(kissaten)
It’s easy to forget the humble kissaten. Yet these old-school coffeehouses were once the heartbeat of Japanese café culture—and their legacy still lingers in the deep aroma of siphon-brewed coffee and the comforting crunch of thick-cut buttered toast.
Kissaten (喫茶店), which translates to “tea-drinking shop,” is more than just a place to get a drink. It is a cultural archive, frozen in time. To step into a kissaten is to enter a parallel Japan: dimly lit, wood-paneled, vinyl-spun and quietly unbothered by the demands of the modern world.
A Birthplace of Ideas: Kissaten in the Taisho and Early Showa Periods
The kissaten emerged during the Taisho period (1912–1926), an era marked by liberalism, artistic exploration, and new waves of Western influence. Early establishments were modeled after European salons, serving as spaces where writers, poets, and thinkers gathered, often reading newspapers for hours or debating political ideology over endless cups of coffee.
Japan’s first known Western-style café, Kahiichakan (可否茶館), opened in Ueno in 1888. It was inspired by French and Viennese salons and aimed to be a cultural and intellectual space. However, it failed within five years, largely because it was too ahead of its time. Japan’s middle class had yet to adopt café-going as a leisure activity, and coffee was still an unfamiliar, often expensive import. The concept was idealistic, but its patrons were too few.
Still, the template had been set. Over the next few decades, more accessible kissaten began to appear in Tokyo and Osaka. Unlike the more glamorous kafe of the same era, which were often associated with showgirls and musical performances, kissaten positioned themselves as respectable and restrained. They were introspective spaces—quiet, sometimes smoky, places where a writer might nurse a single drink while drafting the next chapter of a novel.
(And if you’re looking for something to read, we recommend you read our guide to the best Japanese mystery novels.)
This division of café types, intellectual versus entertainment, reflected broader tensions in Japan’s modernizing identity. And the kissaten, understated but sturdy, would go on to define an entire century of Japanese social life.
Check out our cafe page for more cafe inspiration around the city.
(sandwich)
The Golden Age: Postwar Comfort and Reinvention
The post-World War II years were perhaps the kissaten’s golden age. As Japan began its rapid economic recovery, kissaten spread across cities and regional towns alike. Often family-run, they became neighborhood institutions, functioning as informal community centers where customers were known by name.
For many urban Japanese, the kissaten offered an essential third space, neither home nor work, where one could linger for hours with no pressure to order more than a single coffee. And unlike the grab-and-go culture of contemporary cafés, kissaten emphasized staying. The service was quiet but attentive, the atmosphere deliberately designed to make time slow down. It evokes a somewhat similar atmosphere to the history of sento.
This era also saw the rise of the now-iconic morning set (モーニングセット)—a breakfast special that typically includes toast (often an inch thick), a boiled or fried egg, a small salad, and a hot drink. In Nagoya, cafés began an arms race to offer the most elaborate morning service. Some places even served miso soup, spaghetti or fried chicken, all for the price of one coffee.
In Tokyo, some kissaten began to specialize in handmade desserts, like rare cheesecakes or flan-like purin, served in silver bowls that looked like they’ve been around since the Showa 40s (the 1960s).
Atmosphere Over Efficiency: The Aesthetics of Resistance
A kissaten’s atmosphere is as important as its menu. Walk into one and you’re likely to find:
Smoky air tinged with nostalgia and old furniture polish
Wooden booths or leather armchairs with just the right level of wear
Classical or jazz music drifting softly from speakers—often played on vinyl
Newspapers hung over wooden rods
A counter lined with glass siphon coffee makers gleaming under dim light
The meticulous coffee preparation—often using hand-pulled pour-overs or siphon brewers—can feel more like a ritual than a routine. Although siphon brewing originated in 19th-century Europe, it gained popularity in Japan for producing clean, complex flavors.
(tea cups)
A Space for All: Gender and Solitude
In the early 20th century, kissaten provided one of the few public places where women could gather without being associated with nightlife or entertainment work. It provided a “more respectable” and neutral alternative to bars, ochaya (teahouses) and kissas (jazz cafes) associated with nightlife or hostess culture. They became normalized spaces where women could study, meet friends or sit alone in peace.
I find it fascinating that this wasn’t a phenomenon only in Japan. In Victorian and Edwardian England, for instance, tea rooms played a similar role—offering women a socially acceptable place to gather outside the home. While men dominated bars and coffeehouses, often associated with politics and debate, women found quiet community in the more refined atmosphere of tea rooms.
In both countries, these seemingly simple beverage spaces helped broaden the boundaries of public life for women, gently pushing against traditional norms.
Back in Japan, kissaten also served as sanctuaries for the solitary. In Japan’s group-oriented culture, they offered rare permission to be alone in public, without judgment.
Surviving the Modern Café Boom
By the late 1990s and early 2000s, the kissaten began to decline. Global chains like Starbucks, Tully’s and Doutor began to dominate Japan’s café landscape with their bright lighting, modern design and fast service.
Many kissaten shuttered as their aging owners retired and younger generations hesitated to take over. The economics didn’t help either—kissaten operated on low margins and long opening hours, often relying on a shrinking group of loyal locals.
And yet, they’ve never entirely disappeared. In fact, the last five years have brought a quiet revival.
A Slow Renaissance
Today, a new generation is rediscovering kissaten—not just as retro novelties, but as essential antidotes to digital burnout and fast-paced urban life. New cafés have begun borrowing their look and feel: faux wood paneling, analog menus, and vintage dishware.
For those eager to experience an authentic kissaten, we’ve rounded up some of Tokyo’s classics in our Guide to Kissaten in Tokyo.
Still, the real Japanese kissaten experience can’t be duplicated. It must be felt. The scent of aged wood, the clink of ceramic cups, the stillness. The refusal to rush.
You might also be interested in A Short History of the Japanese Cheesecake.
