Malt Bar Heta Yoko : The Bottom Line
What’s not to like about Malt Bar Heta Yoko? It’s fun, it’s quirky, you get a discount for paying for beers and food in cash, and the owner is friendly. I guess if you have to complain about anything, it’s going to be the prices for the beers, but the prices were pretty much standard for that in Kobe. Malt Bar Heta Yoko is a little bit out of the way compared to other places in Kobe, but take the time to get here if you can.
Malt Bar Heta Yoko : Background
I had some spare time in Kobe and came across Malt Bar Heta Yoko purely by chance as I was stumbling around the area. With its massive open windows, and machining tools on the shelves, I did a double take as I walked in with the bar looking like someone had randomly assembled all of it together from an Ikea kit, but had either lost the manual that came with the kits, or just thought that they would do whatever the hell they wanted to with it all.
Malt Bar Heta Yoko, or to give it its alternative name of Heta no Yoko suki (I love it bad sideways) opened in April 2021, and is located about a 5 minute walk from Sannomiya station in Kobe, in what appeared to be a random part of the city. As for the name, it’s up there with Taproom OAM for being up there in terms of weirdness.
Malt Bar Heta Yoko : Atmosphere & Interior
As mentioned earlier, when you’re walking around the area, it’s hard not to spot Malt Bar Heta Yoko with its massively large open windows and with its old faded orange awning showing off its previous life as an old Chinese seitai store – manipulative therapy based on Chinese and Japanese traditions, and encompassing osteopathy, massage and chiropractic. As you step inside though, you couldn’t be farther from that as you’re greeted by a huge plank of wood for a table, a wooden booth that holds the bar, various bottles of whisky, and a fridge for the beers.
Malt Bar Heta Yoko has space for around 14 people inside, with space for 8 people to sit down, and then the remainder being standing room. There is no table charge and the whole place is non-smoking. You can also stand outside and drink during the day, but you are asked to keep the noise down. There was some background DJ music being played from the small computer but it was all the paraphanlia and knick-knacks adorning the bar that were super interesting and had you looking around – small toys, random bottles of beer and whisky that had been turned into lampshades, and other trinkets. What’s also interesting about Malt Bar Heta Yoko is that if you’re wearing perfume or aftershave, you won’t be allowed in – you’re supposed to be able to appreciate the aromas of the whisky and beer on offer.
Malt Bar Heta Yoko : Beer & Tap Information
Though Malt Bar Heta Yoko started out as a whisky bar, there are also 9 taps of craft beer, with both imports and domestic brews on tap, though on the day I went, it was mostly imports. The beers were mostly on the high ABV side, though that could have just been a fluke so I only one beer as I was a bit busy later on and didn’t want to drink much. The beers come in two sizes: S / Small (240ml) from ¥1,000 and then L / Large (470ml) from ¥1,500. The prices include tax and you actually get a small discount for paying in cash though I wasn’t sure how it was calculated as I got ¥50 off my beer. There’s no happy hour, nor is there an option for a beer flight.
Malt Bar Heta Yoko : Food & Menu Information
In terms of food, Malt Bar Heta Yoko had some small dishes available, with just a curry on the menu. There was some oden as well but I would eat before coming to Malt Bar Heta Yoko, especially with the high abv beers on the menu. The menus were all in Japanese, with just the names of the beer in English so you may need someone who can read, or speak, Japanese to help you out here.
Malt Bar Heta Yoko : Bar Details
- Open : Tuesday to Saturday 16:00 – 23:00 (L.O Drinks 22:30) Sundays 14:00 – 20:00 (L.O Drinks 19:30)
- Closed : Mondays
- Happy Hour : –
- Phone : 078-855-7218
- Homepage (in Japanese) : –
- Social Media : Facebook / Instagram / X (Twitter)
