ＢＡＲｔｏｎｂｏ — Restaurant in Kyoto

Bar Tonbo is a little like those Japanese restaurant shows you find on Netflix sometimes. The ones that center around the lone owner of a tiny 6 seat Izakaya, don't have much of a plot but are just short "slice of life" type stories that revolve around food and drinks.

What I'm trying to say is that Tonbo felt authentic. The owner and one other member of staff were friendly, professional. Reserved by default but ready to engage in conversation with guests who wanted a bit of a chat.

Drinks were simple but well done - they have a selection of their own cocktails. We tried one, it was pleasantly sweet and refreshing.

Would recommend Tonbo to any traveller looking for a quiet reprieve and a momentary slice of...

The highlight of our trip was finding this bar. We initially came in with the intent of staying for just a drink, and found ourselves there for 4+ hours until closing. The bartender, whose name we wish we caught, was the most welcoming, kind, and entertaining person we had the pleasure of meeting on our trip. He made us some origami to remember him by, cracked jokes with us and the rest of the patrons, while also teaching us Japanese and made recommendations for the area. He catered to both tourists and locals with the same warmth and created an environment where we felt like old friends with the rest of the patrons. This will be our first stop when we...

We stopped here randomly after dinner while exploring Ponto-Cho on foot just because we liked the look of the tonbo (dragonfly) on the sign down the alleyway from the narrow street. The barman was genuinely warm and welcoming when we peeked in the door. The place was cozy and comfortable and the barman was absolutely delightful (industrious but always smiling, and also possessing workable English), helping us choose Japanese single-malt whiskies to try and making us origami in the rare couple of moments he wasn't busy. There was a seat charge as is normal but it was very low and beer and whiskey were...