Bear Pond is one of the better known specialty coffee destinations in Tokyo, having made a good impression on a number of blogs, magazines, and newspaper articles over the past few years. According to scattered reportage, owner Katsu Tanaka lived in the US for quite a few years and apparently worked as a trainer (or some other capacity) with well known specialty coffee purveyors Counter Culture Coffee and Gimme! Coffee.
Bear Pond’s small, unassuming location is opposite a gourmet donut shop, on an interesting street full of similarly quirky establishments in Shimokitazawa. The cafe is easily overcrowded with reverent patrons waiting for their coffee. I was looking forward to this visit, having heard their reputation, but I guess I came on a bad day.
The whole experience was fussy and overly precious. First, the no-photos signs plastered all over the walls aren’t exactly welcoming. Second, when I ordered an espresso I was told that I couldn’t, and something about having run out of beans. According to their website, they only serve espresso until 2 pm. The woman behind the counter then tapped her fingers and stared until I relented and ordered a cappuccino, served up in a paper cup. Why couldn’t I just try the espresso blend they were using for milk drinks? I didn’t push the issue, so who knows. I could have explained that I wanted to write a post about their cafe, but I’d lost interest by that point. When my friend and I finally received our drinks, we stood by the boards that serve as tables, and took the first sips — whereupon we were told, passive-aggressively, that we should get out because my girlfriend, the third person in our group, hadn’t ordered a drink.
I get it. It’s Tokyo and rent is high and space is limited and you’re running a business. You take your coffee very seriously and you’ve gotten a lot of positive press. You want to assure high quality standards. That’s fine. I’m sure your espresso is great, but the only thing I remember is how glad I was to leave.
Maybe I visited on a bad day. It happens. So take this review for what it is, and let me know how your experience was in the comments below.
Map after the break.
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20 comments
Johnny says:
Nov 11, 2010
Wow, what a bummer!
TUG and I have been there twice since you left, and it’s always the owner dude and his wife running the place. They’re always full of smiles and very welcoming. But, then again, I’ve always gone on a Friday morning.
I definitely agree with the “No Photos” thing. In general, I hate “No Photos”. One of these days I’m going to get cybernetic implants and take all the photos I want with my eyes.
Oscar says:
Nov 12, 2010
I visited in February on a rainy weekday and had one of my best and most inspiring coffeemoments, we stayed almost an hour chatting with the owner about his coffee-vision, design and life. I guess they might have become too popular?
Too me their excentric quirks were very interesting and exotic at our visit but I can understand that in certain circumstances they just become…..unwelcoming?
Aaron Frey says:
Nov 12, 2010
Thanks for sharing! It was disappointing, I’d heard so many good things. Guess it was just one of those days, but unfortunately that was the day I went. Glad your comments can offer a balanced perspective, hope for more in the future.
Oscar – yeah, I suppose the quirkiness can be endearing in a sense. But altogether left a bad taste in my mouth on that day. I’ve still put them down on my coffee map as a ‘must visit’ due to the coffee fanaticism.
Allen says:
Jul 26, 2011
I’m sorry to discover you had a bad experience. I went there twice. Katsu and Chiza were super friendly and we chatted for an hour. Everything I had from his espresso, gibraltar, to his sig drink the “dirty” was pretty effing amazing. Hope you get a chance to revisit!
Aaron Frey says:
Jul 29, 2011
I’m glad for the comments that balance out my bad experience. I’ll have to give them another shot when I visit Tokyo again.
Liang says:
Nov 19, 2011
Hello,
They have a second outlet in shibuya http://www.bear-pond.com/no8/
Outlet is cafe style that serves hot meals too. Pretty nice place!
Sara Kirchheimer says:
Nov 22, 2011
Hey…! I like Bear Pond Espresso. They’ve always been friendly to me and I think I could get addicted to the Gibraltar because I like dark chocolate so much. There’s nothing “precious” about their prep, if you understand Japanese cultural values and are not prejudiced in favor of our barbarian American abruptness. Where else can you get one-stop cultural and coffee exposure? Or for anyone who doesn’t want that, McDonalds is also selling coffee in Tokyo.
Eric says:
Feb 13, 2012
2 out of 3 times I have been to Bear Pond Shimokita Katsu was very rude. But today he was over the top rude, completely passive aggressive over nothing.
In both cases, I politely made an inquiry to certain things in the shop. The first being why is there no espresso after 2 pm? He immediately became irritated and had suggested reasons which didn’t make any sense to me, such as: “the air changes after 14:00 and because of the quality of the air after 14:00 we can’t serve the same taste so we stop”. I too, had travelled far specifically for an espresso. I later made the same inquiry at the Shibuya location, and the staff there had said it was because Katsu only brought in limited amounts of beans daily and it sold out by 14:00 usually.
Today myself and some friends were enjoying ourselves, one of them took a picture. They asked no photos. That’s fine. But I tend to be a curious person so on the way out I asked why the no photo policy? Wouldn`t it be free advertising as people talked about being there? Katsu and his wife launched off into a rather rediculous tirade suggesting: I don’t know how to follow rules, rules are rules, why do police have rules? What if he touched me, what if he went into someone’s house, am I not able to understand rules and privacy!? Eventually his shouting and verbal attacks on all 3 of us had the entire shop cleared out as frightened customers headed out the door. So in the end, he yells at me “you destroyed my business!!”.
I think the taste is good, but you’ll need to be able to stomach Katus’s F*CK-YOU-I’M-FROM-NEW-YORK attitude.
Aaron Frey says:
Feb 13, 2012
That sounds unpleasant. Thanks for sharing your experience, at least now I know I’m not the only one who didn’t find the place very welcoming.
