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Hitsuji Miyagawacho in Noge, Yokohama

by Rob
1 comment

Hitsuji Miyagawacho The Bottom Line

Like it’s forebearer, Hitsuji Miyagawacho has so much going for it – a nice setting, relaxed atmosphere, with some good food on the menu, but then falls to the same problems as the first branch in that the dread table charge and prices not including tax rear their ugly heads. If you don’t mind that, then Hitsuji Miyagawacho could be on your list of places to visit but having to pay almost ¥1,800 just to have a couple of small beers means I won’t be returning in a hurry. While the bar is non-smoking, it isn’t enough to compete with other, better bars in the area such as Sakura Taps and Uchida Biyori. Moreover, with all the menus in Japanese, it’s going to need some strong Japanese readers to ensure you can get something to eat.

Hitsuji Miyakawacho Inside・ひつじ宮川町店店内

Hitsuji Miyagawacho The Full Review

We heard on the grapevine that Hitsuji was looking to open another shop in Yokohama – and was hoping that they would make something better of the shop that has seen us go back zero times since it opened. Considering that the area of Miyagawacho isn’t that well-known for craft beer, it was quite a surprise to find out that this store was less than five minutes walk from the original store. Could it be that popular that they needed extra space? Had prices come down or had they put tax into the prices? Maybe they had got rid of the annoying table charge that plagues so many bars that BeerTengoku wants to like, but can’t? Well if you’ve read “The Bottom Line” above, then you already know the answer to these questions.

Hitsuji Miyagawacho opened up in September 2019 and has space inside for about 30 people, with 20 being seated at various tables around the bar and 10 seats or so at the counter. It’s quite a narrow bar, so expect to rub elbows with people next to you, or be bashed as people walk by you to get to the toilet. A minor grievance but still a tad annoying at time. Despite the front of the shop having doors / windows that open wide up, there is no seating outside, which is a shame because on the day we went, it was beautiful weather outside and was a shame that we couldn’t take a couple of chairs and sit on the faux-deck. The whole bar is non-smoking, including by the doors, but there is a table charge  that needs to be paid of ¥300 plus tax, which got us some random lotus root and fish egg mix.

Hitsuji Miyakawacho Beer 1・ひつじ宮川町ビール1Hitsuji Miyakawacho Beer 2・ひつじ宮川町ビール2Hitsuji Miyakawacho Beer 3・ひつじ宮川町ビール3
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There are five taps of craft beer on at Hitsuji Miyagawacho with all the taps being dedicated to domestic beer on the day we went, with one tap being dedicated to a macro lager.  Beers come in two sizes – small (~310ml) for ¥550 and large (473ml) for ¥950. Neither of those prices include tax, so add on another 10% of that and you’ve already spent close to ¥1,500 before you’ve even had a sip on your beer. The serving of the beers – well, let’s just say that leaves a lot to be desired for – nothing should be served like the pics above, so thankfully they were sent back and topped up, but the amount of head in the first place was ridiculous. There isn’t a happy hour and nor is there a tasting set so you better like your beer at that price.

Hitsuji Miyakawacho Food 1・ひつじ宮川町フード1Hitsuji Miyakawacho Food 2・ひつじ宮川町フード2Hitsuji Miyakawacho Food 3・ひつじ宮川町フード3

And guess what – “Having already spent so much money on beer before even looking at food, I was deeply disappointed not to see any lamb on the menu – with the name, I expected to see some on the menu but nothing.” – literally the same is applied to the second branch. Lots of meaty things on the menu, but nothing related to lamb appeared on the menu. Another let down. With all the menus in Japanese, and noone speaking English, you’re gonna have a bad time here if you can’t read and/or speak Japanese. There were very few vegetarian options on the menu either besides a couple of sides, so make sure you’ve eaten beforehand if you’re vegetarian.

Hitsuji Miyagawacho Details

Open: Weekdays 16:00 – 24:00 (L.O Food 23:00 Drink 23:30) Weekends and National Holidays 13:00 – 24:00 (L.O Food 23:00 Drink 23:30)

Closed: Tuesdays

Happy Hour: None

Phone: 045-308-9208

Homepage (in Japanese): https://beerchickenhitsujinoge.gorp.jp/

Social Media: Facebook

How to Get Hitsuji Miyagawacho

The closest stations to Hitsuji Miyagawacho are Hinodecho [Keikyu Main Line] or Sakuragicho [Keihin-Tohoku / Yokohama Line]

Directions from Hinodecho Station
Directions from Sakuragicho Station

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1 comment

pudgym29 March 9, 2020 - 11:17 am

Rob, you have to realize that many of these ‘new‘ venues only exist so they can submit them to Metropolis, the English-language monthly magazine, as something completely different from what they have written about previously. They hope this new ‘spin’ on the same old failing concept will garner them text – and hopefully English-speaking patrons – which I keenly hope those people have previously learned about.

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