Latest reviews from Kyoto

“On a side street NE of Horikawa-Imadegawa. He opens up the garage for a fun al fresco drinking experience--at least in good weather. Very simple yet enjoyable taproom, one that is kind of rare in Japan. 5 beers on tap, plus a few snacks. It seems you can bring your own food in. Beers were all quite solid. Definitely worth a stop.“

KyotoLefty 10 days ago

“Nano brewery, about 10 minute walk from Kitaoji subway station. They had 8 taps on the wall, with 3 beers available, also some Belgian beers for sale in the bottle. We could sample all tap beers if we agreed to full out a survey on them (in Japanese). All beers were decent, Belgian styles, and the Wit particularly good. 250ml cups were ¥550. We sat in the small gallery which was 2 doors down in the same building. They will need to work on that arrangement, particularly as the afternoon sun was coming in full-on and it was burning hot in there. Anyhow, it's a young brewery that is just getting started and the beers are worth trying.“

KyotoLefty 10 days ago

“Small bar with a small brewery in the back. 8 taps, 6 were their own beer. Two others were other Kyoto craft beers. Seems to be mostly trying to cater to the foreign tourist crowd--lots of English, but locals were also drinking there. Small food menu is available. House beers were ¥800 / 1200. I tried two. Both were decent, with no obvious problems, but kind of unexciting. They just got started, so let's see what happens. Cash not accepted, making this the first place I have found in Japan to take on this new hip approach. I must add that they do not fill the glasses up to the top--not even with foam--which I found both aesthetically unpleasing and also cheap feeling.“

KyotoLefty 69 days ago

“Small place between Kiyamachi and Pontocho, close to the Sanjo Bridge. Opened in 2023, seems mainly to cater to foreign tourists. Only 6 taps, but a pretty good lineup. Besides Asahi, the rest are from Kyoto Brewing, Two Rabbits, or Kyoto Beer Lab. Prices were ¥1200-1300 per US pint, which is pretty good these days. They also do 3 beer tasting sets, and have sake tasters as well. English spoken enthusiastically. I don't see myself hanging out here, but will probably pop in from time to time when I see something I want to try. There is typical Japanese bar food available too.“

KyotoLefty 70 days ago

“Moved to a new location in 21 or so, first floor of a hotel on Teramachi. Slightly more inviting location than going up to the old bar. New and shiny, simple decor. Still rather small, but spacious enough. 8 taps of Japanese and imported craft, served with great attention to condition. Prices a bit above average. Convenient location is a big plus.“

KyotoLefty 85 days ago

“Small place. Went in when a dj was spinning so a ¥500 charge. Prices slightly high but not unreasonable these days. 5 taps plus a lot of other drinks available. Hip place, not exactly my style, but it was nice enough.“

KyotoLefty 154 days ago

“A fun place to go to. Good selection of beer and whiskey. Friendly staff. Not the cheapest. Food was good. Enjoyed the visit.“

bjakk 347 days ago

“A really small, but a really nice brewpub. The staff was friendly, the food was good, and so was the beer. But because it was so small it was really crowded, so no space for talking. Homemade beer on tab. Good value for the beer“

bjakk 347 days ago

“Brand new place that seems to be run by a design firm, and it looks the part. Beer brewed a bit further north in Kyoto city. Also a hip coffee shop and Singaporean soups. Kind of interesting. Very flashy and stylish. Beer was not bad, but not great either. They'll have to up their game for me to spill ¥1300+ per pint.“

KyotoLefty 367 days ago

“This is a sake shop, so don't come looking for craft beer. That said, it's a great place to try lots of sake, especially if you are only in Kyoto for a short while. For one, they have lots of breweries that are not normally seen in the area, so you can always find new stuff. Secondly, they have in-store drinking from a choice of about 50 bottles. You can pay ¥500 per glass, or do all-you-can-drink for 2 hours for ¥3000, which includes some sake-suited snacks. A fantastic deal, but the times for that are limited (check hours), and so is the space, so I recommend coming on a weekday. Lots of good Amabuki, Inemankai, we found Koshu and Yamahai, and the friendly manager will even heat the sake up for you. Not sure how much English is spoken, but I am sure you can manage. You pick the bottles yourself from the fridge and pour as much as you want. Definitely a must for trying lots of different sakes. Less than 5 minutes' walk from Matsugasaki Subway Station.“

