Tokyo 東京 Espresso エスプレッソ

da Gino >>MAP 1-2-3 Minami-Ebisu TEL: 03-5723-8877 東京都渋谷区恵比寿南1-2-3 [UPDATE: da Gino is permanently closed for business.] After all the time spent "laboring" in Ebisu, I can't believe I missed da Gino. Thanks to Jeremy S. who brought this two-year old wine and espresso bar to my attention. Is it great espresso? No, not yet. Does it show extraordinary promise? Yes. My single espresso was more akin to a double pour. The barista was well-meaning and admitted to have only just started to really study how to make good espresso. He flushed the Cimbali about 10 minutes prior to my pull and my shot suffered. The result was an over-extracted pour. da Gino's massive Cimbali simply gets the water too hot and a flush is absolutely required prior to each pull. Otherwise , his technique was good (grinding fresh for the shot, swiping the portafilter, etc.). What da Gino also has going for it is the fact that it is roasting and using its own beans (it even sell...

Unice >>MAP 1-34-17 Ebisu-nishi, Shibuya-ku Za HOUSE Bldg. B1 TEL: 03-5459-8631 東京都渋谷区恵比寿西1-34-17 Za HOUSE ビルB1 Sure, the place stays open until 5:00 a.m. , but with espresso that's pure drek, it makes no difference. The cafe's perpetually smoky too.

Verde >>MAP 1-20-8 Ebisu-nishi, Shibuya-ku TEL: 03-3496-1692 東京都渋谷区恵比寿西 1-20-8 Not for the dilettante, Verde is an Old School Tokyo cafe presided over by a master who has exacting standards when it comes to the right pour. To give you an idea: he used to sell his homemade and custom-designed (for optimal drip) burlap filter (pictured above) to customers. But, after learning that users weren't cleaning the filter properly, he ceased all sales! Don't be afraid, he's a convivial man who will wax poetic on coffee and its current state if prodded. Warning: no espresso here so don't even ask!

Café Delight >>MAP 1-24-12, Ebisu, Shibuya-ku, 東京都渋谷区恵比寿1-24-12 TEL: 03-3444-1818 Excellent bar/restaurant with a deft hand at food and mixed drinks (had the best-tasting vodka tonic, or, I should say, tonics, in many a moon). Espresso is only slightly better than marginal (which is sad because Cafe Delight has all the right tools: grinder, two-group machine, etc.).

Ura >>MAP 1-17-1 Ebisu-Nishi, Shibuya-ku TEL: 03-5489-1117 東京都渋谷区恵比寿西1-17-1 A gorgeous Brasilia espresso machine sits behind the bar and it's put to expert use. Beans are ground fresh for each order. This is an extremely proficient operation with food and espresso at a very high level. It's also something of the gaijin scene for weekend brunch (but not obnoxiously so).

Analog >>MAP 1-8-3 4F Ebisu-Minami, Shibuya-ku TEL: 03-3760-0955 渋谷区恵比寿南 1-8-3 4F There is nothing to recommend on the espresso front here. Analog relies on a super-automatic machine and results are predictably disappointing. However, there is much to recommend about the café in terms of atmosphere and vibe. It’s a unique space if you can tolerate the cigarette smoke and the hand-job parlor two floors below.

Another Door Café >>MAP 2-10-7 Nishi-Ebisu, 2F TEL: 03-3462-2483 東京都渋谷区西恵比寿 2-10-7 You’ll either love this place or find it too precious for its own good. The owner, a gravely serious man who spent 20-minutes rearranging a rug and two chairs while I watched in amusement, clearly has a specific aesthetic. I won’t go into detail, but urge you to visit his website for an idea (linked above). Unfortunately, he’s using Lavazza pods and the espresso suffers considerably as a result. His wine collection is perhaps more enlightened.

Dexee Diner >>MAP Hiroo 1-1-39, Ebisu Prime Square Tower TEL: 03-5464-3721 東京都渋谷区広尾 1-1-39 プライムスクウェアタワー1F　 Dexee has spots all around Tokyo but the Ebisu location is especially worth a visit (for the food and not the espresso). The expansive menu is a great mix of westernized Japanese like hamburg steak and American standards like pancakes and French toast. Espresso is not the focus here and mine poignantly brought back my first days on the machine trying to get just one shot right.

Le Parc Ebisu >>MAP 1-19-6 Nishi-Ebisu TEL: 03-3780-5050 東京都渋谷区恵比寿西 1-19-6 Located in what was a fine-dining French restaurant, Le Parc serves superior dim sum in an elegant setting at prices that range from 500 yen to 2500 yen a dish. Nobody’s bumping your elbows with a dim-sum cart here. The place has a particularly deft hand with greens (see the pea shoots pictured).