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May 17 2019 16 Comments

A truly lovely old Tokyo bar owner

The bar below has been in operation for 39 years, and its owner, perhaps unusually for such a back to basics little establishment, is a fully trained French chef. Leaving his native Kyushu at 14, he worked in Tokyo and Sapporo, before packing it all in and opening his own place.

And what a place it is.

old Tokyo bar

We first drank there almost 5 years ago to the day. Half a decade that has seen several substantial changes. The Master-san is now 83-years-old, plus fairly recent health issues forced him to close for several months. And yet at the same time, nothing has really changed at all. The bar still looks and feels exactly the same, and the main man himself continues to love what he does, as well as being as wonderfully lovely as ever.

A lovely old Tokyo bar owner

A lovely old Tokyo bar owner

A lovely old Tokyo bar owner

A lovely old Tokyo bar owner

A lovely old Tokyo bar owner

A lovely old Tokyo bar owner

Categorized: Food and Drink, Photography

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Crystal Berger says

    5/17/2019 at 8:22 am

    Beautiful

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/17/2019 at 10:27 am

      Thank you. Always feels like a privilege drinking there. Even more so now due to the Master’s health concerns…

      Reply
  2. Harry says

    5/17/2019 at 2:08 pm

    This is so good! I’d never wanna leave if I went there! πŸ˜‰

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/17/2019 at 8:54 pm

      It’s a wonderful little place for sure. We certainly stayed longer than we should have…

      Reply
  3. cdilla says

    5/17/2019 at 6:05 pm

    Two wonderful set’s of photographs, and I always appreciate links to previous posts that hark from a time before I had discovered your little corner of the web.

    He looks to be the perfect host. If only we were all possessed of such gracious geniality.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/17/2019 at 8:57 pm

      Thanks, and you are very welcome. Looking back at those photos, what amazed us the most was how almost everything was still in exactly the same place. Like time had stood still.

      And yeah, he really is a genuinely lovely fella. If everyone had just a fraction of his geniality, then the world would be a far better place for sure.

      Reply
  4. Steve says

    5/17/2019 at 9:15 pm

    What a life, striking out at 14. That would have been around 1950. Nice to see an exterior that is neat and not ramshackle!

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/18/2019 at 10:09 am

      Yeah, I was surprised when he said that. A very different time.

      And yes, a neat one for a change!

      Reply
  5. Tugba says

    5/17/2019 at 9:46 pm

    This became my favourite as well like the Beauty Queen Lady Bar ^^ Thank you for the nice photos.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/18/2019 at 10:11 am

      You are welcome. Glad to hear this became a favourite. It’s a very special place.

      Reply
  6. MrSatyre says

    5/20/2019 at 3:56 am

    “Why, I’d love to buy your calculator!”

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/20/2019 at 8:57 am

      Haha, and a mighty fine calculator it is too!

      Reply
  7. YTSL says

    5/28/2019 at 12:45 am

    The smile on his face in the last photo… warms the cockles of one’s heart. πŸ™‚

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/28/2019 at 9:48 am

      It really does. Just walking in there again and seeing his smile was a rare treat. Then spending the whole evening in there was an even bigger one.

      Reply
  8. Leo Borges says

    6/1/2019 at 10:51 am

    Indeed the only difference is in the Master body, though his eyes still have the same joy!

    Reply
    • Lee says

      6/2/2019 at 8:02 am

      Yes, they really do. That twinkle in his eyes is still as bright as ever!

      Reply

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