KyotoLefty 420 days ago

“After a couple of days with nightcaps from the conbini, this was a welcome respite. Decent space with minimalistic design, friendly staff with good command of English and a vernice selection on tap.“

IPARater72 474 days ago

“They have Guinness and one house beer made by Echigo. It's an ok pub for cocktails and such, especially during happy hour, but forget about it if you are after craft beer.“

KyotoLefty 516 days ago

“Newly opened chain pub in Kyoto. It fills a need in the station area for sure. Not really different from the other CBM branches, and the beer lineup is similar to the two in Osaka.Italian appetizers and pizza for food looked decent. ¥300 charge after 3 pm. Lineup is heavy on their own Craft Rock brand. It's a decent lineup, but there is some filler, and most of the interesting beers are higher priced than the regular low prices. It will certainly be attractive to travelers coming to the station.“

KyotoLefty 760 days ago

“A discount supermarket that is CASH ONLY, considering the amount of beer they have it kind of discourages stocking up. The selection is wide and you'll find some interesting stuff but it isn't the rare or BA stuff. The J-craft changes constantly and there is also a shelf of things like COEDO and Ise Kadoya cans that are not regrigerated. You can skip the maze by just going past the cashiers but if only getting a few beers you will have a long wait to pay. For a supermarket selection in Japan this is hard to beat.“

KansaiBeerLvrs 810 days ago

“NOTE: CASH ONLY!!! Supermarket with a pretty great beer selection. The store itself is kind of irritating. You have to follow a maze through fruits, vegetables, and meat before you can swing round to the beer. And since it's always crowded, it takes a while... Said to have 300 beers. Most are canned craft from the USA, but also some from UK, Canada, Australia, etc. There are 30-40 Japanese craft beers as well, with many from Kyoto. Prices are average to slightly high. If you want imported craft in Kyoto, this is obviously the place. If you want Japanese craft, Yamaoka is still much better, although you can't beat this place for location if you are traveling--when you can. Let's see if they can sell enough to keep it going...“

KyotoLefty 871 days ago

“Stopped in for the first time and I was the only customer. Small place, maybe seating for 6 and standing room for a few more than that. I think there were 7 taps with 5 beers on: Yebisu, served through a sophisticated Czech tap system (¥800 and possibly the best Yebisu I've ever had), Jaipur IPA, a lambic from a new producer, and 2-3 Japanese crafts, including a coffee porter on nitro that the owner brewed together with Ushi Tora (¥1100-1200). Altogether a well thought-out and eclectic mix. Cool hand-blown glassware is nice. There are also lots of Belgian bottles available, but I can generally drink those at home so I didn't bother. Limited snacks for food. It's a cozy, comfortable place with an owner who cares about beer and has some interesting ideas, plus a friendly guy. I had a great time and will surely return.“

KyotoLefty 900 days ago

“Umineko Koto Stand in Kyoto up the street from Ichi-Ya. Draft prices are average to high, there are a handful of to go house beers at 800¥ and everything else is 1000-1200¥ or even more. Very high “bottle shop prices” but for drink in they’re not unreasonable. Beautiful high class place & the upmarket Machiya atmosphere makes the plastic cups used for draft beers a bit jarring and fit the tiny budget shoebox atmosphere of the original in Osaka much better. I’d heard the staff/customers were unmasked but when I went one staff had the standard masks and the others those chin guards (not really effective against Covid), other customers seemed to be masked. The selling point of this place is they specialize in new /under the radar breweries so the tap list easily had 50% places I didn’t know. The fridges were about 90% only place to get it in Kyoto beers. If they did minus 300¥ to go prices I’d probably make an effort to pop in once a month. Hell if they were open during the day I’d probably pop in to see what’s new. Worth dropping by if nearby and they’re open.“

KansaiBeerLvrs 1113 days ago

“This place was added way back when craft beer was not widely available in town. Don't bother with this place now. They have about 15 Japanese craft beers from 3 breweries, all stuff that is easy to get. Service was pretty rude when I went in. Forget this place. Go to dig the line down the street or even Yamaya instead.“

