuit of a career and monetary gain. not only that, but talent is multidimensional, and being a great engineer does not imply making great rice wine under different circumstances poverty, and lack of social mobility, is largely a curse of wasted potential, not a silver lining of talent molded into artisanal goods
    - renewiltord 1y ago

boogieknite 1y ago

during our visit to Kyoto last year we noticed dozens of unmarked restaurants/bars while walking to our hotel at night. we saw packed bars through the blinds of houses indistinguishable from any other around them. we wondered if maybe they are coop bars or something? we never intruded because all were unmarked and at capacity mostly forgot about it until reading this article because there is a lot to take in while visiting Japan from the US

timr 1y ago
There are "unmarked", membership-only places, but most likely you just didn't see or understand the sign. Many restaurants and bars are small mom-and-pop places that gain clientele through neighborhood word-of-mouth, and don't invest in advertising.

rockostrich 1y ago

As someone who loves coffee as well as the culture around locally owned coffee shops, visiting Tokyo (and to a lesser extent Seoul) this past April was like a dream come true. When my partner and I travel, we don't do a ton of planning for specifics so if we're in a big city we'll usually pick a neighborhood or 2 for the day and bebop around until we're tired. The start to any day is almost always finding a coffee shop and doing the crossword during our first cup. In Europe depending on the city this can be difficult because a lot of coffee shops just pump out overextracted espresso and then give the option to add water for an americano. There's still tons of amazing cafes in the European cities I've visited. Some really memorable ones are Café Tacuba in Lucerne, Faro in Rome, and Monks Coffee Roasters. in Amsterdam. In Tokyo, we actually started off with a pretty mediocre coffee because nothing opened before 10 besides a cafe chain, but after we got adjusted we couldn't stop finding great spots. The first day we were going to the national museum and found AOYAMA COFFEE ROASTER in Yanaka. At first the owner was a bit standoffish because we were 2 Americans coming in at the very beginning of the day and I assume she has a lot of bad experiences with tourists, but we started talking after she noticed my portafilter/coffee plant tattoo and had a really great time. For the rest of the week, we walked into shop after shop that had at most 4 or 5 seats with one barista making drinks and each one felt special. The one that connected me most to this post was the one from our day in Sumida City when we were going to a bunch of small museums (highly recommend the Hokusai museum). We stopped into CHILL OUT COFFEE &...RECORDS and it was one of the coziest coffee experiences I've ever had. The shop is a coffee bar with a couch and a couple of chairs. I forget what kind of cup I had but I remember it being just a really balanced cup with a little bit of berry and chocolate notes. I wish we could've stayed longer but after about 15 minutes a family of tourists with 2 toddlers came in and we figured it was time to go after we finished our drinks. In Seoul, the shops we visited were all a lot bigger but one thing I couldn't help noticing was that all of the baristas were so deliberate in their movements. This is something that was probably true of folks in shops in general in Tokyo and Seoul, but I noticed it with baristas because I tend to think about it a lot when I'm making drinks at home. You could show me a silhouette of baristas making drinks in Tokyo and some western city and it would be night and day. I feel like that goes a long way in illustrating the differences between eastern and western culture even though we're all making and enjoying the same hot bean water.

