Tsukasa

Meguro, Tokyo, Japan, November 4, 2023

Rarely have I been asked to be on a restaurant’s wall of fame, but alas, here in Meguro, I’m now on a wall among professional boxers, Japanese TV and movie stars, and me and Lun*na. I’m their first and only foreigner who ate at their restaurant called Tsukasa. This is my second trip to the place, and I tried to keep a record of it with some notes and photographs, but of course, I’m drunk. I had a beer and cold sake, a lot of sake. The sake kept flowing in this eating and drinking heaven.

It’s on the upper floor of a two-story building with, of course, a very steep staircase. The location is a bit of a mystery to me because the layout of Tokyo is very much like a maze. There is no logic whatsoever; it is almost an emotional pull that leads you to the place you desire. Tatami mat floors, so you have to take your shoes off before sitting in the dining area of this small restaurant. It is the size of a small bar, with a counter where the chef does his magic. His wife is the server, philosopher, and co-owner of this business, and it’s hardcore. You don’t leave here unless you crawl out of its room.

Once outside the restaurant, you are in a hallway that is the entranceway to various small hostess bars. They seemed forbidden to enter if one was a stranger in these parts. Each bar can probably fit four or five people, and everyone seems to know each other. They have bottles with the regular customers’ names, only for that person and his (always his) party. The intimacy is very cinematic yet quiet. When you walk on a busy street here, you face thousands of bodies rushing around you, and then you appear in a bar, where the outside physical world stops, but something intimate and private takes place.

The couple that owns Tsukasa took us directly across the hallway to their locked-up paradise, which is a bar and a Karaoke stage. My first impression was the coolness of the air due to the air conditioning being left on in the room—also the intimacy of the space itself. There is nothing wasted here, and all fits like a perfect puzzle. The only weird puzzle piece is me, and I’m trying to fit in here as best I can. They wanted to show us the place, and both have a deep passion for Karaoke. One of the owners is

organizing a series of Karaoke shows, and they showed us video footage of past shows. It's all intriguing, and the singer is fantastic. They invited Lun*na to sing a song, and she did a full performance of a Japanese Showa-era pop song. The audience was my brother and sister-in-law, me, and them.

The food was terrific—Sashmi of a fish I’m unaware of, but something unique. I was also impressed with a crunchy but fish-orientated type of cracker that had a strong salty taste and was perfect with beer. For the last few days, I have felt my sanity returning. It’s like a lost but much-missed friend, a really good pal.