Grace Note:
It's been in business for one year, yet it has the look and feel of a famous restaurant!
Speakeasy in a back alley in Kyoto.
- Part 1 -

The opening is in March 2024.The location is an old house in a back alley in Kyoto.Despite this, there is a small speakeasy that is crowded with Western guests and Kyoto cocktail lovers.It is Grace Note, which means "ornamented note" in musical terms.We asked the owner-bartender, Sosei Yamazaki, about the reason for its popularity and her own background.

writer：Drink Planet　撮影：大島拓也

Go deep into the back alleys of Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan.

It is a 10-minute walk from the center of Gion, Kyoto, which is overflowing with inbound tourists.

Passing through Miyagawa-cho Street, one of Kyoto's five major flower streets, you will find Daikoku-cho Street, one street further back, and then a back alley called Hachiken Alley.

(One wonders if there is really a bar ahead!)

At a dead end of an alleyway that is barely wide enough for one person to pass, stands an old house that is more than 100 years old.

After opening the black-painted door and bending down to enter, you will finally find yourself seated at the counter of the "Grace Note" bar.

Welcome.I apologize for being so difficult to understand," said the owner-bartender, Soze Yamazaki, who greeted us with a soft smile that seemed to ease our tension.