If you land at Haneda Airport on the last flight, it’s usually around 8 pm. Heading into the city, checking in at the hotel and then going for a drink gets you to around 10 at the earliest, and with the last train around midnight, it’s honestly cutting it close. When drinking near the hotel is awkward, the shops inside Shinagawa Station come in handy. They’re attached to the station so they’re easy to get to, and since they cater to salarymen from the big companies nearby, good-quality restaurants stay open late into the night. It’s not chaotic like Kabukicho either, so for a quiet drink you could even say it beats Shinjuku. The downside, of course, is that the prices aren’t cheap either, in proportion..
So this time I went to Grand Central Oyster Bar. It apparently did well in New York, so it’s fairly well known, and its online reputation wasn’t bad either. I’d been meaning to go at some point, but it’s exactly this kind of place that tends to disappoint -_-;; On top of that, even though it’s supposedly attached to the station, it’s at the far end, so I ended up walking a lot more than I expected.. Still, the late opening hours and the food being not bad overall were plus points..
The moment I walked in and saw the menu I was speechless.. way too expensive.. -_-;; So even though it’s an oyster bar, instead of oysters I ordered dishes that were discounted as a promotion.. You’d need to spend 5,000 yen a head, and for that the food is really just drinking snacks..
Suntory beer
I think I mentioned this before, but I’m hooked on it lately. Being a food blog, it gets plenty of chances to show up ^_^
Complimentary bread..
Just so-so. It was good for filling up, I guess..
Was it seafood fried rice..?
The price is scary, but they do use proper ingredients. The cooking itself is just so-so.. If they’d used shabby ingredients at these prices -_-
Grilled lobster and seafood
Same with this one.. Looking around, lots of salarymen were just hanging out over a beer and some very simple snacks. It’s a bit pricey, but I guess they come to places like this now and then to enjoy feeling like a New Yorker.. Me.. I’d just go to TGI Fridays..