Bottle Keep

Sometimes you will walk into a bar in Japan and see a giant wall of whisky bottles with tags attached to them sitting on a shelf or in cases. The tags have the name (or nickname) of whoever purchased the alcohol written on them. I love it when I see this as I feel like I’m part of this bottle keep tradition. Even when I don’t participate, I can still enjoy the visual and think about all the people who are regulars and who take part in this traditional arrangement.

Bottle Keep (ボトルキープ) is a Japanese custom where one can purchase a bottle of alcohol (whisky and shochu are the most common choices) at a bar/izakaya/restaurant, drink some of it, and leave the remainder of the alcohol in the bottle to be kept at the establishment, ready to be enjoyed on future visits. 

If you’re wondering why someone would do this, let me explain. It’s good for the shop and the customer. The restaurant/bar benefits by getting paid for an entire bottle up front and ensuring that whoever purchased it will return for future visits which will also usually include food and small fees like a table charge and ice and mixer fees if you want ice, soda water, etc. to make cocktails. Some places don’t charge for ice and only charge for mixers. It varies by the establishment.

For the customer the biggest benefit is cost. It’s cheaper to buy the entire bottle than to pay for an equivalent amount of individual drinks. For example if the bottle costs 3,000 yen and holds around 10 drinks which would cost 500 yen each then you save 2,000 yen per bottle purchased this way. I just made these figures up, but you get the idea.

In the boom years of the 80’s when Japanese companies were making money hand over fist, they would keep bottles that their employees could access when they visited specific restaurants. So an establishment would have bottles that the sales team could use when they were courting clients or even as a reward/side benefit for their own hard work.

Aside from being cool as hell to see your bottle sitting on the shelf among the other bottles, having your own bottle at the venue of your choice shows your status as a jorensan/joren (regular). This may lead to better service and stronger relationships with the owner and staff as well.

It’s common for customers to share their bottles with friends and other regulars as well. I’ve had friends purchase very expensive bottles of whisky at an izakaya as a way to show off and spoil their friends. You’ve never seen someone become “that guy” or “that woman”  as quickly as when they’re pouring for everyone from their personal bottle keep bottle. Unfortunately, for some, that only lasts until the bottle is gone. But for others, it’s part of building and maintaining relationships within the community and a unique aspect of Japanese drinking culture.

I’ve not tried doing this while on a shorter holiday to Japan, but I imagine one could buy a bottle at an izakaya/bar on the first or second night of your vacation and then continue to go back to that place throughout your trip. You’d have to dig the vibe of the place or this wouldn’t be worth it. I’d love to hear from anyone who has done this or if someone decides to try this please let me know how it works out.

I also recently learned that bottle keep is making inroads overseas.

This article has a list of bars in the USA that have bottle keep programs (Scroll to the bottom for the list).

Free Movie Streaming/JFF Theater

In past issues, I’ve mentioned some fantastic films, like The God of Ramen, Tamopopo, Perfect Days, and Harakiri. As these were some of the most clicked links ever in the newsletter, I thought I’d highlight a great place to access unique and perhaps lesser known Japanese films for free. It’s called the JFF Theater.

Launched by The Japan Foundation, JFF Theater is a new platform offering free streaming of Japanese films in a variety of languages. However, it is necessary to sign up to access the content.

They currently offer a few dozen movies/programs you can watch for free. The films range from a documentary on traditional salt-making techniques to various family dramas and love stories. Most of the films are ones you’re unlikely to have seen due to them being more under the radar.

An important note is that they only offer each film for a select period before they remove it and offer something else. For example, The God of Ramen is no longer available. So, if you find something that interests you, don’t hesitate.

Japanese Taco Bell

I grew up in Los Angeles where Mexican food is a staple and as authentic as it gets in the US. But, like most everyone else, once in a while, I get the craving for fast food and when I do, I will admit I have a soft spot for Taco Bell. If you also quiero Taco Bell, you’ll be pleased to know there are several in Japan. However, if you’re looking for a nice savory bean and cheese burrito, think again. Japan’s Taco Bell offerings do NOT include beans.

Taco Bell currently seems to be thriving in Japan, but that wasn’t the case when they previously tried to open a branch in Tokyo around a decade ago. At that time, they used refried beans like one normally would when making Mexican food. But here’s where it gets interesting… the beans were a problem.

Although, beans are a common ingredient in Japanese cuisine, they are usually sweetened and used in desserts, so savory beans like those used in Mexican cuisine taste very odd and unexpected to a Japanese palate. Japan was not feeling the savory beans, so the first iteration of Taco Bell in Tokyo was a flop. I guess someone didn’t do enough research and there weren’t enough gaijin in Tokyo a decade ago to support Taco Bell’s standard menu.

Skip to the current Japanese Taco Bell and instead of having savory beans on the menu, a number of dishes have been created to cater to Japanese tastes.

This is my long-winded way of giving an example of how fun it is to discover how cultural differences affect things. It can also be entertaining to go to McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King, KFC, and the other international fast food joints to see how different they are in Japan. Many fast food restaurants in Japan offer beer and other alcoholic beverages, which is not the case in America. 

Here’s Taco Bell Japan’s website so you can take a look at their menu and see how it differs.

On a side note, If you want incredible Mexican food in Japan, Milpa in Osaka just received a Michelin star (1 Chome-16-25 Kitahorie, Nishi Ward, Osaka, 550-0014, Japan).

For the first time there was a tie for last week’s most clicked link.

1a was for one of my favorite Japanese foods: buta no kakuni/buta kakuni.

1b was for how to instantly become a popular customer by tipping Japanese-style

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