VJ says:
May 5, 2012
Changed two trains to get to this espresso bar at 4:30PM. Did not know I would be denied an espresso, what I went there for. Not really a welcoming atmosphere with the owners’ snobbish attitude. Coffee may be good, but I didn’t really enjoy the whole experience. Disappointing and a waste of time and money for a place with so much good press.
Life is Bear Pond - The Coffee Compass says:
Aug 25, 2012
[…] The cafe’s idiosyncrasies have elicited a range of responses from coffee writers (positive, negative), and from this video I’m guessing Bear Pond’s eccentric owner might have something to […]
Zane Mattisson says:
Sep 17, 2012
I’m super keen to go and taste several drinks…so I’ll arrive before 2pm. Them standing up for what they believe in is awesome (…at least “refreshing”) actually – this is how they do things. Period. Regular, first-timer. Equal treatment. Nice.
Just remember when visiting other countries that you aren’t in Kansas anymore. THEIR culture. So just order, get your drink(s), taste/evaluate THAT cup without the distractions and enjoy it for what it is.
Aaron Frey says:
Sep 17, 2012
My complaint is less about culture, more about personality – at least as much as can be said based upon one visit. If you do make it there, I hope you’ll write about your experience here.
@kulikopi says:
Dec 13, 2012
Had a chance to visit them in August around 1.30PM and it was too late to taste the espresso. Asked them why, and Katsu-san answered me with an analogy of someone’s going to a party, at the beginning the person is very enthusiastic then during the time later the person just lost the excitement of the party. To my surprise, I ordered an Americano and he brewed me one, should have asked him to separate the hot water and the espresso by then. Katsu-san was ‘rude’ at the beginning but after an hour long talk he was more open. Tried to get the espresso again, still no luck. He describes himself as a hippy who would not care to what people say. In my opinion, unless you’re Peter Giuliano you won’t be a ‘friend’.
But, will I come back to visit them again? Yes. I love the surrounding as well :)
21 Great Books About Coffee: Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide » Sprudge.com says:
Mar 25, 2013
[…] his flagship series of cafes, Bear Pond, have been featured by everyone from the New York Times to FRSHGRND. This is a lovely book to gift the global coffee […]
JP says:
Apr 12, 2013
I loved the latte. Oishi! I was hoping Katsu-san would be more friendly but oh well, at least he wasn’t rude. The second trip I took there I liked the latte so much I ordered another. I will be back…
Frappuccino Fashion: Coffee Culture in Japan | Trends in Japan - Tokyo's latest Lifestyle, Culture and Innovation says:
May 16, 2013
[…] for the barista to concentrate on his art! Certainly some visitors are not pleased with the “overly precious” and unwelcoming atmosphere of the […]
Lee says:
May 21, 2015
Ah I’m a few years (5!) late to this blog post party, but as a coffee fan myself I’ll go ahead and offer my experience also. I lived in Japan for a research internship during grad school about 4 years ago. I had free time on my hands so I would sometimes go to Shimokita to just wander around; it was my favorite neighborhood. Anyway I eventually accidentally found Bear Pond as a result of hours of aimless walking. I had great coffee there. I know the owners are pretty salty people, and I never got to make friends with them the way some people have. However I did not have a bad experience with them. I think it’s because I understand Japanese culture a little bit better from having lived there several times, that basically they are a big stickler for rules. Regular Japanese people are generally good at accepting rules like no photography and stuff. Not always, but probably a little better than us dirty Westerners, basically because they’ve lived in a strict society their entire lives. So their rules didn’t seem unreasonable to me. They want a boutique cafe experience, not like a Tsutaya or Mr Donut. I think it’s not the kind of cafe where you can bring a laptop like some people like to do, or hang out for several hours with a single coffee. Actually a few times some Westerners brought a laptop to just work there or one guy kept bringing his baby in the stroller, it was so obvious to me how much he was in the way. I mean, this guy doesn’t feel the “air” that he’s in the way with his laptop when it’s obviously not a Western style sit-and-work cafe.
So yes I agree it’s a strict cafe and I never became friends with the owners the way some have. But I never had that expectation. I had delicious coffee there, and I would go back in a heartbeat. I think there are a couple points to make your experience here good.
1. Go in the morning on a weekday, except they are closed on Monday or Tuesday I think. This is the best time; there are few people and you can enjoy your coffee in peace.
2. Don’t try to make friends with the owners the way you would in America. Just be polite and enjoy your coffee.
3. Have respect for their rules or don’t patronize their cafe. Yes they ask you to not work on your laptop, take photos (for whatever reason), and don’t take up too much space. But again it’s their cafe not yours so you can respect it!
I never had a bad experience here but I can 100% see how it would be very easy to have a bad experience if you came here at a bad time or tried to argue with the owners. I actually sympathize with what the owner said to another commenter: why do police have rules? etc. It’s true: it’s their shop, they have rules like any shop does, and you should respect that. They are probably used to Westerners thinking it’s always okay to bend rules. Japanese generally don’t even ask for an exception to the rule unless they’re literally from the press. Of course it’s not that black and white, but I think they are pretty used to foreigners going to that cafe in particular, in comparison to other places, and sometimes they have to put the smackdown on foreigners that want to break their rules. Anyway it’s just a cafe lol.
Aaron Frey says:
May 21, 2015
Thanks for your comment. I had a bad moment, but would try again if in town; can’t hold a grudge over a 30 second interaction.
Anthony says:
Jul 26, 2017
I looove Bear Pond, the thing is, yes they are rude everytime I have been, but it is part of the experience! Check out http://www.counterseat.com/blog/bear-pond-espresso to understand