I work fully remotely, and usually from home, but sometimes it can be nice to get out of my apartment for a couple of hours if I feel like I can’t focus. And especially if I’m writing my blog on the weekends and have time to kill, it can be nice to make a bit of an outing of it and go sit at a coffee place.
Personally I’d feel pretty bad about whipping out a laptop at a smaller independent cafe, since they probably need to get people in and out to make enough money. And it also can feel kind of weird if you are the only person on a laptop, and sometimes cafes have no laptop rules as well. So when looking for a cafe, I generally go for chains - there tend to be other people on their laptops as well.
Starbucks: the obvious choice
Drinks range from 500 - 600 yen, alternative milk available, Wi-Fi available, sometimes power outlets.
Starbucks is absolutely everywhere in Japan, and it’s going to feel very familiar to you if you are from another country that also has Starbucks. When I was growing up in Australia, Starbucks coffee was pretty looked down upon for how bad it tastes (we have much better coffee) but it made for a good study spot, especially if you prefer your coffee on the sweeter side. And the same goes for Starbucks in Japan. I actually find that the coffee at Japanese Starbucks tastes better than Australia’s and there are plenty of seasonal drinks - Sakura lattes, Gingerbread lattes and so on - so you can choose something different to drink on repeat visits. The one downside is that it can get quite crowded, so you might not always be able to snag a spot.
Sarutahiko Coffee: my favourite
Drinks are about 600 yen, alternative milk available, Wi-Fi available, no power outlets.
If you want to go a bit more local and choose a Japanese chain, Sarutahiko Coffee (猿田彦珈琲) would be my go-to if you are looking for something in a similar price range to Starbucks. They also do limited edition seasonal drinks. My personal favourite was when they did this lemonade coffee in the summertime, while my least favourite was their amazake latte in the winter (it just tasted weird). It might depend on the location, but their interiors can be really nice as well!
Although Sarutahiko is a chain, the number of locations are quite limited so it may depend on where you are - they have ones in places including Ikebukuro and Harajuku to name a few. The other downside is they do not have charging outlets, so you’ll be limiting your stay to the length of your laptop’s battery.
Dotour: the most affordable option
Drinks for about 300 - 400 yen, Wi-fi and charging outlets available.
So I generally like ambience of a slightly more expensive place, but Dotour (ドトール) would be the cheapest place where you can sit with a coffee and your laptop. Due to the price point, the seating arrangement tends to be a lot more cramped than a Starbucks would be, but it will do in a pinch.
Personally I’m not as big of a fan of the vibes of this place, and I assume the coffee doesn’t taste nearly as good as if you go to somewhere like Sarutahiko, but your experience may vary.
Tully’s: they do some nice collabs
Drinks are about 600 yen, alternative milk available, Wi-Fi and power outlets available.
Tully’s is another Starbucks alternative, and it has a lot more stores than Sarutahiko does so this would be another option I would prefer above Dotour. In the past they have done collaborations with Harry Potter so there’s a fair bit of variety. I don’t visit this chain as much so I don’t have too much to comment on it.
Family restaurants: when you might want lunch too
All-you-can drink from a machine for about 350 yen, Wi-Fi and charging outlets available.
So “family restaurants” like Jonathan’s, Gusto or Denny’s are a genre of chain restaurant in Japan. They have tablet menus where you can order, drink machines, and little robots that come around and deliver your food. I think this can be actually a pretty underrated place to work if you don’t mind the vibe. I wouldn’t recommend coming at dinner or lunchtime, as it can be quite crowded, but if you come in the off hours it can be pretty quiet and you can spend a couple hours working without feeling too guilty. And there’ll definitely be a couple of other salarymen and/or students around doing the same thing as well, depending on the location, so you shouldn’t feel too out of place.
Of course, the coffee isn’t going to taste great, since it’s coming from a drink machine. But the only drink option is unlimited, so in that sense it’s kind of nice.
The type of food varies slightly depending on the chain, but they generally have a range of Japanese/Western food, plus big parfaits for desserts as well.
Generally there are 2-seater and 4-seater options at family restaurants, and depending on the location there may be a sign on the 4-seater table asking you not to sit there if you are sitting alone, or planning on working with your laptop, so make sure to go for the small table if possible.
Musashi-no-mori: my favourite family restaurant
Alright, so Musashi-no-mori (むさしの森珈琲) gets its own section, because although it’s technically a family restaurant too (owned by the same company as Jonathan’s and Gusto) it’s more of a cafe-style one with proper coffee, and I really like it!
The only downside is their locations are quite limited so we can only go if we happen to be passing through the area. But they have a really cozy vibe and I could imagine if I happened to be living near one I would go there all the time.
From memory, I think the coffee tasted fairly decent? They did have some sweeter options as well (like coffee topped with caramel popcorn). And then they have plenty of food options, generally more cafe-style like pancakes and salads.
Komeda Coffee: it’s probably ok
I haven’t had the chance to visit Komeda Coffee (コメダ珈琲) on too many occasions - I think I end up being biased towards Starbucks or Sarutahiko if I’m being honest. But this would fall into the same category as Musashi-no-mori (i.e. a coffee-style family restaurant) and they have stores at a lot more locations so I thought it would be worth the mention. They do a range of coffees plus pancakes as well.
Share Lounge Shibuya: for proper co-working
Lots of snacks, Wi-Fi and charging outlets available.
If you’re looking for a more traditional co-working setup, Share Lounge outside Shibuya station might be your go-to if you’re just dropping by in Tokyo. They don’t have a long registration/setup process, so you can drop-in fairly easily. The one downside of course is the price, which is 1870 yen an hour at the Shibuya location, with a max of 6,600 yen if you spend the entire day there. They do have other stores in other locations as well.
For 1870 yen an hour though, you can get your moneys worth by trying to load up on snacks - from memory they had some fairly fancy gummies, nuts, and so on available. Definitely more of an upscale vibe.
Tefu Lounge: a nice co-working option in Shimokitazawa
Wi-Fi and charging outlets available
I don’t have too much experience with drop-in coworking spaces, but the other one I’ve tried is Tefu Lounge in Shimokitazawa. They cost 3,300 yen for one day, which is a lot more affordable than Share Lounge, at least. And I think they had unlimited drinks, which is a pretty good deal since you can just load up on their barista-made coffees (which tasted pretty decent from my recollection).
The one downside is that while Share Lounge opens as early as 8am, Tefu opens at 9am, and including check-in procedures and so on you wouldn’t be able to settle in until 9:15 or 9:30, which might not work if you need to be at a 9am meeting. And of course, it depends if you happened to be staying near Shimokitazawa. It looks like they do have a second location in Jiyugaoka as well.
But Shimokitazawa (or “Shimokita” as its often abbreviated to) is quite a trendy, hip neighbourhood so it could be a good place to go if you are looking to do a bit of co-working plus sight-seeing and/or lunch.
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