Matsubaya Saryō / Hakobune Gallery — Restaurant in Tokyo

They wouldn’t allow a reservation in the gallery for a single person, so I made a reservation in the “sound meditation room.” I didn’t know what that meant. I thought I’d be drinking tea in some kind of quiet room with music playing.

What it turned out to be: I paid $40 to sit in a dark room with headphones on for 30 minutes, listening to meditative music. Then I was given a minimal version of the menu and told to select a tea. No prices were listed, so I assumed the tea was included with the meditation “experience.” Then they hit me with another $10 charge for the single-serving cup of plain loose leaf tea. It sounded like I was supposed to receive a cookie of some sort too, but I couldn’t eat it because I’m vegan. Rather than give me a wagashi (vegan) instead, they just…didn’t give me a sweet at all.

When they served me the tea, they put me in a seat with my back to everything, so I couldn’t even enjoy looking at the bonsai/art. I was facing a big commercial fridge with fluorescent lights in my face instead.

I had been so excited to check this place out, but honestly the experience felt kind of scammy for the cost, and I didn’t feel...

Really enjoyed hanging out here with a friend. A bit pricey, but a quiet and peaceful place with a variety of bonsai trees to view. Very traditional vibes with all the ladies wearing kimonos and the guys wearing some monk like garb. Very elegant and beautiful spot. They ran out of the desserts we wanted to try, but what we ended up getting was still quite good and it was still quite a great experience. I was happy we were able to get seating in the “gallery” area where they make the tea. It is not very English friendly so be warned. They had some secret room as well that made it somewhat fun. Apparently, it’s a room where you can reserve space to relax. Highly recommend if you like the gallery cafe sort of vibe with a...

Came here after seeing it on Instagram, and was not disappointed!

The atmosphere and ambience totally worth the trip to visit. Make sure to have a reservation in order to dine in, we made a mistake not making on in advance. We were only able to buy take out, but they were nice enough to let us sit on the benches out side the restaurant.

Had the matcha latte and hojicha latte, both tasted rich however it was more on the sweeter side, if you dont have a sweet tooth make sure to ask them to...