Living Room Asakusa:
Tokyo's Downtown Culture × International Sensibility
A Bar Where You Rediscover Asakusa's Sophistication! - Part 1 -

Is this overseas!? A bar in Tokyo's Asakusa is so packed with inbound tourists, you'd swear you'd stepped abroad. Hearing the buzz, I headed straight to Asakusa! Even on a weekday early evening, the tiny 8-seat bar was completely full with international guests. I asked owner-bartender Masahiro Ohtake about the secret behind its popularity.

writer：DRINK PLANET　撮影：秋田大輔

Just a 1-minute walk from Nakamise Street!

Asakusa is a major tourist spot representing Tokyo that everyone knows.

Nakamise Shopping Street, stretching from Kaminarimon Gate to Sensoji Temple's Hozomon Gate, is lined with nearly 100 shops and is always surprisingly bustling with overseas tourists and visitors to Sensoji Temple.

The bar we're looking for, "Living Room Asakusa," is located on the second floor of a mixed-use building tucked away down a small alley just off Nakamise Street.

While there is some foot traffic, the building's entrance is hard to spot (looking almost like an emergency staircase), and its appearance gives no hint that a bar lies beyond these stairs.

Climbing the stairs, I cautiously pushed open the heavy door and stepped through the noren curtain. True to its name "Living Room," a pleasant buzz and comfortable space unfolded before me.

(A large window at the back creates a nice sense of openness!)