If you spent your teenage years in the 1990s and were influenced by pervasive American TV shows, you might recall the theme song of the sitcom Cheers. There’s this line which goes, “you wanna go where you can see, troubles are all the same, you wanna go where everybody knows your name.”

In Tokyo, I’ve found Japanese to be extremely friendly once you get past the niceties and even more helpful will be the language of kanpei! Dry Dock in Shimbashi, Tokyo, is one such pub that truly brings people together. I was introduced to this pub several trips ago by a local friend and I’ve made it a habit pitstop here each time I’m in town. Despite this infrequency, the staff know my name and I occasionally bump into regulars. And without fail, I’ve always made new friends at this pub who’ve introduced me to their other favourite places.

If you’re looking for a local experience, this is the place to be. I’m always the only foreigner in this cramped, tiny watering hole. No more than 40sqm of floor space is spread across 2 floors, with regular tremors caused by the Shimbashi railway tracks just above it. Sato-san, the resident bartender, speaks good English, very friendly and extremely knowledgeable about beers. He’s got a technique at pouring draft beers, a third head, that makes the beer extremely smooth. I’m sure he can make any beer taste like gold.

This is one of the rare Tokyo pubs I’ve been to that carries local microbrews or ji biru. I’ve had the opportunity to sample so many special beers there, I don’t even know where to begin describing. And through the hospitality of Sato-san, I’ve even had the privilege of sampling some of his reserves including sakura (cherry blossom) beer out of a plain aluminium can that wasn’t even labelled! Highly recommended if you’re searching for a friendly, local pub and not intimidated by small spaces.

If you are up for it, a map is found on their site at http://www.shimbashi-dry-dock.com