Vector Beer Factory, the sister bar to Vector Beer reviewed here, is located less than minute up the road from Vector Beer though it specialises in IPAs and oven cooked food instead of cow’s tongue. Someone seems to have thought that catering for the IPA crowd is a great idea as all the beers on tap at Vector Beer Factory are IPAs only from across Japan. While sitting in Vector Beer, the waitress told us about it and said it’s pretty close. So, finishing our beers, we upped and left and found out she was right, even after four pints of beer.
Opened in December 2014, Vector Beer Factory latched onto the IPA scene and is very much styled like some of the US craft beer bars located on-site at breweries, with garage tools, such as wrenches and spanners, for taps and wood everywhere, which I guess is linked in with the factory aspect of the name. There are 17 taps for beer, though only 12 were on when we went.
If you’ve read our review of Vector Beer, then you would know the prices of beers as they are exactly the same at Vector Beer Factory as they are at Vector Beer, beers come in two sizes, a glass at ¥450 and US pints at ¥750. There is also a three-beer tasting set available too for ¥1,000 where you can choose any three beers (200ml) from the ten regular beers on tap. All prices include tax too. The taps rotate regular from a variety of styles from Japan.
However, and this part is copied from the review previously as it true here. Vector Beer Factory suffers from two of the most annoying things about drinking craft beer in Japan:
- Table charges – ok, you will get some small portion of food, in this case, some shellfish but it would be better if they just scrap the table charge and place an extra ¥50 on the beer.
- Smoking – smoking is allowed anywhere in Vector Beer Factory and it’s annoying. I want to smell my beer and food without the threat of smoke blowing across the place. I have no problem with smoking but I wish there were a segregated area.
The food at Vector Beer Factory is similar to Vector Beer, though the mixed meat grill, at ¥2,700, was delicious. There are vegetarian options available, but not much. There is some simple snack food too available, such as chips and nachos available for the less hungry among the drinkers.
Vector Beer Factory Paragraph Review
Vector Beer Factory, like its sister bar, could have been much higher up our list of places to drink at, if it wasn’t for table charges and smoking. If you don’t mind either of those, then Vector Beer Factory is a good place to drink at if you’re looking for somewhere outside of the usual drinking areas of Tokyo.
Vector Beer Factory Details
Open: Monday ~ Saturday 17:00 – 24:00 (L.O for food 23:00 L.O for drinks 23:30)
Closed: Sunday and national holidays
Phone: 03-5315-4744
SNS: Facebook
How to Get to Vector Beer Factory
The closest station to Vector Beer Factory is Shinjuku Gyoenmae on the Marunouchi Line on the Tokyo Subway. Take exit three, turn right out of the exit, and turn right at the FamilyMart. Vector Beer Factory is located straight up that road on the right on the second floor of the Kawamoto Building. You could walk from JR Shinjuku but it would take about fifteen to twenty minutes.