timr 1y ago

Hah, hilarious. I used to live not far from this place. [1] I don't know the story behind the structure, but it was a re-purposed storage shed [2] that someone was either subletting or owned outright. Probably the former -- the area is not remote, and is surrounded by new housing. Most likely is that some landowner is making a little bit of cash by renting out the space, and the business owner is exploiting the niche of having a cheap property so near to Nijo castle (a tourist black zone in Kyoto). Setting aside the aesthetics, the most "Japan" thing about this is that it's possible at all to get a license to run a food establishment, electricity service, etc. in such a marginal space. It would never be allowed in the US. Secondarily, leaseholder rights in Japan are pretty different than in other parts of the world. It's fairly common, even in major cities, to find underdeveloped, tiny little plots of land where there's a lessee who has a ~perpetual right to the space, independent of the "owner". Landowners will buy and sell the underlying rights to the rental cashflow, almost like a long-term bond, with no hope for redevelopment, and the lessee can independently sell the rental rights [3]. Again, I don't know if that's what is going on here, but it wouldn't surprise me. These kind of situations make it feasible for a business owner to invest in creating a business in what is essentially a potting shed -- one of the major risks would be that no one rationally would want to keep that old building in place in an area of Kyoto that could be more fully developed. But as you can see, this building is completely surrounded by new construction, and has been for many years. [1] It's here: https://maps.app.goo.gl/3KtWnTAkmatMqN9b6 https://maps.app.goo.gl/3KtWnTAkmatMqN9b6 [2] I could be wrong about this part. The roof is tiled, which is pretty fancy for a shed. My recollection was that it was far too small to ever have been a house, but it's possible that it was originally a section of a larger machiya, which would make sense for the area and the geometry of the lot. [3] This is sort of like mineral rights or air rights in the US. It's not a totally foreign concept to us, we just don't do it for houses or...shacks. This streetview gives a better perspective on exactly what is around it -- you have new development in front and behind, and the area immediately to the front of the shop is a dedicated parking area for a nearby business. I suspect that the shop and the parking area are part of the same parcel, owned by the business. https://www.google.com/maps/@35.0112669,135.7504895,3a,89.9y,243.59h,90.13t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s7JrXFju7iVlIfoqhwH01lA!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D-0.12812999420681592%26panoid%3D7JrXFju7iVlIfoqhwH01lA%26yaw%3D243.58725341210118!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MDYxNy4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D https://www.google.com/maps/@35.0112669,135.7504895,3a,89.9y...

FuriouslyAdrift 1y ago

Biggest thing I miss from Osaka is the vinyl record izakaya that I frequented (I do not remember the name but there are a bunch in the area). Just a little hole in the wall where the owner/baretender/chef/dj would spin whatever the heck he wanted.

FuriouslyAdrift 1y ago
Not the same place, but definitely the same vibe: https://archive.thevinylfactory.com/features/kankodori-karaoke-bar-osaka-records/ https://archive.thevinylfactory.com/features/kankodori-karao...

dataviz1000 1y ago

I entered a jazz izakaya in Kanazawa with only two stools and no room for anyone else. There was an old man on one stool and a bartender in his 70s or 80s. It is rude to tip and they will not except it but offering to buy a drink for the bartender is encouraged. I ordered a Japanese whiskey and offered the old man and bartender one. There were piles of knickknacks and maybe $15,000 worth of stereo equipment including a record player, planar magnetic speakers and a vacuum tube amplifier in this little room. I heard the distinctive sound of Sonny Rollins saxophone and used the translation app to say I saw Sonny Rollins play live at the Monterey Jazz Festival and he played an encore of La Cucaracha for close to two hours where his band eventually left the stage and he kept playing and playing. The bartender pulled out a Sonny Rollins record from his stack of vinyl and put it on the record player. The three of us sat there for 40 minutes not saying a word listening. If you are in Kyoto, I recommend a similar style bar called Brown Sugar. They tend to have these types of names, for example, in Sapporo there is one called Jim Crow. [0] However, if in Sapporo, I recommend the half note. [1] Most bars and restaurants for that matter will not serve me because I do not speak Japanese, so they say. If I wanted a drink I would stick to Karaoke and jazz bars. I made some friends in Kyoto who were finishing their 4th year studying engineering at University of Kyoto who were from Africa -- these kids are African royalty. They spoke perfect fluent Japanese and they couldn't get access into bars that would let me in. So the names are fitting and likely they know exactly what they mean. [0] https://www.google.com/search?q=sapporo+japan+bar+jim+crow https://www.google.com/search?q=sapporo+japan+bar+jim+crow [1] https://www.google.com/search?q=sapporo+japan+piano+ba+half+note https://www.google.com/search?q=sapporo+japan+piano+ba+half+...

criddell 1y ago
I recently heard Craig Mod[1] in an interview. He has walked thousands of miles in Japan and has produced books that document some of what he has seen. The photographs he has published online are beautiful, but I've never seen any of his books so I can't comment on those. Anyway, in the interview, he talked about places that sound like what you are describing in the first paragraph but he called them kissas. [1]:https://craigmod.com/ https://craigmod.com/
- 1y ago

agcat 1y ago

I am bookmarking this for my visit! :D

sjftokyo 1y ago
When are you visiting? I live here and love this city. If you need recommendations of anything to see or do whilst here I'd be more than happy to help.

shermantanktop 1y ago

Jazz—classic jazz, not Kenny G- is common in urban Japan. Very common to hear Miles Davis or Dave Brubeck in a restaurant, coffee shop, etc.

