Visiting izakaya as solo traveller

I have been to Japan several times, visiting various places, restaurants and shops but never been to an izakaya. As I have always been travelling solo, I feel a bit shy entering into such a place where I guess most people visiting are somehow know each other, friends, co-workers, etc, and the language barrier as well as being a foreigner might be an issue. I speak some basic Japanese at least to be able to read and make simple conversation.

Not sure if that is common but I heard rumors of some restaurants and bars barring foreign people due to the fact they are not expected to understand language or manners, which also makes me scared of entering a izakaya randomly.

I have seen some around Kanda station in Tokyo, but I guess there ought to be more places.

I try to avoid alcohol as I have a fear of being abused or so, if you get the point.

Yes, people enter izakayas alone.
Yes, there are some that donft want foreigners for perceived language barrier (I - foreigner) however became a relatively frequent visitor of such an Izakaya once I convinced the owner that I could actually speak Japanese.
Most customers are male, but you can go as a single female

However if you are feeling so anxious about it, maybe you will not enjoy your time

My non-Japanese husband has experienced being waved away right at the door at a very private-looking bar (not gizakayah) once - I guess it was just a very small place frequented only by regular locals.

For gizakayah, particularly those chain izakaya, where itfs brightly lit and the atmosphere is more welcoming to family guests even with kids, things like that are very unlikely to happen.

One thing that worries me though is that you say you try to avoid alcohol - then what is the point of going to an izakaya - those are places you go to get alcohol drinks and peck on foods that go with such drinks? As LikeBike says, you seem to be a bit too anxious about the whole thing to be able to enjoy itc

Solo female customer is welcomed at MOST izakaya. I, solo male, met many solo foreign female customers who happened to be seated next to me.

One thing you are EXPECTED to do is order at least one adult drink (could be non-alcoholic) - that's where the profit is made in many eateries. One time a 20 y.o. girl from the US sat next to me, I helped her with her orders. She did not want to order any drink. I explained that the legal drinking age in Japan is 20, so she can drink. Still, she did not want to drink.

The waiter repeated to ask if she did not want a drink, and when she confirmed "no drink" the waiter looked at the chef behind the counter looking like he is asking "what should we do with this customer?". I decided to step in and ordered one more drink for myself to not escalate the situation. Then, everybody, including myself, got happy.

Izakaya is written ‹Žð‰®. Žð is sake or alcoholic drink. It's a place to drink.

You can eat in an izakaya without drinking alcohol, even as a solo traveler, but not all places will be happy with that. I suggest going early (5pm) when not many customers are around. You can order non alcoholic drinks (oolong tea, 0% beer...).

I guess most people visiting are somehow know each other
Nope.

It's like entering a tapas bar in Spain without drinking alcohol. I would choose a place that is reputed for its dishes rather than a cheap one where people go get inebriated.

I used to drink alcohol, so when I traveled alone to Kyoto, Kochi, and Hirosaki, I went to Izakaya. (I am a Japanese)
I was worried about people watching me when I entered, but most people were drinking, so I didn't pay attention to other people.
Especially when I was in Kochi, there were counter seats against the wall in front of me, so I was able to eat at my own pace.
At first, I tried to eat at Hirome Market, but in the end I ended up going to a local izakaya where I could eat Katsuo-no-shio tataki(bonito salt tataki).
If you are alone, it might be a good idea to choose a Izakaya with a counter.
Soft drinks are sold at the izakaya, so you don't have to drink alcohol.
When I ate at a minyo izakaya in Hirosaki, I was invited to go to a different restaurant with the two men next to me, and we went for a snack, but other than that, I didn't really talk to the other customers.

Hi Momo,

I'm a female who have been drinking for more than 40 years and I often visit izakaya alone. I can also understand that you want to try the atmosphere. No problem, even if you don't drink alcohol. Just order food. That's what they're known for.

And you're right. There are many "under the railway track" (gaado-shita) bars near JR train stations like Kanda, Akihabara, Shinbashi and more.

