Public House

Today was another meeting with my regular language exchange partner / friend. Since I did such a fantastic job choosing the last place, it was his turn again to choose a cafe. He found a place that I personally would have given up on. It was a little further than I usually go because of the fact that I have the worst sense of direction ever. But he led the way and we were all good.

So, the name of this place is Public House and it's on the 3rd floor of the Shibuya New South Exit, which is apparently used solely for the Saikyo line. It's a rather large cafe with the typical wooden motif going on. The smoking section was quite separate from the non-smoking section, so that was really nice. We were sat in the far corner next to the lounge area, which was reserved for a later group of people. Free wifi was offered here, but my friend and the staff couldn't get it to work in our corner. That's okay, I came to the rescue with my pocket wifi device!

Anyway, I was feeling a bit peckish, so we ordered some mixed nuts (they're not on the menu; you have to ask) and then I got a cappuccino, of course. My friend went with Iced Mint Rooibos Tea. The cappuccino was simple and came with a cinnamon stick, which is a touch that I do like. I give them presentation points, though I do prefer cinnamon powder because it smells and tastes a bit stronger. Basically the drink was good, but not so special.

So this place was really nice. It was comfy and quiet. Based on the smell, I will guess that the food tastes amazing there. It sure smelled delicious! The drinks cost about the same as everywhere else and the non-smoking section wasn't smoky. So, all in all I'm saying, this is one worth checking out.

Order: Cappuccino (500)
Review: Great place for language exchange or brainstorming


Hours: 7:00~24:00
Non-smoking / Smoking Sections
Website: http://www.cafecompany.co.jp/brands/publichouse/
Access: Shibuya Station (JR New South Exit's building or a few minutes walk from JR east exit)
Address: 3-29-17 (3F) Shibuya, Shibuya Ward, Tokyo

Respekt

Today I had a language exchange meeting in Shibuya. The two of us like cafes so on occasion we abandon Starbucks and find a new place to check out. Today we headed towards the Harajuku direction and went in to Respekt.

Respekt is located near Streamer and Glorious Cafe Chain. So naturally is attracts the same kind of rather young and hip crowd - the musician and hipster looking crowd, not the young kids with host and hostess hair that hang out at the other end of the station. The place is pretty nice, but I have a really bad cold right now, so that fact that there's no barrier between the smoking and non-smoking sections was not earning this place any points. It's a really smoky place. Many of the cool cafes are, I know, but it's definitely a negative point for me. Especially right now.

So, due to my cold, I decided to skip the coffee and go with tea - Rooibos Mint Tea, to be exact. My friend ordered coffee and we split a Tirimasu cake. The tea was really good. On top of that, there was about 2 cups or so per pot and the hot liquid was very soothing on my throat, so I ended up ordering a second one. The tirimasu was also quite good, but we couldn't help but laugh because the tiny portion came in a massive dish. Who are you trying to fool with that?

So, I did get some time to look around during restroom breaks and such. There's a counter at the window with computers that I guess can be used for a fee. There's lots of tables and chairs as well as sofa seating. All in all a comfy place with some nice features. If it wasn't for the smokiness, I would have really liked it. It seems like a good place to study or relax.


Order: Tirimasu and Coffee Set (¥850) and two orders of Rooibos Mint Tea (¥650ea)
Review: Chill but way too smoky for someone with a bad cold

Website: http://www.cafecompany.co.jp/brands/sus/respekt/index.html
Access: Shibuya Station (About 1 or 2 minutes from Exit 13)
Address: 1-11-1 (2F), Shibuya, Shibuya Ward, Tokyo 150-0002

Glorious Chain Cafe

As you may know from reading previous posts, or knowing me in person, I love buying cafe magazines. I have more than I could possibly need and I'll probably buy more. But there's one in particular that I really like and find very useful - Tokyo Cafe Book 2012. They've got such enticing pictures in there. One in particular has been calling to me and I found myself with some free time, so I finally made it to the place to which the picture belonged.

The cafe is called "Glorious Chain Cafe". The subscript says "by Diesel". According to the magazine (if I translated it correctly), Diesel Shibuya is a concept store (it doesn't say how or in what way), and at the same time that they opened it, they opened the cafe. The manager, 鐘ケ江仁 (maybe Hitoshi Kanegae, but I'm not sure....), took a team around the world to hand select dishes to put on the menu. According to the magazine.

So anyway, I went because of the picture of Eggs Benedict in the magazine. And though I was tempted by other choices, some of which were cheaper, I decided to get the Eggs Benedict. That's what brought me there after all. The lunch set came with a choice of tea, coffee, coke, or ginger ale. I decided to go with ginger ale and then maybe order a coffee later.

The eggs Benedict looked as nice in person as they did in the magazine. I was actually a bit surprised. And they tasted really great! Now, I have to admit, this was my first time to actually have eggs Benedict, so it's possible that they're the worst ones ever, but if you're not comparing them, they're definitely delicious. I was quite please. But as a result, I ended up inhaling them and giving myself the hiccups.

Since I scarfed the food down so quickly, I had some more time to kill, so I did go ahead and order some coffee. I went with the "Flat White", after looking up what that was first. It's a choice that I both regretted and celebrated. It was creamy and delicious. But I can't actually drink much milk and I usually go with soy milk in my coffee drinks. So my mouth was super happy and my stomach hated me.

I would definitely come here again for food, but I'd probably go over to "On the Corner" instead, because the coffee is better and the staff are a little friendlier. And cool without being pretentious. I felt like the staff at Glorious Chain Cafe thought they were cool and I didn't really like that vibe so much. But the food was good and the cafe itself is pretty cool and chill. Maybe a cool spot for a date? Or a place to take someone in general that you want to make think you're cool?


Order: Eggs Benedict lunch (¥1200) and Flat White (¥600)
Review: Cool and chill cafe, but maybe a bit too stylish for me.

Website: http://www.diesel.co.jp/cafe
Access: Shibuya Station (across the street from exit 13)

Introduction + First Adventure (Streamer Coffee Company)

So, I recently decided that I wanted to try a new hobby. I'm always going to cafes, whether to study with less distractions, kill time while waiting for something, or just to get a caffeine fix. But I, a creature of habit and someone who gets a little nervous trying out new things by myself, always go to the same chains and shops. I know that Tokyo offers way more than Starbucks. So, I've decided that at least once a month (I'm hoping for more than that of course, but one is the minimum), I will check out a new place. So today, my friend and I went on the first Caffeinated Adventure!

We went to Streamer Coffee Company in Shibuya. I found it while perusing the interwebs one day. It was opened by latte artist Hiroshi Sawada in 2010. Apparently this dude is a bit of a celebrity in the Japanese barista scene. He's even won awards for his art. So, I have to say, I was a bit disappointed that we weren't allowed to take pictures in the cafe. Since it was on one the back streets of Shibuya, it wasn't crazy busy with shoppers and tourists. It had a real comfortable feel to it and with the big comfy looking chairs on one side and a big wooden communal table on the other, it reminded me of the cafes I used to go to during university. There was a minimalistic feeling to it - hip but not pretentious. As for the coffee, I got the standard "Streamer Latte", which was pretty mild and milky, and though I like coffee, I am a bit of a wuss, so it was perfect for me. It went well with the "Military Donut" (regular donut with a camo frosting design) that I had too.

Image from TimeOut Tokyo's Review

Order: Streamer Latte (520yen) and Military Donut (400yen)
Review: Very cool and comfortable environment and pretty good coffee

Website: http://streamercoffee.com/
Nearest Station: Shibuya (10 minute walk from exit 13)