Dracophoenix 1y ago

These small cafés/bars are called kissa (kee-sah). Unlike a regular café, the kissa is designed to create an atmosphere allowing for a quiet appreciation of the music while drinks are served as an accompaniment. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz_kissa https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz_kissa For the interested, Chris Broad (Abroad in Japan) interviewed the owner of such an establishment (Basie) located in Ichinoseki: https://youtube.com/watch?v=1-9RMSbl_Uo https://youtube.com/watch?v=1-9RMSbl_Uo > (There’s one that’s chock-full of Star Wars memorabilia, for example.) I'd definitely like to know where this one is.

altairprime 1y ago
Nijo Koya, at 382-3 Mogamicho, Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto.
- Dracophoenix 1y ago
  That's the subject of the article. Not the other place with Star Wars memorabilia the author parenthetically referred to.
  - altairprime 1y ago
    Welp, better one than neither, anyways!
    - Dracophoenix 1y ago
      Thank you anyways.
fennecbutt 1y ago
Chris Broad is an inspiration.
jffry 1y ago
> (There’s one that’s chock-full of Star Wars memorabilia, for example.) Tavern Pachimon Wars in Osaka seems like it fits the description

fitsumbelay 1y ago

This ROCKS Wabi-sabi spaces are awesome regardless where in the world they are. Portals? Even better. Awesome post.

carabiner 1y ago

I went to a cafe in Niseko that looked straight out of a ghibli movie. Stacks of older records in the corner, pothos vines draped over window sills. If you know Niseko, you know this is not the vibe at all since the whole town is mostly Australians (who are louder and more boisterous than Americans). I went in there and it was only a few Asian tourists. So peaceful. Then one American came in, and the entire vibe shifted for the worse as he tried talking over me and shouting across the room to the other table. Sigh.

nomilk 1y ago

> on the vibrant business and street culture in Japanese cities and the seemingly very, very low barriers to entry for regular people to participate. An astute observation that allowing markets to operate without onerous licensing schemes and regulations often has wonderful upsides, allowing quirky and niche interests to survive and even flourish. A similar situation was true of Melbourne's small bar scene vs Sydney's. Sydney's more expensive/onerous licensing requirements were prohibitive for tiny bars. Whereas Melbourne's licensing was more permissive and less expensive, resulting in an abundance of quirky and interesting venues. Possibly my favourite example was a tiny indy video game bar (it shut down during covid, I think). https://barsk.com.au/skgames/?p=done https://barsk.com.au/skgames/?p=done

morleytj 1y ago
A similar situation in the US can be seen in Boston. Historically terrible nightlife and for easily explained reasons. Liquor licenses are distributed by the state at a capped amount that can potentially be increased each year, meaning the majority of new businesses wanting to have alcohol sales will need to purchase an existing liquor license from another business, often at an exorbitant price (over 500k USD on average I believe) This makes it extremely difficult for any new businesses to start, and massively advantages large chain businesses that have the ability to make the initial investment in securing a license, versus small or quirky businesses which just have no chance getting started.
- xyzhut 1y ago
  This makes so much sense to me. I've always thought Boston's nightlife was terrible when compared to places in Texas. You go to Austin and there are the most random bars, clubs, and restaurants. Most have their own quirks and personality, making it so no one place is exactly like the other.
- charcircuit 1y ago
  Why do you need a liquor license for nightlife. There is more to life than just drinking alcohol.

