coffee guide

9 Places For The Best Specialty Coffee In Tokyo

The uninformed will simply order an iced coffee from one of Tokyo’s thousands of vending machines. The dedicated caffeine fiends will search harder and go further to seek out the best specialty coffee in Tokyo.

In hindsight, we wished we had conducted better research to discover some of Japan’s traditional coffee shops (kissaten) to strike a balance between the old and the new. However, we always seem to find ourselves short on time. But given the breadth and depth of this metropolis and the fact that many cafes do not open until 10am (we prefer to get in early!), the places we managed to visit were a solid introduction for our first foray into Tokyo’s coffee culture. For our next trip to Tokyo, our priority will be to visit more cafes featuring Japanese coffee brands and roasters.

Despite our limited window and the fact that generally, we’ve found good coffee to be more expensive in Asia, we set our hearts and taste buds on a mission to find Meguro coffee shops, the best coffee in Harajuku and even swing by (arguably) the most instagrammable cafe in Tokyo. This coffee drinking certainly created a large dent in our budget but in return, we discovered that Tokyo baristas excel at all coffee styles imaginable.

Allpress Tokyo Roastery & Cafe

An old timber warehouse nestled in the quiet Kiyosumi Shirakawa community is the location of the Allpress’ Tokyo Roastery & Cafe. Birch tables invite customers to sit and sip their coffee whilst connecting with other coffee drinkers. Patrons can also watch the roasting machine in action through the floor-to-ceiling windows between the coffee counter and roasting area and are invited to go behind the scenes for tasting sessions and to learn more of the technical roasting processes. It’s a tasteful, modern space and we can see how the brand has worked hard to foster creativity in a new age whilst respecting the traditions of the past. Baristas wear chunky jumpers, boyfriend jeans and Doc Martens whilst seemingly greeting regular customers like old friends. Bevan enjoyed his flat white believing that the coffee emitted his favourite chocolate flavours. Allpress Coffee is well-known and loved in Australia so we were pleased that the Tokyo branch produced the good stuff during our visit. Cash and card accepted.

Blue Bottle Coffee Kiyosumi Shirakawa Flagship Cafe

Blue Bottle Coffee originated in Oakland, California in the early 2000s and now operates 13 cafes across Tokyo. Single origin coffees outline the key tasting notes and highlight the available serving methods (drip, espresso, siphon or nel). Our visit coincided with Blue Bottle’s 5th Anniversary for which the cafe has developed a special menu and coffee beans blend. We both opted for the anniversary blend, called “Diapante”, a blend of beans from Honduras and Guatemala with promised flavours of Japanese Refund Sugar, Ponkan Orange and Apricot. Bevan opted for a drip coffee whilst I selected an espresso blend titled a “Gibraltar”.

The cafe is set inside a large, airy space with several large tables and the roasting facility at the back of the room. Alternatively, sit at the high bench counter like us and watch all the action of drip coffee and pastries being prepared. Take-away available and Blue Bottle coffee merchandise for sale. Cash and card accepted.

The Workers Coffee

The Workers Coffee cafe/restaurant is light, sophisticated and rather classy. The cafe doesn’t seat many; 8 on the shared bench table and approximately 6 at the high window bench looking out at the Meguro River. Hot and iced coffee drinks are available on the menu; we settled for a hot cafe latte and iced americano. You would be terribly remiss to not select from the sweets selection in the Nakamura General Store. It’s a popular place for students and digital nomads and there is also a small concept store. Cash and card accepted.

Switch Coffee

The micro roastery in the charming Meguro neighbourhood focuses solely on coffee. You’ll find a range of fruity flavours from Switch’s single origin coffees and milk chocolate from their seasonal blend. The menu offers trusty espresso blends, espresso tonic, batch brew and filter coffee but the latter is sold at market price. The coffee is a little more expensive than other cafes we visited in Tokyo but we thought it was a good choice for an afternoon pick-me-up. The hole in the wall spot doesn’t serve food nor does it have any seating so we’d recommend ordering a takeaway coffee and sitting by the Meguro river. If you visit late March/early April, you’ll also get to witness the beautiful sakura.

Little Nap Coffee Stand

“Drink more coffee, take less photos”

Well, we don’t entirely agree with this sentiment but we can get on board with that.

Vintage knick-knacks, skateboarder sketches and red floral wallpaper promising “A Cup of Happiness” decorate the interior of Little Nap Coffee Stand, another tiny hole-in-the-wall cafe on the edge of Yoyogi park opposite a basketball court. This coffee stand fits approximately 6 seated customers and to my delight, there was a furry mameshiba napping underneath his owner’s legs during our visit. Little Nap offers both espresso blends and filter coffee and encourages customers to choose their beans when selecting a filter option. Bevan selected Brazilian beans for his fix of dark chocolate flavours. For a small cafe, we were impressed with their food menu which included savoury and sweet items. The cafe roasts its own beans in Tokyo so if you enjoy their blend, look to pick up a bag to take home with you.

Rostro Coffee Roasters

Stepping inside Rostro Coffee Roasters feels like you’ve been invited into a traditional Japanese home. Warm wooden interiors and the aroma of freshly brewed coffee welcome you. The coffee counter features cylinders of coffee beans with tasting notes written in white marker. Chalkboard menus display filter coffee diagrams and a cleverly designed matrix shows the coffee house’s full range of roasts from dark to light.

Rostro is a Japanese coffee house and uniquely, does not have a drink menu for dine-in customers. Instead, the cafe prefers to ask customers’ preference of coffee based on their current mood. If you’re keen to try something different, Cafe Rostro offers a homemade coffee jelly which is served in an egg cup.

Fuglen Tokyo

Originating from the frosty streets of Oslo, Norway in 1963, this Fuglen branch is an espresso bar and cocktail bar and is located on the edge of Yoyogi Park in the Shibuya district. The interior is decked out in 1960s vintage design with wooden panelling, a sunken seating area and retro trinkets on the shelves. Black bar stools hug a curved mahogany bar from which the baristas and cocktail shakers work.

True to Fuglen’s ethos, the coffee beans are roasted lightly, in the Nordic style. We ordered an Aeropress brewed with beans from Honduras promising milky caramel tasting notes. It’s difficult to bypass the pristine flaky croissants and cardamon treats for sale. There is also a sister branch in Asakusa.

Koffee Mameya

“Mame” is the Japanese word for “beans” and “Ya” means “shop”. So together, the perfect translation of Koffee Mameya from Japanese to English is “Coffee Beans Shop”. And this place is everything coffee.

The black rectangular archway leads into a small space with standing room only. A bench top separates customers from the baristas who stand guard of bags of coffee beans available for sale. Koffee Mameya stocks a range of coffee beans sourced from coffee roasters in Australia (Code Black Coffee Roasters), Denmark (Coffee Collective) and of course, Japan. Coffee drinkers are invited to view a colour coded matrix and decide on their coffee, ranging from acidic flavours (fruity) to more bitter (chocolate-y).

All coffees are served as filter coffees. Bevan opted for a darker roast by Japanese coffee roaster Tokado Coffee. Demonstrating knowledge, passion and excellent service, Koffee Mameya is highly recommended.