Ebisu Area

Ebisu Yokocho is a warren of tiny eateries that will make you think you've stepped back in time.
Ebisu Yokocho is a warren of tiny eateries that will make you think you’ve stepped back in time.

Ebisu is a great place to find hoppin’ bars, eateries & even a beer museum.

One of the most fun, authentic and cheap places to get a taste of Tokyo is Ebisu Yokocho, a warren of tiny eateries that winds through a building near the train station. Inside, it feels like time has stood still for over half a century, and you can order up everything from workingman’s hotpot to two-tone “Darktop” draft beer at the little open-fronted restaurants that line the narrow “street.” It’s bright, it’s loud, and most nights it draws a happy eating and drinking crowd.

Light on the bottom, dark on top!
Light on the bottom, dark on top!

MAP

Or, if you’re in the mood for something quieter, how about Medusa, where jellyfish and sharks swim lazily in wall-sized tanks? Quiet and dark, it’s a killer date spot.

Medusa, the jellyfish and shark bar.
Medusa, the jellyfish and shark bar.

Or if your taste runs more to history and beer engineering lore, you could do worse than stop in at the Yebisu Beer Museum in Ebisu Garden Place. The ¥500 tour comes with a short walk through the historical photos, a lesson on how to pour the perfect beer, and (best of all) two samples of fine Yebisu wares.

EBISU AREA MAP

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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had

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