Seven & Seven Bar — Restaurant in Kyoto

I have never had hospitality as immaculate as this. A bar run by a 77 year old who has been perfecting his craft since he was 20 years old. This place and its owner are an absolute gem, I cannot express that enough. I was a mixologist in Manhattan for a decade and this guy exceeded my expectations tremendously. He takes his time making you the perfect cocktail, makes you feel incredibly welcome into his bar, connects you with others sitting around you, and overcomes the language barrier courtesy to the power of a translation app on his phone. If you stumble across this bar like we did, please do yourself a favor and pull up a seat. I pray that when we visit again he is still there making cocktails at age 78 just as excellent as he did at age 77. Thank you for a moment in time we will...

We discovered this tiny bar on our last night in Kyoto and it was a perfect way to farewell a lovely city. Supported by the magic of Google Translate, we learned the bartender has been making cocktails since 1967 and his skill was apparent in the three drinks we each had. No jiggers in sight - he hand-poured drinks from a huge catalogue. But our proudest moment was teaching him how to make the iconic Melbourne cocktail, the Japanese Slipper (in the photo). We were privileged to drink his first-ever effort and it was perfect. Highly...

Seven & Seven Bar is a great little owner operated spot in the neighborhood. Classic cocktails and a very good whiskey selection. It’s a real throwback - not only do they serve old timey cocktails like the “Stinger” or “Cherry Blossom”, but you get an ashtray with your drinks, which you can actually use. Louis Armstrong on repeat. An old rotary pay phone in the corner. The barman was 76 when I met him in 2023, but can still make a good Negroni - just ask him to make it with Kyoto gin. Like most things they do, Japanese booze is...