Local Eats Japan

Now you may have heard of, or even seen Gindaco, and this is because it is actually a chain restaurant. 

But, instead of solely serving food, they have started to produce izakaya (Japanese bars) like places which I think is the perfect pre-game spot on any occasion.

I have been to this location a few times, and first off the location can’t be beat. They have another one I know of in Shinjuku too, but it is a bit of a walk away. 1 minute is practically inside the station. 

Gindaco serves a Japanese street food with origins in Osaka: Takoyaki, which are little octopus bits dropped into batter and cooked over a round shaped grill to make little balls. They are then topped with a sweet sauce, mayonnaise, and bonito flakes which are thin pieces of shaved tuna. 

They are the perfect bit filling that they are delicious – exactly what you want to have in your stomach before a night of drinking. 

You can get the basic with just the two aforementioned sauces, but they also have other flavors like teriyaki and egg salad, or my favorite, mentaiko and cheese which they use instead of a normal mayo the japanese delicacy of spicy atlantic cod roe (mentaiko) mixed into it. 

Regardless of the flavor, you can start at only 4 pieces so I think getting a bunch to try would be a good idea. 

What makes this particular location cool is that it is “tachi-nomi” or in other words you drink while you’re standing up at high tables. This makes it really easy to socialise with new people and move around a bunch – I highly recommend it if you want to meet new people in Japan. 

You pay downstairs at the register, wait for your drinks and food, and then bring it up to your table.

At night they even put some tables outside increasing the amount of people that can eat there. 

Their highball (whiskey and sparkling water) is under 400 yen and beer is 550. They also have other drinks like lemon and various flavored sours that are priced the same as the highball. 

I think that a lot of people just assume this is only for food, and that is why it is only filled with locals there. 

Get your fill of protein and carbs with a few drinks included and enjoy yourself, maybe meeting some new people before you head out on the town. 

I think this is the perfect reasonable place to do so, so please go check it out.

Thanks for reading – if you’d like to support and follow along: 

More about me

Different types of ordering systems in Japan explained

Purchasing an onigiri to keep me fuelled throughout my journey 🍙