KyotoLefty 1183 days ago

“Cool looking place in an old Japanese house. Something like a restaurant upstairs, it seems, though downstairs was mostly standing around the big bar. Ambivalent about this. Mostly young customers, with the quite obvious appeal of several friendly, cute young ladies behind the bar. Noted that none were masked on a day of several new covid cases in town, which I found irritating. Similar to their Shinsaibashi places but much bigger and many more beers available. Of the 35 taps, 20 were connected but probably only 14 really flowing. They get beers primarily from new breweries in Japan, so it is good for completist tickers and researchers like myself to try new stuff. That is the best thing about it, along with its fun atmosphere. Negatives abound, however. First is the plastic cups. What a drag. Water is served in glass, but the servers claim they don't have enough room behind the bar to wash glasses. Hmmm. Not only does it suck to drink craft beer from these, but I hate to imagine the amount of plastic garbage that is being produced. Also, in order to properly fill these small cups, the CO2 on the beer is turned down to an unacceptable level. Yes, you get what looks like a "good pour" but it is flat to the point of ruining the experience. Prices are also quite high--¥700 for about 7 ounces. There are a ton of bottles available at prices similar to the draughts, which is cool, but the takeaway prices are the same, meaning roughly ¥1000 per bottle, which is preposterous as a takeaway price. So they are doing some things quite right and many others very wrongly. Seems to be quite popular among 20-somethings who have much lower standards than myself, however, so I doubt they will see any reason to better themselves. Somehow I feel cheated.“

KyotoLefty 1376 days ago

“On the 1st floor of the East side of the newly renovated Shinpukan building. There are seats out on the street, and a slick new bar inside, with bottles to go and about 10 taps. The focus is on European craft breweries. There was much from Sweden, plus some new lambics from Belgium, Cloudwater, etc. Prices are what you would expect for this kind of beer--meaning quite high. Sake for drinking in or taking out and food too. Long hours is a very thankful thing. I imagine it will be full of tourists when they come back. Definitely worth a stop for a good atmosphere and beers you probably won't find elsewhere in the area.“

KyotoLefty 1411 days ago

“Interesting place. Along the Kamo River but a few blocks over from the main streets, in a fairly quiet area. My guess is that the head brewers/owners are not Japanese as this place has more of an American vibe. The tip jar seemed quite out of place in a country that has zero tipping. Signs/menus in English. Also, one of the few places in Kyoto that had more foreigners than Japanese patrons. It’s a pretty small place, just a few seats at a bar and then a little alcove of more seats. They had 8 taps on, some interesting styles (green tea ale, plum sour, macadamia brown ale, cherry stout, etc). Beers are good, but not my favorites compared to other Japanese beers I’ve had. Prices 700 yen for half pint and 1000 yen for full pint. They also have a couple of sakes and snacks. Worth hitting up, though it’s more of an Americanized pub.“

LilBeerDoctor 1512 days ago

“Solid place in Kyoto, near the Imperial Palace. Large L-shaped bar and a few tables (everyone was sitting at the bar). They have 10 taps, all Japanese beers with a variety of brewers and styles. The kitchen is actually behind the bar. I didn’t order anything but they seemed to have an interesting menu with various meats. Cool place to grab a beer, good beer selection. Note they are cash only.“

LilBeerDoctor 1512 days ago

“Nice bar in Kyoto, near Kyoto Beer Lab. A pretty large space and I think they have an upstairs I didn’t even see. 12 taps, almost all Japanese beers. They did have a separate chalkboard in English. Solid offerings. They have food but I didn’t order any. Nice place to spend a couple of hours. “

LilBeerDoctor 1513 days ago

“7 taps. 480 ml for 1100-1200 yen: Staff is unenthusiastic, rude even. No greeting, resting bitchface, as if they were doing me a favor for serving me. The place isn‘t that close from Kyoto station (or Gion, for that matter) either.“

rotaman14 1521 days ago

“Good selection of bottles. Friendly owner. Easy to reach by bus from the central train station.“

rotaman14 1521 days ago

“Small shop in the heart of Gion a stone’s through from Ebisu Jinja. They’ve got 3 ciders which is nice and 7 beers on tap. Prices are a tad on the high side but that’s life these days. The staff are friendly and the daytime opening is nice, they also do take out so it’s a great option to try Tokyo Riot Beers in Kansai. Kid friendly when we went in the afternoon.“