But izakaya or not, there are places suitable for groups, there are other places suitable for solo, there are places where strangers and/or bartenders chat with you, and there are other places where they don't. I encourage you to ask for recommendations at your hotel or whatever other restaurant and cafe you feel comfortable asking questions at. The neighbors would know best. And there are indeed places that try to rip you off, so it's really best to ask for recommendations if you're not familiar with the area.

If a drunk customer happens to annoy you, don't smile and say a firm "no" as you would in any country. If that doesn't work, you can ask a waiter or bartender for help.

If you're totally okay with being left alone, just visit any famous chain izakaya in a mall before, say, 8 pm for a quick supper. Or something that I love to do is to visit one of those "antenna shop restaurants" that serve local cuisine of far away Japanese regions. For example, there's one in front of Shinbashi Station that serve dishes of Ehime. But remember, these are the places that leave you alone.
https://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1301/A130103/13004915/

I hope you have fun!

I think Uco made a couple of good suggestions: get a recommendation from your hotel, and/or try a popular chain izakaya, at least to start with. The experience you have could vary enormously depending on the izakaya. At chain places they are more likely to have English or bilingual menus with pictures, which will make ordering a lot easier. These days, ordering in many restaurants and izakayas is done with electronic tablets or cell-phone QR-code-linked apps, and it helps to be able to read enough Japanese to be able to navigate the menu and place the order. But if you have trouble, someone will eventually help you. However, the suggestion that you go early is also good. Then the place will not be crowded and noisy, and staff will be more likely to have the time and energy to taking extra time to help you. I like to go to izakayas around 5 p.m. for an early dinner.

These suggestions would be for starters. Once you get the hang of going to izakayas, you wonft be so worried about having a bad experience. But the truth is, you could have an unpleasant experience even on your first try. Just donft let it ruin your day. Remember that you are not there to please the staff. You are their paying customer, and they should make an effort to treat you decently. In most cases they will. In some cases, they wonft, but just shrug it off and try again someplace else.

You definitely donft need to order alcohol, although you should order at least one beverage when you sit down. Nonalcoholic beer is one option, if you like it okay. (Just donft expect it to be cheaper than real beer.) It is quite popular these days, and many, if not most, places will have it on the menu. (Years ago, this was not the case, but societal patterns around drinking have been slowly changing, just as they have been around smoking.) As you probably know, the beverage will usually be served with an gotoshi,h or mandatory first small dish. You have to pay for this, so donft be surprised when it comes, and shows up on the bill.

Clarification: you donft need to order a drink as soon as you sit down. Of course you can take some time to study the menu first! Sometimes the server will wait attentively after seating you, but you can just ask for a little time. (And if you can do this in Japanese, it will put them at ease and make for a better subsequent experience. I am often amazed at how the attitude of service workers in Japan becomes more relaxed and friendly as soon as they realize they donft have to try to communicate with me in English. Itfs like a switch goes off or something.)

By the way, for the atmosphere of each restaurant, I think that reviews on Google Map, Tabelog, and reviews on TripAdvisor are also useful.
https://tabelog.com/en/rstLst/izakaya/
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants-g298184-Tokyo_Tokyo_Prefecture...

Something to consider from a person who has eaten in some izakayas almost always by themselves (I am male though).

Visiting before it is busy will be good, specifically if they don't have single seats which many izakayas are starting to have now.

You don't have to buy an alcoholic drink, but getting a drink is normally appreciated. As previously stated, expect a small dish of vegies, pickles or fish which will be included as some kind of cover charge at some but not all izakayas.

I see there as being 2 types of izakayas. One is based around mass traffic which is kind of impersonal but will open you with open arms when it's not busy. This is the larger chain izakayas.

The second is the more individual izakayas where people who may know each other frequent. These are the places which may be more reluctant to accept non Japanese speaking clientele.

I've visited some of these before the world of google translate and they can be interesting. Asking for food recommendations is also quite positive on the more individualised locations if you have no major food allergies.