Japan - Nagoya (three)
After some time experiencing the Osu Kannon Temple, we decided to take a rest and sit for a drink. Lea suggested a nearby hole-in-the-wall pub called Smash Head, and we were off...
To say I fell in love with Smash Head would be...an understatement. The relaxed, tiny (!!) place overflowed with character and cool. Were Smash Head just a pub, it would be a fun and inviting place to gather regularly with a few friends for the purpose of losing track of time over dark beers, coffee or fruit smoothies (mmmmm). But Smash Head adds unusual and unanticipated texture to the pub experience by also acting as a full-service motorcycle repair shop; the place was littered in the best possible sense with motorcycle parts, tools, boxes of supplies, various bottled liquids, etc., yet nothing seemed out of place or intrusive. To be amongst all the "gear" felt just right and oddly comforting. But the best part was still to come...Lea led us to the back room where there was a small yet comfortable seating area (table, sofa and two chairs) in the middle of a forest of perfectly preserved and gorgeous antique and discontinued/rare/collectible toys, games and other relics from my youth. And it was all for sale. :)
I wish there were a place like this in Chicago. :( Anyone?
Entering Smash Head
The cashier/waiter bags my purchase, a Batman bank. :) I didn't know what to buy, to be honest...the options were plentiful. I'll definitely be back to clean them out...
When we were outside the pub, Lea told us the guy seated at the bar was almost certainly a yakuza (apparently yakuza frequent Smash Head; Lea's encountered them before). The guy at the bar had a tell-tale tattoo that peaked from underneath the collar and from the sleeve of his jacket. I wish I'd seen it! :(
To say I fell in love with Smash Head would be...an understatement. The relaxed, tiny (!!) place overflowed with character and cool. Were Smash Head just a pub, it would be a fun and inviting place to gather regularly with a few friends for the purpose of losing track of time over dark beers, coffee or fruit smoothies (mmmmm). But Smash Head adds unusual and unanticipated texture to the pub experience by also acting as a full-service motorcycle repair shop; the place was littered in the best possible sense with motorcycle parts, tools, boxes of supplies, various bottled liquids, etc., yet nothing seemed out of place or intrusive. To be amongst all the "gear" felt just right and oddly comforting. But the best part was still to come...Lea led us to the back room where there was a small yet comfortable seating area (table, sofa and two chairs) in the middle of a forest of perfectly preserved and gorgeous antique and discontinued/rare/collectible toys, games and other relics from my youth. And it was all for sale. :)
I wish there were a place like this in Chicago. :( Anyone?
Entering Smash Head
The cashier/waiter bags my purchase, a Batman bank. :) I didn't know what to buy, to be honest...the options were plentiful. I'll definitely be back to clean them out...
When we were outside the pub, Lea told us the guy seated at the bar was almost certainly a yakuza (apparently yakuza frequent Smash Head; Lea's encountered them before). The guy at the bar had a tell-tale tattoo that peaked from underneath the collar and from the sleeve of his jacket. I wish I'd seen it! :(