KansaiBeerLvrs 1565 days ago

“Small to medium place on Yamato-oji in Gion. Bar with 7-8 seats and some tables. They serve Riot Beer, which is made in a small brewpub in Tokyo. Nice atmosphere. Food is several varieties of nuts serve by 50 gram measures. They had 7 Riot Beers on tap and 3 ciders, including one nice english one. Beers are ¥800 and ¥1000, plus 4 x 140 ml tasting sets for ¥1300, which is rare and a good deal in Japan. Beers were decent. No major problems but none really shined either. The young lady working was super friendly and interested in learning about beer from me. Overall I had a great time. I will likely go back a couple times per year to see what new things they have on.“

KyotoLefty 1587 days ago

“Mainly a sake place…Small bottle shop in the Zest Oike underground mall, which is connected to the Kyoto Shiyakusho Mae (Kyoto City Hall) subway station. They have sake, beer, gin, and whiskey from Kyoto, for take out, or for drinking in, but standing only. This is probably because they have a liquor store license, which means you can drink in, but they cannot have seats, which would make it a bar. There were about 20 sakes available by the glass, from ¥180 for 60 ml. Really nice for tasting several, with tasting flights too. Didn't look closely at the beer, but they had Coedo (not from Kyoto) and Kyoto Bakushu and a few more. Snacks are available. There are even more sake bottles to take out. Also Ki no bi Gin by the glass. Two young ladies were serving. They didn't seem to know much about sake, and probably not a whole lot of English spoken, but they will try, and they have an English menu as well. I quite liked this place and will go back. It is well-priced compared to drinking sake in a bar, so it's good if you want to sample a number of them.“

KyotoLefty 1648 days ago

“Bar / restaurant with a focus on cider and sake. Three rotating taps of cider and 3 rotating sakes available, plus Kirin Heartland and Kirin Hard Cider always on tap. There are a handful of bottled ciders available too. Food is well done Japanese izakaya style, slightly upscale. Just opened, so can't say much about the ciders they get in, but it looks promising for cider lovers, and it seems they will have both domestic and imported stuff.“

KyotoLefty 1667 days ago

“This is a sake store. No beer. They have 40-50 different sakes. Not a huge selection, but most are from small, countryside breweries that I had never heard of before. The lady working there was super kind and wanted to introduce me to the small breweries she loved. I doubt she speaks much English though. A good place if you are looking for something new.“

KyotoLefty 1672 days ago

“Beautiful old building right by kizakura kappa country (if you buy something there watch out as their cheap paper bag broke on me shattering my purchase all over the floor on my way home) that has 10 taps. It’s a 10 minute walk from Momoyama-Goryomae on either the Kintetsu or Keihan line. If coming from Osaka Chushojima station could be a good option and would let you hit Gekkeikkan Sake Museum on your way up. When I went 4 were their own and 6 guests. The house beers were 450/600¥ which makes them the cheapest in Kyoto by a wide margin, the guests 600/1100¥ so high-average. 1200¥ tasting flight for the 4 house beers. On a Friday night it was quite busy with many at the bar or in the back. The only negative was I didn’t care for people smoking/vaping in the small inner garden with the smell blowing into the bar, yuck. I don’t know if it is a set smoking area or if that customer was just a lazy jerk though. All in all a lovely place in a previously dead area. With Yamorido combined to the existing sake/beer places I’d say for beer travelers it’s getting to be a must stop area while in Kyoto.“

KansaiBeerLvrs 1755 days ago

“Beautifully done reform on an old Japanese building, with the brewery visible from all sides. There is a nice little garden in the back as well. Bar up front, tables in the back, something upstairs too but I don't know what. 10 taps included 4 of their own beers, the rest local craft. They make their own sake off premises and besides that some local Fushimi sakes were also available in a tasting set. 4 beer taster set ¥1200 for the house beers, all of which were solid. 400ml glasses of their beer are ¥650, which is a great deal. Guest beers ¥1100. 200ml sizes also available. Food is traditional Japanese seasonal drinking food. Great place which could go a long way to livening up this sake brewing area that still lacks a proper nightlife. They also serve high-quality Japanese tea from the morning.“

