Melobar One Paragraph Review
After a bit of a pub crawl I came back to Melobar at around midnight, and it was very different: the music was louder, there were a lot more people and more of a party feel. So if you’re after a quiet beer with your thoughts, earlier is probably better, but the music and atmosphere later was also convivial, if conversation is what you’re after. Overall, it’s the bar I would visit any time I happen to be in Takamatsu in the future, as it wins for drinks, food and atmosphere, as well as being very centrally located. It is smoking though so be warned; however, there is no table charge and prices include tax.
Melobar Full Review
Takamatsu is the capital of Kagawa Prefecture, the smallest of Japan’s 47 (since Kansai Airport made Osaka slightly bigger), and is a charming city of eight hundred thousand people. Its castle is notable for being a mizujiro, water castle: it’s so close to the sea that its moat is seawater; the other major attraction is the stunning park Ritsurin Koen, Japan’s largest.
When hunting for craft beer venues, it wasn’t easy to track many down. I was told constantly that people in Shikoku drink nihonshu and that ‘there’s no good beer here’. However, a bit of Googling and advice from Jobert Brightson led me to Melobar, which luckily was very near my hotel.
Melobar is a mix: specializing in beer, wine, whiskey and shochu, with quite a large selection of food; it also advertises itself as a music bar, and I was impressed by the amount of English music playing (a mix of classic rock and eighties songs that you might secretly enjoy but wouldn’t admit to). There were six beers on tap when I went, none from Shikoku, two from Tochigi. Blue Magic’s Fan Tag Ale was extremely palatable, as was Ushitora Brewing’s First Impact. Also on tap were beers from our (Kanagawa’s) own Brimmer Brewing, Kyoto Brewing, Ise Kadoya (Mie) and Y Market (Nagoya). Prices varied from ¥600 to ¥800 for a small glass and ¥900 to ¥1100 for a “regular” glass.
The food was good. I did something I don’t think I’ve ever done: asked what the delicious smell was coming from the kitchen and ordered it. It was marinated pork and mushrooms. There was enough on the menu to have dinner there. Staff were friendly and professional and even gave me a badge.
I set off in search of more pubs, but found only one: The Craft Beer House. Serving about eight beers on tap, with a number of imported bottles, it was a pleasant enough place to drink, but there was little food (bar snacks), and it was quieter than Melobar.
Melobar Details
Open: Tuesday to Saturday 17:00-03:00 Sunday 15:00-03:00
Closed: Monday
Happy hours: none
Homepage (in Japanese): http://www.strikingly.com/melobar
How to Get to Melobar
The closest station to Melobar is Kataharamachi station on the Kotoden Kotohira Line. Melobar is about a five-minute walk from the west exit.