SCAI The Bathhouse. 🛁
It looks like a traditional 200-year-old public bath (sento) from the outside, complete with tiled roof and wooden lockers. Inside, it is a stark white contemporary art gallery representing artists like Anish Kapoor.
The Entrance
You still take your shoes off at the genkan and put them in the original wooden lockers before entering the art space.
The Light
The high ceiling, originally designed to vent steam, now floods the gallery with perfect natural light for viewing art.
Hagiso. 🏠
This building was a rotting wooden apartment for art students ("Hagi-sou") scheduled for demolition. The students turned it into a gallery for one last show, and it was so popular they saved the building.
Hagi Cafe
Located on the first floor. Famous for their keema curry and cheesecake. The vibe is cozy, artistic, and very local.
Hanare
They turned the second floor into a "hotel" where the reception is the cafe, and the "bath" is the local public bathhouse down the street.
Events
It hosts small concerts, art exhibits, and morning markets. It is the beating heart of Yanaka's creative scene.
Since 1938
Tamago Sando
Kayaba Coffee. ☕
A symbol of Yanaka. This coffee shop has been serving locals since 1938. The building is a classic "Machiya" townhouse. It was restored in 2009 to preserve its Showa-era charm.
The Egg Sandwich:
Order the "Tamago Sando." It is fluffy, salty, hot egg omelet sandwiched between soft white bread. It tastes like nostalgia.
Allan West Atelier. 🖌️
An American artist who has lived in Yanaka for decades. He paints gold-leaf screens and scrolls using traditional Japanese techniques ("Nihonga").
Open Studio
His studio is a renovated garage with glass walls facing the street. You can often see him painting massive gold screens as you walk by.
The Technique
He grinds his own pigments from semi-precious stones like malachite and azurite. It is ancient chemistry in action.