Kokopelli The Bottom Line
Kokopelli is definitely one of the nicest little bars I’ve been to and I will be going back again – both for the beers and for the great food served there. That’s not to sound dismissive about the beers – the three taps they had did have some variety on there and was good value for money considering the location. The owners are incredible friendly and chatty but it does help to know some Japanese if you want to maximise the time here. It’s a bar that I would love to have as a local drop-in place. The whole place is non-smoking, has free wifi, and is also non-smoking.
Kokopelli The Full Review
Kokopelli came recommended to us during the interview we did for The Japan Times in 2018. Dan, who was at the time in the area, suggested we meet there, but not wanting Joe to get lost (he gets lost and confused just going to Yokohama bars), we plumped for elsewhere. Kokopelli was then firmly on our radar but we warned it would be a trek from Ishikawacho station – known for being in a hilly area of Yokohama more commonly known as The Bluff,
Kokopelli, or to give it its full name of Craft Bar Kokopelli, is located about a ten minute walk from Ishikawacho station. It’s an easy walk to be honest, but it’s not fun walking through a tunnel along a narrow path next to a busy road. Kokopelli opened in November 2016 and since then, have been a popular local haunt with locals in the area. So much so that when we were there, families in the area popped in with kids talking to the owners about their days. There is space for about 15 people inside, with 8 at tables and then another 6 or so at the counter. The whole place is non-smoking and also has no table charge too.
The taplist at Kokopelli is relatively small – only three tap – but it is deliberately slow, as the owners don’t want to have beer sitting in the lines that isn’t moving. There is space for more taps when the time calls for it though, and Kokopelli did mention that if the place does get busier, it is something that will look at doing. On the day we went, all of the taps were dedicated to domestic craft beer, though with a strong leaning towards IPAs. There are three sizes of beer at Kokopelli: small (200ml) for ¥550, medium (350ml) for ¥700, and large (473ml) for ¥980. There is also a three beer tasting set of 150ml beers for ¥1,100 – so you can get everything off the menu. There’s no happy hour though nor any takeaway beers.
Kokopelli’s food menu is primarily based around Italian dishes, so expect plenty of pasta and pizzas. And wow – the pizza. Who knew Japan had a style of pizza? Well it does, and it’s called “honmoku pizza” named after the local area. It is made from puff pastry and consists of tomato, cheese, some anchoives, and a bit of basil. It’s good value for money at Kokopelli but next time, I’ll be coming for the lunch set. I eschewed it as I didn’t really fancy a heavy meal – and that was a mistake after seeing a few other diners’ meals come out. There are some choices for vegetarians though the menus have basic English on them.
Kokopelli Details:
Open: Weekdays 11:00 – 14:00 (L.O Food 13:00 Drink 13:30) 17:00 – 23:00 (L.O Food 22:00 Drink 22:30) Weekends 11:00 – 15:00 (L.O Food 14:00 Drink 14:30) 17:00 – 23:00 (L.O Food 22:00 Drink 22:30)
Close: Thursdays
Happy Hour: None
Phone: 045-264-4783
Homepage (in Japanese): http://kokopelli.yokohama/
Social Media: Facebook / Instagram
How to Get to Kokopelli
The closest station to Kokopelli is Ishikawacho on the JR Keihin Tohoku line. You could walk from Yamate station, but it involves a few hills on the way.
[ezcol_1half]Directions from Ishikawacho Station
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[ezcol_1half_end]Directions from Yamate Station
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