Gen Yamamoto

This place might not be for everyone, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. And reservation was easy, even though I live in Europe. If you want traditional cocktails - this isn't a place for you. But if you are looking for something new and special - you should definitely visit Gen Yamamoto. The cocktails were great, albeit unorthodox, and the barman was nice and professional. At first, I wanted to try 4-5 cocktails. But every drink was something special and every time I heard the ingredients I couldn't believe that this drink would taste good. But every time I was proven wrong. So I decided to go until the end - to the 7th cocktail. And it was the best of them all. Just some of the ingredients that were used: mashed potatoes, wasabi with pineapple, garlic brandy. One of the best drinking experiences in my life.

Gen Yamamoto was a very unique cocktail experience. You have the option of choosing 4, 5 or 7 courses. 7 is a cool 10,000 yen. Yamamoto-san speaks English quite well and provides a course by course description similar to dishes being brought out from the kitchen at a Michelin restaurant. Every cocktail is prepared in plain sight as you would see at an omakase sushi restaurant. Nearly every cocktail is a blend of fruit or vegetables and one spirit. Yamamoto-san used Finnish whiskey in two of the cocktails, as well as sochu and brandy. My favorite was the tomato, lemon juice and whiskey blend. The smoky whiskey and fresh tomato juice complimented each other harmoniously. I’m trying to recreate it at home and the tomato jam seems to be the one missing element. You need to make a reservation over the phone starting from a week out. I asked my hotel concierge to call but Yamamoto-san requested to speak with my directly since he speaks English. There were two tourists from China and one from New York. Neither party stayed for all 7 courses, so I was the last one there. I will say that some of the reviews complaining about the lack of spirits used are valid. Yamamoto-san uses less than a shot of alcohol per cocktail so you end up getting more fruit and vegetable juice than a bonafide cocktail. That said, I still enjoyed the creativity behind each cocktail and left inspired but still needing more drinks. So I wandered into the neighborhood to find Bar Melt, which is a new bar with patrons smoking houkas but quality cocktails that have considerably more alcohol in them. Bar Centifolia is less than a block away from Bar Yamamoto but was closed that night. Tokyo Confidential is also very close by. Here are my tasting notes in the order that they were served: 1 - Yuzu and Sochu 2 - Strawberries and Daikon / Sochu 3 - Kiwi/Marc Grappier Brandy made from Pinot noir 4 - Soy Milk / Fava Beans / Palo Single Malt Whiskey from Finland 5 - Pineapple / Japanese Whiskey 6 - 🍅 Tomato/Lemon/Tomato Jam/ Benromach Whiskey 7 - Quince / Wasabi / Kyro Finnish whiskey

Amazing experience well worth the time. If you love cocktails this is like the top tier sushi bar equivalent where everything is hand crafted in front of you with the same level of skill and care. Great to experience with up to 8 people.

I wish I knew in advance how bad the place is, so I would not waste my time calling for a reservation but also pay all this money for juice served as a shot! Nice atmosphere, but these is not an alcohol tasting experience! There are way better bars in Japan!!!! BIG NO from me!!

This is not a typical bar, so be prepared for things to be done (and cost) differently. I found out about it in a lonely planet book! The bar has a very minimalist atmosphere (there was no music, just the sound of water dripping) and can only accommodate 8 people at the time (we were 4 when I visited). To avoid disappointment, we had made a booking a week before going there (by phone). There are time slots and you get a cocktail omakase, ie. a flight of cocktails (between 4 and 7), chosen and created by the bartender Gen Yamamoto. The ones we had were fruity and light (so you don’t get drunk even if you have 7). My friend was rather disappointed, but I really enjoyed the experience! A flight of 4 cocktails costs £45 (about 8500 yen). Card payments accepted.