Gen Yamamoto is a bar in Tokyo.
Gen Yamamoto in Tokyo's Azabu-Juban serves an eight-seat seasonal cocktail tasting flight only. Four or six courses of seasonal-ingredient cocktails, no food.
Food program: No food
Tip: Two seatings nightly; phone or email reservation only. Closed Sundays and Mondays. Strict no-phone policy at the counter.
Address: Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0045, Japan
The Aviary Tokyo in Tokyo's Nishi-Shinjuku is the Tokyo outpost of Chicago's Alinea Group. Multi-course cocktail-and-food pairings in avant-garde format.
Signature drink: Avant-garde cocktails in tasting format
Food: Multi-course pairing dinner
Tip: Reservation only via Tock; courses run two to three hours. Closed irregular days; check the calendar.
Tokyo Whisky Library in Tokyo's Aoyama holds 1,200 whiskies, the largest English-friendly whisky bar in the city. Yamazaki, Hakushu, all the Scotch.
Signature drink: Single-malt and Japanese whisky
Food: Dinner menu and snacks
Tip: Reservation strongly advised. Tasting flights cover Japanese, Scotch and Irish; the rare-Japanese collection is the standout.
Zoetrope in Tokyo's Nishi-Shinjuku is Atsushi Horigami's whisky bar specializing in Japanese spirits. Three-hundred bottles and silent black-and-white film.
Signature drink: Japanese whisky vertical flight
Food: Snacks only
Tip: Closed Sundays. Reservation by phone; the by-the-glass list rotates with each visit.
Bar Tram in Tokyo's Ebisu-Nishi is the sister bar to Bar Trench, on the same back alley. Absinthe-and-herb cocktail focus, dimmer brick room than Trench.
Signature drink: Absinthe-based and herb-led cocktails
Food: Charcuterie and snacks
Tip: Open daily 19:00-03:00. Smaller and more intimate than Trench; walk-ins welcome.
Bar BenFiddich in Tokyo's Nishi-Shinjuku is Hiroyasu Kayama's apothecary-style cocktail bar. Herbs from his own farm, fresh-muddled and tea-steeped each pour.
Signature drink: Herbal cocktails infused at the counter
Food: Snacks only
Tip: Reservation by phone strongly recommended. The herb-and-vegetable garden menu is the canonical flight.
Bar Sunface in Tokyo's Yotsuya is master Yamamoto Manabu's rum-focused bar. 1,200 rums by the bottle, cocktails and tasting flights of aged Caribbean spirits.
Signature drink: Aged rum tasting flights
Food: Snacks
Tip: Closed Sundays. Reservation by phone advised; the staff guide every flight.
