Experiences / Dining
A Japanese tea tasting
日本茶の飲み比べ にほんちゃののみくらべ
Food · Quiet · Learning
Not matcha: sencha, gyokuro, hojicha and the single-estate teas, brewed at the right temperature by a tea master in a tasting room, five cups over an hour, with the leaves eaten at the end with a little soy. Tea salons in Nihonbashi, Ginza and Aoyama do it in English; the old tea shops in Nihonbashi do a shorter free version at the counter.
- How to arrange it
- Book a few days ahead for the salons; walk in at the old shops.
- Price band
- ¥¥
- Allow
- 60 min
- Where
- Nihonbashi, Ginza, Aoyama & Omotesando
Where to book it
Ginza
Higashiya Ginza
HIGASHIYA GINZA
¥¥ · 60 min · English: partial
Higashiya is a modern Japanese confectionery house whose Ginza shop includes a dedicated "sabo" tea salon serving seasonal Japanese teas alongside wagashi, in a minimalist room inside the Pola Ginza building. It treats tea tasting as its own considered menu rather than a side offering to a meal.
Aoyama & Omotesando
Sakurai Japanese Tea Experience
櫻井焙茶研究所
¥¥¥ · 60 min · English: yes
Run by tea specialist Shinya Sakurai on the 5th floor of the Fumihiko Maki-designed Spiral Building in Minami-Aoyama, this tea room treats sencha and roasted teas the way a cocktail bar treats spirits, with a dedicated "tea roasting laboratory" concept and a bar-style evening menu. It is a purpose-built tea-tasting venue, not a café that happens to serve tea.
Named operators, each verified against its official site. We list the booking route and whether English is spoken; hours and prices live on the official site. All operators