Unlimited Coffee Bar

Have patience. They are preparing your coffee with the utmost care. This is not a place to go if you’re in a rush, but if you want a place to relax just across the river from SkyTree, this is a great spot.

It was over 90 degrees the first time I visited and thankfully, they had the AC cranked. Run by Daichi Matsubara and Rena Hirai, Unlimited Coffee Bar trains baristas (upstairs), and serves outstanding coffee, coffee cocktails, and food downstairs.

They make a beautiful pour-over iced coffee. It involves putting some perfect ice cubes into a large glass container like the one you make a stirred cocktail in, then placing the pour-over dripper on it and carefully, gradually, pouring hot water over the freshly ground beans in a slow, precise manner. Taking breaks so the ice doesn’t get overpowered. The whole process is beautiful to observe, and the outcome is delicious.

They also serve a variety of cocktails with coffee in them. I find most coffee cocktails to be unnecessarily bitter or cloyingly sweet. Not this one. The espresso martini made with 3-year-old umeshu (plum liquor), sloe gin, cherry liquor, and espresso has a refreshing fruit-forward flavor that gives way to a smooth coffee flavor. The flavors are well balanced, and the presentation is stunning. I’ve tried some of their other coffee cocktails, and the espresso martini is the clear winner.

Kamakura

Kamakura isn’t a big secret. Many travel guides recommend going to Kamakura to see the Great Buddha. However, they don’t often tell you what a beautiful beach town Kamakura is and that it makes for a perfect day trip from Tokyo. You may even decide to spend more than a day here.

In addition to Yuigahama and Shichirigahama Beaches, which are popular for surfing and beautiful sunsets, Kamakura boasts heaps of good restaurants, plenty of small boutique shops, and most importantly (in my opinion) laid-back vibes.

If you want to live within convenient striking distance of Tokyo (about 45 min by train), but not be in Tokyo, you probably can’t do much better than Kamakura. This is where Haruki Murakami lives (and he could live anywhere). 

If you are on a day trip from Tokyo, the first thing I recommend is to see the Great Buddha. Everyone should do this at least once. It’s spectacular. The backdrop of forested mountains frames the Buddha and adds to the serene environment. 

Once you’ve done this, head to the beach and watch the surfers (or rent a surfboard and grab some waves yourself). 

After the beach, go to Komachi Dori. It’s a bustling shopping street filled with food stalls. Spoil yourself with tasty treats and explore the small shops.

Fear - Feel the fear (and do it anyway)

I was walking around Oshiage, famished, when I smelled charred meat. Apologies, vegetarians, but I love yakitori (grilled chicken). It’s my favorite food in the world. 

So when I saw this tiny yakitori place. I mean ten people max. On a small side street. My curiosity was triggered. 

I was scared because you could tell this was a hardcore local place. Guaranteed there would be no English menu or English spoken. 

I decided to go for it.

It was a challenge, but it was also amazing. This ended up being a super famous local place that had been in business for 50 years with the same chef/owner. 

He kept giving me complimentary food and drinks (サービス/sa-bisu). I hung out for a few hours and the final bill was $7. Yes, $7 is insane. One drink in LA is double that. I don’t want to say how many drinks I had, but it was a lot more than one.  Plus, I ate a bunch of yakitori.

To say I was surprised is an understatement. These kinds of interactions are my favorite experiences in Japan. However, they require a bit of courage. Learning and using a few Japanese phrases in a tiny izakaya definitely helps, as some small places won’t let you in if they don’t think they’ll be able to communicate with you. My workaround for this is to learn the words for at least one type of food very well, along with the basics of how to order. The rest can be done with smiles and hand gestures. I love yakitori, so I’ve learned all the yakitori words and can order in any yakitori restaurant without needing to look at a menu, which is useful because the small places don’t have English menus anyway, and I only read a little Japanese.

Another thing that often happens is that Japanese people may be a bit hesitant to speak English at first, but once you’ve spoken some Japanese with them and everyone’s had a few drinks, you’ll notice they know more English than they first let on. This situation occurs with incredible frequency. But don’t count on it because sometimes no one speaks English, and you have to be ok with that outcome as well.

As I said in the title, feel the fear, and do it anyway. You’ll be glad you did! Or at least, you’ll end up with a great story.

The most clicked link from the previous issue was for this Samurai Black T-shirt. It’s also one of the most clicked of all-time.

The 2nd most clicked link from the previous issue was for the event calendar of this fantastic, tiny used bookstore in Asakusa.

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