Hyperlocal Tokyo

This was my first visit. My friends had been to other locations in the chain and had raved about them, so I was excited to try their delicious craft beers. I booked a weekday all-you-can-drink course starting at 7 PM. The restaurant is conveniently located inside Ueno Station (ecute), making it easily accessible and unaffected by the weather. The tables are spaced well apart, creating a comfortable atmosphere where you can enjoy a conversation without feeling overwhelmed by the noise. While the craft beer was the main draw, I also enjoyed the casual German cuisine, such as beer and sausages.

The only good thing about this place is its location. It's located inside the station, making it easy to get to after work and easy to leave. As a result, there are a lot of drinking parties. It's noisy, and you might suddenly hear loud applause or a rhythmic clapping sound. The craft beer all-you-can-drink course seems to be popular with men, as 90% of the customers were male when I visited. When there are large groups, orders come in one after another, and even with the all-you-can-drink option, it can take 10-15 minutes for drinks to arrive. For the first drink, for some reason, one person had to wait 10 minutes, and the foam on the drinks of those who had already received theirs had disappeared by the time it arrived. The food is not good, except for the sausages. Overall, the portions are very small. Many of the beers were not cold. The service is often inattentive. The staff often chat at the entrance, making it difficult to order. It would be nice if there were call buttons on the tables, but you have to call out loudly, which is embarrassing. There are many restaurants in the Ueno area, so if you're not particularly interested in a station-side location or craft beer, there are plenty of other good options. This place was good for a one-time visit, but I'm satisfied. Thank you for the meal.

Schmatz is a restaurant I've been to before at a different location. I had a great experience there enjoying their craft beer, so I have a good impression of them. I was surprised to find out they have a location in Ueno too! And it's directly connected to the station. You can go straight from the ticket gate to the restaurant without being exposed to the rain or wind. I visited alone on a weekday afternoon around 3:30 PM, and the restaurant was pretty empty with only a few other customers. It's located on the floor with all the restaurants in the Atre (outside the ticket gate), and it has a restaurant-like atmosphere that makes it easy to walk in. Since it's a craft beer place, it's great to be able to just drop in at any time, not just for lunch or dinner. It's perfect for a middle-aged woman like me to enjoy a drink by herself in the afternoon without feeling awkward. I ordered a Bavaria Helles (5% ABV), which is a sweet and light beer, and some German potato salad to go with it. The beer has a low bitterness. The German potato salad is salty and goes well with the beer 👍. The staff was friendly, and the drinks and food arrived quickly after I ordered. I had no complaints. The atmosphere seems to change depending on when you go. If you want to spend some time alone in peace, it might be best to go on a weekday afternoon when there are fewer people. The restaurant has good background music, making it perfect for zoning out or thinking. I enjoyed my time alone. It might be a good option if you want to have a beer by yourself in the afternoon.

I was looking for a light solo lunch in Ueno, so I visited this place. 🍽️ I ordered the salad and bread set for ¥1,400. The salad was simple to prepare, so it was pretty much what I expected. 🥗 The dressing was on the lighter side, which I liked. ✨

I went there for lunch with a friend. The restaurant was relatively empty, so we could relax. We were able to use a large table even though we changed the number of people, which was great. The raspberry creme brulee was delicious. The food was very filling, and I was very satisfied. We stayed for a long time, but I thought it would have been nice if they had refilled our water at least once. I would definitely go back again.