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Emma Goto

Emma Goto

Japanese-Australian software engineer in Tokyo. Writing about hiking in Japan, coffee, birding, books and anything else that piques my interest.

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The Best Coffee in Tokyo: my favourites by neighbourhood

A neighbourhood-by-neighbourhood guide to my favourite coffee spots in Tokyo.

GESHARY COFFEE HIBIYA

We recently visited GESHARY COFFEE, a specialty coffee shop and roaster near Tokyo station that specialises in selling coffee made with Geisha (also known as Gesha) beans. They offer pour-over, cold brew and espresso-based lattes. The prices range from 1100 to 4070 yen for a cup.

MIA MIA Kuramae

MIA MIA is a small coffee shop in Kuramae. Its specialty seems to be in being a place where you are guaranteed to have a friendly chat, whether with one of the baristas or one of the other customers around you. So it's a great place to hang out if you are in need of some social interaction.

Porta Coffee Stand, Koenji

Porta Coffee Stand is a tiny coffee shop near Koenji station, down one of its busy shopping streets. After a recent visit to Koenji to see a friend, I cottoned onto the fact that it seems to be a coffee hotspot, and so I was back in short order for more.

Where to find good coffee in Yanesen (Yanaka, Nezu and Sendagi)

The Yanesen is the collective term for three districts - Yanaka, Nezu and Sendagi - and is a neighbourhood that sits between Ueno and Nippori. It survived the firebombing of Tokyo during WW2 and so is one of the few remaining shitamachi (old towns) of Tokyo.

Where to find good coffee in Shibuya and Harajuku

Shibuya and Harajuku is a rather large area with a lot of ground to cover but I've got a couple of good coffee spots listed below. Watch this space - I plan to check out a few more.

Where to find good coffee in Nakameguro and Meguro

Nakameguro is a rather trendy neighbourhood best-known for the long line of of cherry blossom trees that line the Meguro River in late March. I’ll admit I probably need to visit a couple more coffee spots in this area!

Where to find good coffee in Kuramae

Kuramae is an area sandwiched in-between Akhibara and Asakusa. Although both of its neighbours are famous tourist hotspots (Akihabara for its anime shops and Asakusa for its temples) I had never even heard of Kuramae until recently - but it's quite good for its coffee.

Where to find good coffee in Koenji

Koenji is a suburb about a 6-minute train ride west of Shinjuku, and it has some great coffee options.

NEYO KOENJI park side studio and coffee, Koenji

NEYO is a cafe a little ways away from Koenji station, and next to a local park. I will say the coffee is not amazing (a little on the bitter side) but the vibe is nice and it turned out to be a very convenient place to get some co-working done with some friends.

Mt Warusawa and Mt Akaishi: Southern Alps 3-day hike

I hiked Mt Warusawa and Mt Akaishi as a 3-day loop in Japan's Southern Alps, staying at campsites and mountain huts along the way.

INCredible COFFEE, Koenji

INCredible COFFEE in Koenji is possibly the only coffee store in Japan that comes with its own silver YouTube play button.