b0a04gl 1y ago

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kazinator 1y ago

I went to such a small pasta restaurant somewhere in the Gunma Prefecture's countryside. Record player, vacuum tube amplifier, jazz. I'm down the rabbit hole of trying to find it now. Searching, in Japanese, for restaurants specifically in the Gunma country side that feature jazz, I found instead something else: "Cafe Front Load": https://blog.goo.ne.jp/azuminojv/e/bbfb2695ee73ee9c27c2e4ba644b6e01 https://blog.goo.ne.jp/azuminojv/e/bbfb2695ee73ee9c27c2e4ba6... Not the same one. But there is a record player with jazz. The amp is not tube, but it is exotic for the purpose: a Yamaha PC2002M PA thing that requires 3U racks space. These jazz vinyl -> record player -> exotic amp -> speakers type restaurants seem to be like mushrooms under the rain in Japan or something? It may be like trying to find a replacement record needle in a haystack.

pinoy420 1y ago

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bravesoul2 1y ago

Love it. I would have loved to stumble across that on my trip. I also googled for coffee but the only place open early enough near me was 7-11. Most seem to open ar 12pm for some reason. I was slightly out of downtown to the north. But had a similar experience with a restaurant. It didn't look like this and was more conventional but it did feel like we were guests at someone's home rather than a restaurant and the food was fantastic. It felt different to the normal! I've had that experience in London too but it is very uncommon there. I think the true quirk exists in every city but you have to hunt it down more in western cities.

davidcelis 1y ago
Craft coffee is a luxury item that isn't part of Japanese culture in the same way that it is in the west. In the early morning, when you're a salaryman trying to get to work as fast as possible, you get coffee from a vending machine or convenience store. Craft coffee is something to enjoy leisurely, which is why most specialty coffee shops don't open until much later than we're used to
- bravesoul2 1y ago
  Thanks. I guessed that. I got downvoted so I assume people think I am complaining. I am not. Just observing and curious as to why they open later I assume there are different rituals and I never found out. Thanks for replying!

mtalantikite 1y ago

> I suppose, religion aside, that that feeling is wonder. That is not a feeling I often feel running errands and going out in America. But it’s a feeling that the Japanese business landscape and built environment is able to spark frequently. On our Friday stand-ups we generally chat for a few minutes about what we're up to for the weekend, and my update is usually something along the lines of "I'm going to go outside and let New York happen to me". I'm feeling that wonder less and less here in the city as all the quirky, niche things have been driven out due to rent increases and are being replaced by their private equity owned, multi-national versions. But the ability of the city to spark wonder certainly exists in our environment here more than in most in the US since we navigate by foot and not typically by car. I'd prefer optimizing for wonder than most other things. Edit: Actually there used to be a Japanese cafe in my neighborhood called "House of Small Wonder", which was attached to an omakase spot. They had a big tree growing out of the middle of it, going up out the roof, with space for maybe 15 or less. It's now a Glossier makeup store.

cg5280 1y ago
NYC is the only "real city" in the US (that I have visited; Chicago seems similar) and yet NYC is not an easy place to live unless you make a lot of money. I have traveled abroad extensively (including to places like Japan) and think the state of American cities is a genuine shame. We are missing out on so much.
- mtalantikite 1y ago
  Absolutely. And whenever you bring up wanting to build cities more like NYC the discussion inevitably devolves into people clutching their cars and complaining it would be tyrannical to make people walk and take public transit. It'd be great if we had more options here, rather than everyone that wants to live in a big city piling into just NYC (which is still a small city in the global scheme of things).
eleveriven 1y ago
There's something irreplaceable about those odd little spaces that surprise you, especially in a walkable city

chem83 1y ago

Nice, I was there last month! Found it completely by accident.

michiman 1y ago

This was one of my favorite attributes while visiting Japan. I loved seeing all the small coffee shops and other small businesses, several which were seemingly attached to the owners' homes.

