Citra Bar Yaesu : The Bottom Line
What Citra Bar Yaesu lacks in beers, it makes up for with its fantastic food and wonderful views across the east side of Tokyo station. I did enjoy the two beers though I had here, but if you’re expecting a wide and varied list, then there are other places better suited in the area. The prices were surprisingly reasonable, considering the location of where I was drinking so that was another bonus.
Citra Bar Yaesu : Background
Citra Bar Yaesu is the third in the slowly growing chaing of Citra Bars that, at the time of writing, have two other locations in Koenji and Nakano, both in Western Tokyo. So it’s a bit of a surprise to find this third location in the Yaesu area around Tokyo station – not really known for being cheap. Moreover, imagine my surprise when I found out that it was going to be located in the Tokyo Midtown building – have building owners come to their senses and realised that not everyone needs more clothing shops and in fact people want to eat and drink without paying exorbitant amounts? Probably not but let’s hope.
Citra Bar Yaesu is located in the Tokyo Midtown Yaesu building, literally located across from the Yaesu exits of Tokyo Station. The Yaesu Public area is on the second floor of this building and is a space set aside for a series of small shops with a communal eating and drinking area for purchases bought in the area. Citra Bar Yaesu is at the far end of the this area but also near the end with a fantastic view across the Yaesu side of the station.
Citra Bar Yaesu : Atmosphere & Interior
With Citra Bar Yaesu being located in the communal area, it doesn’t have its own seating, but a shared space with other bars in the area, so it feels kind of unfair to judge that space within the realms of Citra Bar Yaesu.
The whole space though is non-smoking and has free wifi available for people to use. I’d suggest getting some seats at the window, with the tatami box seats being unbeatable though busy.
Citra Bar Yaesu : Beer & Tap Information
The main drinks on sale at Citra Bar Yaesu are sours with different fruits on offer, but there are also three taps of craft beer on. On the day I went, I had the Y Market Yellow Sky Pale Ale and the Shiga Kogen Snow Monkey IPA – both very good beers. The beers come in two sizes: half pint (240 ml) from ¥750 and pint (473 ml) from ¥1,150 with prices including tax. The beers were served to the brim, so whatever you do, do not use the flimsy excuses for trays to carry them, else you’ll lose some of the beer on the trays. There wasn’t a happy hour, nor any beer flights, but with only 3 beers on the menu, you don’t need one.
Citra Bar Yaesu : Food & Menu Information
Yaesu Public has lots of food places available but Citra Bar Yaesu also has some choices. I went for the AQ Bevolution gyoza and was not disappointed. Big juicy gyoza and beer is also a good choice. The menus though were mostly in Japanese but there are pictures so you can just point at the menu. There were a variety of options available for vegetarians as well but if not, there are other shops in the area.
Citra Bar Yaesu : Bar Details
- Open : Daily 11:00 – 23:00 (L.O Food 22:00 Drink 22:30)
- Closed : –
- Happy Hour : –
- Phone : 080-6033-3314
- Homepage (in Japanese) : https://citraba.com/
- Social Media : Instagram
