For the cafe/coffee lovers, check out Tokyo Cafe Guide 2020 (C&Life Series)

Originally featured on dennisamith.com

I’m often asked how I prepare for my coffee/cafe tours around Japan and while there are websites that are good in showcasing cool coffee shops and cafe, one guide that I pick up at the end of November each year is the “Tokyo Cafe Guide” part of the C&Life Series from Asahi Shimbun Publishing.

Please note, that they also sell a Kyoto Cafe Guide (released at the end of November).

And what I love about these annual guides is that unlike other guides which are rehash of add or remove but nearly the same content, “Tokyo Cafe Guide” and the other cafe guides, feature something different and new each year.

For this year’s guide, it kicks off with a mini-map and guide to Tokyo Cafe’s to visit in 2020 in Shibuya ward (ie. Omotesando, Harajuku, Shibuya, Ebisu, Daikanyama), to Minato ward locations ala Aoyama, Akasaka, Roppongi, Akasaka, Chuo ward such as Ginza and Nihonbashi, Chiyoda ward with the Marunouchi area, Tokyo, Setagaya ward with Shimokitazawa, Shinjuku and many more.

This time, with the popularity of Boba shops (Tapioca) and Cheese Tea shops, more boba and tea locations are featured in this issue. And also newer locations arriving to Tokyo.

Two individuals showing their rules when they visit a cafe and location they like visiting: Yumeya Masaru and Murata Rinko.

There is now a Torisetsu (user’s manual) for Starbucks Reserve Roastery Tokyo, MUJI Diner, NAMIKI667, BON BONHEUR, dotcom space Tokyo, Single Origin Store, GLITCH COFFEE & ROASTERS, LIGHT UP COFFEE Shimokitazawa, Single 0 Japan, ONIBUS COFFEE, WOODBERRY COFFEE ROASTERS, Cafe au lait Tokyo and more.

There is a section of “MUST GO” Hotel Cafe, another guide for those going to Nihonbashi with a boyfriend, Ogikubo-Nishiogikubo with family, Kagurazaka with mum, Shimokitazawa with friends or alone in Ikebukuro.

And the final guide is CAFE A to Z, as much information the publication can fit for each alphabetical letter and so much more!

If you are a coffee fanatic or a person who loves to visit various styles of cafe, I highly recommend Tokyo Cafe Guide 2020.

This has been my go to guide book for the past three years and I have used it as a way for me to integrate into my travel plans when I visit a certain ward and have time to kick back for an hour or so and it has been a great resource.

There are many photos of cafes to show you how the interior is but also the coffee and food that are offered at the location. It’s a guide that I’ve used for years and grateful for it!

And even if you don’t read Japanese, the maps and the photos may be enough to entice you to visit these locations in Tokyo.

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