fizx 1y ago

I miss SF in the early 2010s. - gorgeous 3-seat wine bar inside my laundromat - hidden sushi restaurant in friends garage - hole-in-the wall coffee shop with only cushion seats on the floor and $1.50 breakfast sandos, frequented almost exclusively by writing clubs - corner store with half-stocked shelves, still using a cash register that printed receipts with a mechanical typewriter

socalgal2 1y ago

Some of this I believe is possible because of rent price. Especially in places like Kyoto where I believe the population is slowly going down. That said, there are small places all over. this one might be relatively famous. It's next to a train track so not "quiet" but it's also in busy Tokyo. https://maps.app.goo.gl/FMY9QwWyiibWn9CcA https://maps.app.goo.gl/FMY9QwWyiibWn9CcA Another thing there are lots of are small restaurants that hold 5-12 people. There are of course the famous bars in Golden Gai and a few other places but there really are 1000s of these places if you know where to look if you're language skills are up for it. Often there is person running the "bar" but they have a menu of food they'll cook for you. Things like grilled fish, pork salad, omelette rice, etc... Basically Japanese home cooking. Lots of people become regulars at a place and it's like their 2nd home. If you watched Odd Taxi, they hang out at a place like this. There's one I was introduced to recently right here (https://maps.app.goo.gl/Tgsfou4HMbKiiD3L8 https://maps.app.goo.gl/Tgsfou4HMbKiiD3L8). It's not going to be around much longer because it's run by a 96yr old lady who lives there. She doesn't speak any English. She ran it with her husband until he passed away. IIRC she's been there 57yrs Another, I was introduced to bar recently, not far from the coffee place above. I found it interesting in particular because it was only open weekdays from 5pm to 10:30 on weekdays. Not open on weekends. I haven't asked if that brings in enough or if the person has other sources of income. I'll ask next time I visit. But 5.5 hours a day, 5 days a week + prep sound nice. Another thing I find appealing about these small bar/restaurants/snacks, they seem like not a bad life. Working a USA style sports bar in the USA or beer restaurant like in Germany or regular restaurant with 10+ tables seems like a not so interesting job. Just running from table to table taking orders, carrying orders, being "busy". These Japanese places are a place to socialize and in particular to socialize with the owner so the owner generally has a nice time as well.

Caelus9 1y ago

It reminded me of the last time I walked into a random little cafe in a strange city and heard some live jazz music. The whole atmosphere was quiet and relaxing. When you are not in a hurry, not thinking about taking pictures or posting on social media, you will really start to "see" the place.

jdkee 1y ago

The turntable should not be set atop the speakers.

kmoser 1y ago

> I’m not sure why it is that this obviously aging little structure doesn’t feel ugly or rundown. It doesn’t trigger any negative feelings. It somehow feels atmospheric, like a living time capsule. The music, of course, helped. Several things help prevent it from feeling run down: 1) the music, 2) the fact that it's probably immaculate: no dust or dirt anywhere, 3) the rustic surfaces have a patina, but no physical degradation (rust/rot), and 4) it's well lit.

colordrops 1y ago

I happen to be visiting Kyoto right now. Anyone know the name of this place Edit: someone else posted the address in this thread.

sjftokyo 1y ago
How are you finding Kyoto so far? Hope you're enjoying it! I live here and absolutely love the city. Happy to help with recommendations if you're staying a while.
- colordrops 1y ago
  Love it, leaving for Beijing in two more days. We are vegan so our dining options are limited, and my wife and kids haven't been before so we are doing the typical tourist things. My friend is a Buddhist monk that lives here and we have been visiting his sangha the last couple days. Did you have a recommendation or two for less visited but unique areas we could walk around? Thank you!
  - sjftokyo 1y ago
    Very nice, glad you're having a good time! Have you stumbled upon https://kyotovegan.jp/ https://kyotovegan.jp/ yet? Lots of good restaurants on there to check out in your last couple of days. I really love Shimogamo Shrine and the whole Demachiyanagi Area including over to Ichijoji. It doesn't get too busy and the Demachiyanagi Shotengai shopping street is wonderful to walk up and down and see the interesting stores inside, it's covered too so great for the rainy season! There's a cool cinema in there as well as some fascinating book shops. Queue up for Futaba if you want some traditional Japanese sweets but it might be a long wait. Also the walk up to Shimogamo Shrine from Demachiyanagi Station is so peaceful, especially during the week. I do sound tours around that area capturing interesting sound with field recorders that I provide. It's a very interesting place to find soundscapes and 'hear' Kyoto instead of just see it! If that sounds interesting: https://ohayo.substack.com/p/kyoto-sound-walks https://ohayo.substack.com/p/kyoto-sound-walks And if you're into sake there's the Fushimi Sake village which doesn't get too busy and is really nice to just stroll around and visit the shops and museums. There's also a river tour. There's another interesting old school undercover shopping street there as well. Hope you enjoy your last two days here!

