Editor Note: Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern has closed down. This review has been kept for posterity’s sake
Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern The Bottom Line
If you’re in the area from 5pm to 7pm and looking for a quick beer and Yona Yona Beer Kitchen is closed, then you could do a lot worse than Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern. The happy hour prices are ok for the size of beer you get, but outside of those times, then the bar is, without a doubt, one of the most expensive places to drink in Tokyo for craft beer. On top of that, the prices do not include the full tax amount, so be prepared to add on another 3% to the bill. Thankfully there isn’t a table charge though the outside parts of the bar are smoking areas. Moreover, the menus are in both Japanese, and a little bit of English.
Inside is nice and cosy, a shame outside is smoking really.
Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern Full Review
I’ve often overlooked Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern when I’ve been in the Akasaka area as Yona Yona Beer Kitchen tends to offer everything I want in a bar – a decent selection of beer at a reasonable price that includes tax, along with some good food. One of the delights of BeerTengoku is finding new places and meeting new people and Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern was on the list.
Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern opened in November 2015 and is part of the Hotel Risveglio Akasaka complex that includes the bar, another restaurant and also hotel. It is located near the Akasaka-Mitsuke station on the Tokyo Marunouchi line, though it can also be reached from Akasaka station on the Chiyoda line (as I unfortunately found out by taking the wrong train line by mistake!).
Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern has space for 80 people, with 40 seats inside and another 40 seats outside in what appeared to be a bunch of tables and oak barrels located just to the side of the bar. While the inside is completely non-smoking, the outside terrace area seems to be dedicated to smokers – nice to separate the two, but a shame when it’s nice weather and the non-smokers wants to sit outside. Thankfully there isn’t a table charge to either sitting inside or outside. The atmosphere was nice and chilled, with some jazz music playing in the background; loud enough to be heard, but not so loud to drown out a conversation.
There are ten taps of craft beer on, with more than half of those dedicated to Japanese craft beer, though the line up was quite insipid on the day I went. The prices though leave a lot to be desired. While there is a happy hour from 16:00 to 19:00, where all small (270ml) beers are ¥500, these prices rise quite sharply outside of happy hour. Small size prices start at ¥800, with medium (310ml) at ¥1,050 and then large (480ml) at ¥1,400. The menu states that these prices include 5% tax, though as the tax rate in Japan is, at the time of writing 8%, expect another 3% on top of your bill at the end of drinking. There isn’t a tasting set either.
The food at Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern is aimed at the meat eaters among readers, so if you’re vegetarian, be prepared to have either chips or some salad for your dinner. The BeerTengoku staple of chips barely passed our high standards as they were doused in what appeared to be truffle salt, making you drink more. The menus are in both Japanese and English, which is great to see.
Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern Details
Open: Monday to Thursday 7:00 to 23:30 (L.O Food 22:30 Drink 23:00) Friday 7:00 to 24:00 (L.O Food 23:00 Drink 23:30) Saturday 7:00 to 23:00 (L.O Food 22:00 Drink 22:30) Sunday 7:00 to 15:00 (L.O Food 14:00 Drink 14:30)
Happy Hour: Monday to Saturday 16:00 to 19:00 all small beers are ¥500
Phone: 03-5545-8530
SNS:
How to Get to Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern
The closest station to Craft Beer & Grill 135 Tavern is Akasaka-Mitsuke on the Tokyo Marunouchi line, though it can also be reached from Akasaka on the Tokyo Chiyoda Line.
[ezcol_1half]Directions from Akasaka-Mitsuke
Take exit number 10 from the station and it’s about a two minute walk.
[/ezcol_1half] [ezcol_1half_end]Directions from Akasaka Station
Take exit number 1 from the station and it’s about a five minute walk.
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