Natural Station

Name: Natural Station
Type: Juice / Sandwich Bar
Station: Aobadai, Shibuya, Kita Senju, Nishi Shinjuku and more.

Info: Web Site, E: Online Email Form

If you're an Boost Juice fanatic like me and find yourself going through some serious withdrawal during your stay in Japan the small, yet growing juice / sandwich bar / cafe Natural Station is a good (though not as good) alternative.

As with most serving sizes in Japan the juices served here are smaller than those at Boost Juice though thankfully not as pathetically small as those served in the similar Japanese juice chain, Juicer Bar (does anyone know what's with all those people who spend all that money on a shot of fruit juice and then stand around train platforms posing while they sip at it's minuscule contents for the next half hour?).

Natural station has a wide variety of freshly squeezed juices and organic coffees as well as a large selection of rather tasty and fresh sandwiches though watch out for the Bacon & Tomato sandwich which has mayonnaise and tomato sauce on the bacon (only in Japan, right?).

Well worth a go especially if you want something a little different from Starbucks. I tried out the Aobadai branch which is right opposite the main ticket gates and found service very fast and friendly and the interior quiet, clean and relaxing. Brush up on your Hiragana and Katakana beforehand though as all menus are in Japanese and without pictures.

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Soup Stock Tokyo

Name: Soup Stock
Type: Chain

Location: All over the place (just keep an eye out)

Info: Web Site, E: email page

I've been to several Soup Stocks during my stay in Tokyo and have found them to always be a rather clean (though a bit too sterile if you know what I mean) place to grab some lunch or dinner without having to put up with the hundreds of smokers in this city.

The two main Soup Stocks I've been to again and again are both actually within train stations. The one at Futako Tamagawa is behind the ticket gates (and part of a cool book/magazine store to boot) so only train commuters get a chance to try it.

With the exception of the Proud Cafe, Futako Tamagawa doesn't have any real smoke free locations so after a day of shopping and site seeing it's a good idea to keep the Soup Stock as an option for dinner on your way home.

The second Soup Stock that I've used a few times is within Takadanobaba station near the Tozai line, underground though near the ticket gates, not behind them so anyone can give it a go without buying a ticket. In a clever business move, this Soup Stock has merged with Bagel & Bagel as well as a smoke free Japanese restaurant and a fruit juice bar giving you a lot of variety that most non-smokers aren't used to.

There are heaps more locations around Tokyo.

Soup Stock itself serves quite substantial food, especially for the Japanese food industry. On offer is a rather diverse range of soups such as vegetarian, Thai, and even a rather cool Goya (sour melon) one that I tried. There is also two choices of chicken curry available and a substantial drink menu that should satisfy most looking for some refreshment.

All of these can be combined into preselected sets with your choice of soup, curry (or bread roll) and drink for around 1050 Yen and because everything is cooked in bulk, your food is served seconds after paying for it.

My only gripe with Soup Stock is it's white on white atmosphere which lacks any warmth whatsoever. Practicality is definitely placed over comfortability here and you'll find yourself wanting to go elsewhere almost as soon as you've finished your meal.

There is however some great people watching to be had (link):



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Bagel & Bagel

Name: Bagel & Bagel
Type: Cafe Chain

Info: Web Site

I had seen several of these Bagel & Bagel cafes around Tokyo and in a few areas just outside the city centre (I tried the one in Tama Plaza) but I had never been a bagel fan (not as big in Australia as it is in the States I guess) so therefore didn't really see a point in giving them a go until I was starving and unable to find a real smoke free establishment to unwind in.

I was pleasantly surprised!

While I'm pretty sure Bagel & Bagel is Japanese owned, the feel and look of their cafes have a very strong western feel to them. They even claim to make their bagels "American style".

The insides were very well designed with kudos to the manager for having real plants in the pots (way too many plastic plants in Japan for my liking) and English names for all the items on the menu. Though be careful as using the English names on the menu might not get you what you want. For example I ordered the Gourmet Drink Set and the woman had no idea what I was going on about. However when I read the Katakana title, "Dorinku Seto" she knew exactly where I was coming from and hilariously asked some of the other girls working why the English subtitles say different things than the Japanese.

All the menus do have pictures of each item though (even of the different kinds of bagels you can choose from, over 20!) so if your Japanese ability fails you, just point and say "Kore wo kudasai".

I grabbed a latte as my drink and the Vegetarian Bagel for my bagel of choice as well as a chocolate cookie (very similar to those great Subway cookies! Yum.) and found it a bit of a mixed bag. The bagel was great. Fresh ingredients and made in front of me behind a glass screen so I could see what was being put into it. Unlike Subway though, they don't ask you what you'd like at every stage so make sure you tell the waitress what you want before heading to the pick-up point.

The latte on the other hand was just... flat. It's like they had bought 100 yen milk and fried it in a saucepan. It just tasted wrong and, well... don't go there for the coffee!

Great bagels though and they do have other drink alternatives. Well worth a look.