prokopton 1y ago

Kyoto’s probably as bad as Barcelona for overtourism. It’s hard to enjoy Kyoto anymore. Japanese people are just too reserved to protest.

tkgally 1y ago

As the author and various commenters here note, there are many tiny businesses in Japan. In the big cities, they are often located on the upper floors of multistory buildings. Lately, for no particular reason, I've been taking pictures of the signs for bars in such places: https://www.gally.net/barsigns/index.html https://www.gally.net/barsigns/index.html

chizhik-pyzhik 1y ago

This is a story about zoning.

_1tem 1y ago

This is a function of affordability and low regulation. Another place I’ve been to which has so many lovely tiny little coffee shops and boutiques which may also happen to be someone’s home is Lviv, Ukraine.

invalidusernam3 1y ago
Regulation is definitely the big stopper in most of the EU. Here in Czech Republic it would be incredibly difficult to open anything like this. I almost opened a cafe/bar a couple years back, I even had a reservation deposit on a location, had the money to renovate it, had money put aside for it to fully fund the rent and utilities and staff for a year, but in the end I scrapped the idea because of the bureaucracy. I needed: a hospitality trade license , a certificate from the inspectors for food hygiene and public health, a certificate for fire/gas/electrical safety, registration with the customs office, staff needed to do training for food handling, and I needed to register the kitchen with the regional hygiene office. It's not unreasonable, but it's a lot of bureaucracy for something I wanted to do as a fun side project

low_tech_love 1y ago

I live in Sweden (as an expat), and I often struggle to explain to outsiders why I think it’s one of the least interesting places I’ve ever been to. There is something missing that I can’t usually grasp with words. This article has made it crystal clear; this kind of thing is non-existent here. Everything is impersonal, distant, matter-of-fact. Next time someone asks me I’ll link this article. (The next obvious question is always “why are you still there?” and the answer is because it’s a great place to work.)

olelele 1y ago
It is literally impossible to open a small "hole-in-the-wall"-kind of bar in Sweden. In order to sell alcohol you have to also serve warm food which means you have to open a restaurant, and following this means you have to have a kitchen that is approved by very strict hygiene controls. Like having a sink only for kitchen staff to wash their hands. In the early 20th century the trick in the "Ölcafé" (Beer Café) was to have a sandwich that _no one_ ate that you ordered with your beer and this then gets sent back and forth between customers and the cafe :)
eleveriven 1y ago
You can have all the infrastructure, safety, and efficiency in the world, but if everything is polished and impersonal, it can start to feel kind of sterile
- olelele 1y ago
  I left for Germany for this reason
wraptile 1y ago
I live in Thailand as an expat and I have the inverse of your experience and more a kin to this article. There just so many examples like the ones mentioned in the article. When I lived in Chiang Mai I'd just take my bike to any direction and always find something - be it a small noodle cart or a cafe someone opened up in their back yard or a small bar right under an abandoned hotel. It's incredible how many invisible effects viability of small businesses have on a society.

andyclap2 1y ago

Surprised no one's mentioned misuyabari yet... For all your tiny kawaii miniature animal topped needle needs, hidden in a rustic shack in a courtyard in a mall. Ooh they have a website now! https://misuyabari.com/ https://misuyabari.com/

sahil_sharma0 1y ago

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Duskgmxx 1y ago

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m0llusk 1y ago

Tangential, but this is an interesting contrast with the book I am currently reading, The Trouble With Passion: How Searching for Fulfillment at Work Fosters Inequality by Erin A. Cech, which goes on in detail and at length about the downsides of matching passion with work.

eleveriven 1y ago

The way small-scale businesses feel personal and meaningful, like an extension of someone's passion rather than just commerce

mickey475778 1y ago

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seatac76 1y ago

One of my best experiences in life has been walking the back streets of Kyoto in cold winter nights and just checking into a tiny noodle shop for some warm noodles. The whole experience is just so peaceful. Highly recommend just walking the streets behind Nishiki Market.