Beer
Beer is the most popular alcoholic drink in Japan and it can be a bit shocking as to how much “head” Japanese people enjoy their beer with.

The most popular brands are Asahi, Kirin, Sapporo and Suntory and in my opinion taste much better than any Australian or American product.

Sake
The word sake in Japanese actually means alcohol, not the specific name of the rice wine you have more than likely come to believe. The correct term is seishu but is commonly referred to as nihonshu instead. Sake is served hot or cold according to your liking, served in a tokkuri (sake flask) and drank from a small cylindrical cup known as an ochoko.

Personally I prefer to drink sake cold which is the case for most foreigners and even many Japanese, but by all means try it hot and traditional. Kanpaiii…!

Shochu
Shochu is a clear, distilled spirit similar to vodka which is really cheap, gets you hammered easily and when mixed with apple juice, the alcoholic taste almost disappears completely - a sure recipe for disaster if you don’t know your limits. The alcoholic content is typically around 25% so unless you pour in an excessive amount, you should find the taste of alcohol won’t feel overpowering like a lot of other spirits.

Shochu is enjoyed in a variety of ways, often mixed with hot water and ume-boshi (a salty plum) known as ume-shu, or with oolong tea (oolong-hai) and fruit juices (chu-hai). Cans of chu-hai are sold literally everywhere across Japan, including vending machines and come in a variety of flavours such as grapefruit, lemon, lime, strawberry, lychee and plum to name a few.

It’s worth noting that for 200 yen you can purchase small plastic, X ml bottles from convenience stores which conveniently slide into your trouser pockets, perfect for a karaoke session as many places prohibit bringing in your own.

Japanese Whiskey
Japanese whiskey is commonly drunk by middle aged men and is quite potent like all whiskies in my opinion. It’s very common to see enormous 4 litre bottles of whiskey in liquor stores priced very cheaply considering their sheer volume - around 2,000 to 5,000 yen (around $20 - $30 AUD).

If you are a whiskey drinker though and want something not quite as nasty, Japan has a good range and most of their stock is very cheap compared to other countries.

Depending on the place, you may be sitting on chairs around a large table or kneeling on tatami mats, dining around a low table being the traditional style.  Counter seats are also often available and sometimes there are even dug out seats in the floor (although this later style is somewhat rare).

Ordering Food

In larger chains, Izakaya`s will generally have a picture menu so figuring out what you want shouldn`t be too difficult.  Sometimes there will even be a small English description.  Smaller chains or stand alone ones however, typically only display their menu in Japanese and without the aid of a picture.

Food and drinks are ordered throughout the session by pushing a small buzzer on the table or counter. Everything is brought to your table by the staff and unlike a normal restaurant, all food items are shared amongst everyone.  The bill at the end is almost always divided up equally amongst everyone so you might as well eat your fair share.

Instead of ordering each drink or food item separately, Izakaya`s usually offer tabehoudai (all you can eat) and nomihoudai (all you can drink) deals, allowing you to order as much food and / or drink as you wish with a usual time limit of 90 minutes.

Think back to your last 700ml bottle of spirits. How much did you pay? Probably quite a bit I should think. In Australia a bottle of Jim Beam fetches for around $30 and Wild Turkey about $40 - a fair chunk of the price coming from government tax.

The price in Japan for a bottle of Jim Beam and Wild Turkey is 1,300 yen and 1,600 yen respectively. This equates to around $13.00 and $16.00! (One Aussie dollar is roughly 100 yen).  If Vodka is more your taste then a bottle of Smirnoff will set you back 900 yen ($9.00).

The reason you can buy cheap alcohol in Japan is because consumption tax is set at a rate of 5 percent for everything, unlike other countries where governments tag as much tax to alcohol as possible. The same 5 percent consumption tax naturally applies to cigarettes also. A pack of 20 costs 300 yen.

Now, how about going out to drink at a bar you ask? Things start to get a little more expensive here, rivaling prices you are probably more familiar with. On average you will pay around 500 - 600 yen per drink varying from place to place.

However many places such as izakaya`s and yakiniku shops have a nomihoudai (all you can drink) deal, giving you access to many but not all drinks on the menu for 90 minutes (Beer is always included)! The price varies from place to place but for around 1,000 to 1,300 yen you definitely won’t be disappointed. That’s right! 90 minutes all you can drink for a measly 1,300 yen, meaning you can party hard without busting your wallet.

I seriously doubt you will find a better deal than this, anywhere.

kanpaiii…!

(cheers)