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Ootoya

Name: Ootoya
Type: Japanese Style Restaurant Chain

Location: The Ootoya restaurant chain has heaps of restaurants in almost every major area of Japan making it very easy to find when you want to. A lot of places, such as Shibuya for example have two.

Info: Web Site, E: Email Form

After seeing these Ootoya signs all over Tokyo for my first two years in Japan, I still had no idea exactly what kind of restaurant they were or even if they were non smoking, but after being introduced to Ootoya by a friend of mine, I've never looked back.

Ootoya is a very wide spread restaurant chain that has branches all over Japan. They're all 100% smoke free and offer some of the freshest modern Japanese food I've seen here. Most "sets" they serve come with the main dish, pickles, rice and the best miso soup you'll ever taste. I've actually found myself on several occasions going to Ootoya just for the complimentary miso soup, it's that good!

The interiors are always well designed and the staff friendly. Ordering is very easy but unusual as you order and pay for your meal before you sit down. Which I guess is good if you're in a rush as you can run as soon as you finish eating. Note that one of the branches in Shibuya (near my favourite comic book shop, Blister) requires you to sit down and order old school restaurant style. This branch seems to be the exception though.

Ootoya is a very nice surprise for a first timer and one that I guarantee you'll come back to again and again once you try it.

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Seattle's Best Coffee

Name: Seattle's Best Coffee

Type: American Style Cafe

Japan Website: http://www.seabest.co.jp/

US Website: http://www.seattlesbest.com/

In Brief: An amazingly quiet and secluded cafe in one of the busiest locations in Tokyo! And of course 100% Smoke Free and with Wireless Internet!

Review: I found this cafe by accident, trying to find my way out of the maze that is Sunshine City which just goes to show that the best places in Japan are the ones you find when you get lost.



There were several features that drew me to SBC. The first was the "No Smoking" sign, naturally. The second was the selection of vacant seats available. Something that I thought I would never find at 3:30pm on a Wednesday during the school holidays but here we were with over 10 seats completely vacant! SBC is also nicely removed from the noise of the main Sunshine shops while only being a ten second walk from them.

I treated myself to the 220 YEN banana walnut muffin and a Tall (same size names as Starbucks though slightly larger in size and thus better value for money) Mocha with no cream (with cream is the default) which was where SBC really lived up to it's slogan "Bold Flavour, Smooth Taste" with a first class coffee served within 30 seconds and two people being served before me! Great stuff! The milk, foam, espresso, were all spot on and the temperature was hot enough to mix the ingredients but not so hot as to force me to wait half an hour lest I get third degree burns trying to drink it.

I really enjoyed going through my shopping (The Body Shop is just under and several anime and manga stores are directly across the road) and writing this article in here. I didn't get the chance to try the much promoted "SBC Dog" (wasn't that hungry today) but I'll definitely try it on my next visit.

Note: Left of SBC is nice but medium sized park with nice seats and a water feature. On a nice day, try grabbing take out and enjoying some Tokyo city nature. If you've never seen a cicada before, you should definitely do this in Summer as the park is full of them! A great experience!

Starbucks

Name: Starbucks
Type: American Cafe Chain
Website: www.Starbucks.co.jp/en/home.htm

In Brief: Whether or not you like Starbucks in your home country (I personally prefer Gloria Jeans) if you're after a 100% smoke free cafe that is fast, easy to find (there's a Starbucks almost everywhere in Japan) and serves exactly what you order, Starbucks is the way to go. They accept all major credit cards, money orders and of course cash (only Yen of) as well as their own Starbucks card though be warned as Starbucks cards from other countries such as Australia and Canada and the States will not be accepted.

The quality of Starbucks in Japan vary greatly depending on region. For example, the Starbucks in Roppongi Hills always serves 1st class coffees but the Starbucks in Saitama (specifically Shin Koshigaya) will constantly serve you the wrong drink (despite numerous repetitions of your order) and the milk tastes burnt most of the time due to the lack of steam wand cleaning. Normally good in the CBD, don't have high expectations once you hit the suburbs.

Something positive worth mentioning is the beautiful designs on the Starbucks mugs in Japan. They make great presents for family and friends and also great moments for yourself. I personally love the Kyoto purple and orange design and the tropical Okinawan look. If, like me and you collect these but don't want to carry them around, you can buy all the major designs at Narita airport before your departure, however less famous ones such as Roppongi Hills (a very cool design) and Saitama (worth missing) are only available on location.

Warning: Each Starbucks in Japan seems to have a different policy on serving whipped cream on coffees and frappucinos. It's always best to clarify "No whipped cream" or "With whipped cream" even of you ordered a light/skim or soy coffee (no kidding). You will also have to specify hot (regular), cold (iced) or frappuchino for each drink. Simply saying "Tall Mocha" isn't understood as a regular Mocha here. Say that and you may end up with a Mocha Frappuchino or an Iced Mocha. You should also double check the size. The names are the same but they may hear Venti, even though you said "Short". Check to see what size cup they grab after you order and recheck the price with the menu, just in case.