KyotoLefty 1755 days ago

“A super modern bar, attracting a relatively younger crowd. Very expensive decoraton. A good tap selection of Japanese micros. Super friendly and helpful staff. Reasonable prices. Well worth a visit.“

jmgreenuk 1805 days ago

“A great little craft beer bar serving exclusively their own beers. The seated indoor area seats acround 20 people and outdoor seating is also possible if you are prepaed to sit on a small keg. Friendly service. English is well spoken. Working wifi. Flights of three beers are available. Should be somewhere near the top of any ticker's "must visit" places in Kyoto.“

jmgreenuk 1805 days ago

“A large open plan hostel bar. Fairly modern looking. A good mix of locals and expats, Rather expensive. Not worth making a special courney to get here, but fine if you are passing by.“

jmgreenuk 1805 days ago

“As far as foreign English pubs go, this is quite authentic. It’s funny though that pubs in England look nothing like this today! A small tap selection and a few bottles. Nothing too special. Excellent service tough.“

jmgreenuk 1806 days ago

“A super little craft beer bar and restaurant in Gion. Concrete floors and wooden walls. It was like walking into a packing case. They have seven Japanese Tap beers and a small bottle selection. Staff were very friendly and spoke excellent English. Food was good but portions are small. Working Wi-Fi. I’ll be back if I ever return to Kyoto. A cool place to hang out.“

jmgreenuk 1806 days ago

“Don’t waste your time. They say they are open until 1am but at 11:45pm on a Wednesday night they told us they were closed. If that’s what they intend to do they should not advertise otherwise! There is a sign in the window clearly stating their closing time is 1am!“

jmgreenuk 1807 days ago

“A great little beer bar on two floors. Rustic and industrial with lots of wood and concrete. Ten quality local taps. A great place to chill out and enjoy the evening. Standing room only at the bar but sometimes that’s the only way to drink!“

jmgreenuk 1807 days ago

“A modern looking bar close to the city centre. They have ten taps and all were locally brewed when I visited. The quality was excellent. Friendly staff and English wasn’t an issue. I didn’t eat but the food looked good. If I lived here this might just be my local.“

jmgreenuk 1808 days ago

“Smallish brew pub about a 10 minute walk northeast of Kyoto station. Not far from Kehian stations either. Really cool spot by a small "river" on a quiet street. ¥1000 pints, about 8-10 taps, and some well made bar food. The beer menu is pretty diverse so they'll have a style to suit you. Very friend bilingual staff. The beer seems to get better and better every visit. Oh and they also allow dogs. Definitely worth a trip if you're in Kyoto.“

KansaiBeerH8ers 1827 days ago

“As the name says, a great izakaya for fresh fish dishes and a good selection of sake (¥490-990 for 180ml). In a rather strange industrial area with pretty difficult access. Best to take a taxi. We had several courses of fish: sashimi, tempura, grilled, etc. There were about 40 sakes on the menu from all over Japan. we had some very nice ones. Also a handful of Japanese craft beers in the bottle. One of the best things was the awesome ceramic ware that they served the sake in. Almost worth coming just for that. Service was friendly. Don't expect fluent English, but they will try.“

KyotoLefty 1895 days ago

“Relatively new place just 30 seconds from Chushojima Station in the Fushimi Sake district. This place stands out as a classy, friendly sake cafe with an English-speaking owner and a wide range of sakes, not at all limited to Fushimi stuff. It stands in stark contrast to some of the rougher standing bars and hostess bars of the immediate area. The sakes available are always changing, tasting sets are available. Prices are good. They will also open for lunch if you reserve ahead of time. Very convenient if you are doing a sake tour of the area, especially if you want a wider range of sakes to try with a good explanation in English.“

KyotoLefty 1895 days ago

“This is in a big, beautifully redone old Kyoto house. Spacious 2 floors, lots of seating arrangements, even small gardens front and back. About 9 minute walk from Kyoto station. 12 taps of Japanese craft beer (1 cider too). Opens early for lunch. Great place, and just around the corner from Kyoto Brew Lab. Lively and fun.“

KyotoLefty 1911 days ago

“This liquor store in the 1st Basement of Isetan Department store is a convenient place to get beer and sake in Kyoto. If you’re heading off on a train from here, stop in and pick some up. They really get good sake here.“

KyotoLefty 1945 days ago

“Yoramu é um bar singular, funciona a noite no ambiernte onde durante o dia funciona um pequeno restaurante. Yoram é um gaijin apaixonado pela cultura local, ele estava atendento sozinho no dia em que fomos. A princípio o atendimento parece pretencioso e arrogante, mas quando chega a sua vez ele te explica nos mínimos detalhes as poucas iguarias que oferece para comer e as dezenas de opções de saquês para degustar. Provei squês artesanais que só encontrei no Yoramu. Comemos um tofu marinado incrível que também não encontramos em nenhum outro lugar do Japão.“

vodo 1960 days ago