Bar Piano's Reviews/Tokyo Nightlife, Bars

enigmatic

Bar Piano
(2009-01-29)
Yet another one of those places in Tokyo that makes you feel like you've just been teleported to an alternate reality. Classic "germanic" decor sometimes feels more like a cross between garage-sale chic and a bordello. But the staff is delightful and it's all in good fun. Honestly, the atmosphere is a welcome change from the inside of most places. Drinks are a bit pricey, but you are pretty much paying for the environment (but isn't that always the case?)

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Susan

Bar Piano
(2007-08-25)
There's something a touch unnerving about walking into a windowless bar, but Piano is worth the risk. It's located in Nonbei street in Shibuya, and is markedly different from most of the other bars there. Walking into Piano is like walking into a velvet hat box. It's over the top in the gaudiest, most Victorian, most cluttered way. Every inch of the ceiling drips with lurid chandeliers. Though the red velvet wall is clearly visible, the walls are covered in an impressive array of slightly Gothic, slightly ridiculous nicknacks. The combined effect is very, very sexy. In addition to the unique atmosphere, Piano is uniquely tiny. There is an incredibly cramped bar down stairs that might seat five people, and there's also an upstairs room. The staircase leading to that posh little room pushes the boarder between ladder and stairs. Ascending this impossibly narrow staircase is a trip; descending, however, after a couple of martinis feels like taking your life in your hands. The privilege of scaling the stairs and sitting in this magnificent atmosphere is rather steep, though. The cover is 1,000yen per person, and drinks cost about 1,000 yen a pop.

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Peter

Bar Piano
(2007-08-11)
On the left-hand side of Nonbei Yokocho (Street of Drinkers) is a large, dark, wooden door. Most bars on this street have windows with bright lights and laughter shining out, but this one is completely silent. At first I didn't see a sign, but after looking closely I saw the word "Piano" in the center of the door at eye level, in 16-point font. What would you do? I went it. The door opened into a space slightly bigger than my closet, and I live in a dorm room. The bar IS a baby grand piano. Or the top of it, at least. Immediately the four or five young Japanese sitting around the piano stopped talking and stared at me. Oh great, I thought, I just crashed some private party. I motioned up the stairs, however, and the bartender nodded a welcome.
Bar Piano is truly the smallest bar I have ever been to. I'm 6'1" and not fat, and I almost dislocated my shoulders climbing to the second floor. It was totally worth it though - Bar Piano is magical, like an antique store on acid. Booth seats line the second floor, where about 8 people can sit comfortably. Bizarre Oriental lamps hang from the ceiling, and pictures of leopards, naked women, ancient rusted keys, and fleur-de-lis scatter the walls, crammed together. Beethoven's better pieces play softly in the background. This probably was what the Marquis de Sade's private chambers looked like.
So, A++ for atmosphere. Drinks aren't expensive, but aren't cheap either - I had Tanqueray on the rocks for 800yen; martinis are about 1,200. Bar Piano has a limited selection of very expensive wines and champagne, into which I didn't venture. There's a 1,000yen per person cover charge which no one told me about - I knew this place was too good to be true. Two people and two drinks ended up costing over 4,000yen. Still, Bar Piano is worth it.

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Ryan

Bar Piano
(2007-08-25)
Most bars on Nonbei Street are modeled after very traditional Japanese aesthetics, however, Piano is one of the few exceptions. The outside is covered by a black wall decorated with some gold trimmings. The inside is covered with red velvet and all sorts of odd things fill the walls and ceiling. There was not an English menu and the waitress only spoke Japanese, but I was able to figure out what I wanted. The drinks were all moderately priced, but when we got the bill we were very surprised because we had only ordered one drink each but the bill was 4,400 yen. We found out that there is a 1,000 yen each cover charge. There were no signs or anything saying there was a cover charge or anything. The inside was very interesting, but that was the only thing different, all the drinks were the same as everywhere else.

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