The Unique Culture of Golden Street

Nowadays, the place is widely recognized through multiple sources, but not so long ago, people thought it only welcomed regular customers, due to its peculiar image; it was a place even Japanese tourists would hesitate to visit. There were times when the number of bars drastically decreased due to land speculation activities, but thanks to associations that made an effort to preserve the street, more and more stores are opening lately; a new movement has started from younger generations.

In March 2016, a Japanese bar named “the OPEN BOOK” opens in Gobangai of Golden Street. It specializes in lemon sours, and quickly becomes very popular. Kai Tanaka, owner of the bar, inherits his attraction towards the Golden Street from previous generations. His grandfather Komimasa Tanaka, often called as “Komi-san,” was an author, translator, and essayist, who received the Naoki Prize (a prestigious Japanese literary award). He is also known for making bars in Golden Street known as “Bundan (literary community) bars.” He too had fallen love with Shinjuku Golden Street, and is said to have been drinking there almost every day. In his grandson’s bar “the OPEN BOOK,” we can observe his books on the bookshelves which goes all the way up to the ceiling; it is a comfortable space that passes down the Showa culture with a modern taste.

“While there were people who found this mysteriousness street scary, I found it interesting, and was just drinking around at first” says Kai-san. We dug deeper into his views on the Golden Street, and what he finds attractive.

“I worked at a long-established bar called ‘Shino’ for a year before starting this bar. The bar had a history of 40 years, and was where my grandfather Komimasa Tanaka often went drinking for a long time. The bar was named exactly after the owner, Mr. Shino. There, the bar’s ‘mama’ was called ‘Shino mama.’ Although we would call her ‘mama,’ she wouldn’t be anyone’s mom in particular; to put it simply, she was ‘the mom of all the regular drinkers.’ In Japanese bars, especially in those like in the Golden Street, we often call the female owner as ‘mama.’ By the way, a male bar owner would usually be called ‘master’ instead of being called ‘papa.’ It’s a unique and interesting custom since I never heard anyone using the word ‘mama’ like this in other countries.”

“Five years ago, there were much fewer people than now, and they happened to have stronger, and somewhat stranger character. That would have been more true several decades ago, if I were to say something like that though…. My experience working at ‘Shino’ made me realize that it is the ‘people’ that characterize a bar. The Golden Street has close to 300 bars, but there isn’t much difference in the drinks that are offered. More than anything else, it is the people at the bar that adds character and makes a difference. Therefore, I believe the ‘Golden Street’ is also characterized by their people of today.” says Kai-san. Inside the Golden Street, a place often referred to as the representative of chaos, there seems to be value in human connections and unexpected encounters with new people, somethings that are getting lost in our current digitalized society.

“In our modern society, we can mostly find the information we want, but in most cases, we’re not sure of what we want to begin with. To say it in a bit exaggerated way, we live in a world where everything seems to be obtainable, when really, we aren’t obtaining anything. That’s exactly why there’s value in random encounters. Although you won’t be able to decide whether that encounter would be with a middle aged man that would lecture you until morning, or a celebrity you’re a fan of, drinking next to you at a bar. Communicating via internet is alright, but after all, a place where people actually gather has much more energy and excitement. If asked what will happen afterwards, I wouldn’t be able to answer specifically, but still, I believe there’ll always be something. While thinking things like this, the sun rises and I’ll go back hung over (laugh).”