Rokuyosha Basement Store

Rokuyosha Coffee Shop, a long-established coffee shop in Kawaramachi Sanjo, Kyoto, has been in business since 1950, operating two stores with slightly different personalities, one on the first floor and one in the basement. The coffee beans used in the two stores seem to be different, and perhaps one of the reasons for the store’s longevity is the fact that customers can enjoy the coffee in different ways even though they share the same shop name.

So, I have been curious about the other Rokuyosha Coffee Shop for some time, and went to the store on the first basement floor on my way home from work in Kyoto to experience what it was really like. The basement store also has a very unique atmosphere, and I liked it at first sight…

Cramped but with a secret base-like atmosphere…this is what Rokuyosha Basement Store is like.

I arrived at Rokuyosha Basement Store around 6:00 p.m. on a weekday evening, walking down the narrow stairs to the left of the first-floor store, I saw a narrow but woody store with a retro atmosphere through the entrance.

The structure and interior of the store is almost the same as the store on the first floor, but it feels much more cramped than the store on the first floor because of the space taken up by the downstairs staircase. In this cramped space, there are 13 counter seats and 3 tables, and especially at the counter where I was sitting, it was difficult for people to pass by behind me. But I personally loved it because it felt like a secret base. The name “Rokuyosha” gives a mysterious image to begin with, doesn’t it? Of all the stores I have visited in Japan, I can’t think of any other that has created such a secret base-like atmosphere.

Great with coffee! I tried their specialty, doughnuts, at Rokuyosha Basement Store…

This time I ordered one of their famous doughnuts (200 yen including tax) at Rokuyosha Basement Store. With a cup of hot blended coffee (500 yen including tax), the total price was 700 yen including tax…

After about 10 minutes of waiting, the doughnut and hot coffee arrived in front of me. While recent doughnuts are often covered with chocolate or sugar, the doughnuts here are simple and freshly deep-fried. They are very mature and do not destroy the image of Rokuyosha.

The doughnuts are reheated in the showcase before being served, so they are as hot as if they had just been deep-fried. The surface of the doughnut is hard enough to require a bit of force when inserting a fork, which is in contrast to recent dessert-type doughnuts, but when putting it in the mouth, it has a delicate sweetness and a hint of buttery aroma. Personally, I don’t think I’d be able to eat as many of these as I’d like, but I was surprised at how well they went with a cup of coffee. If accompanied with a cup of coffee, it tastes somewhat like a butter blend coffee…

And this coffee blend seemed lighter in bitterness than the one I had at the store on the first floor. It has a light taste, with just a little bit of bitterness, and then the bitterness quickly fades away. Maybe that’s why it goes so well with doughnuts. When ordering Rokuyosha‘s famous donuts, this coffee set is a must.

Alcohol is also available after 5:00 p.m. …Access to Rokuyosha Basement Store is a 5-minute walk from the nearest station, Kyoto Shiyakusho-mae Station on the Kyoto Municipal Subway Tozai Line.

Rokuyosha Basement Store, like this one, also offers alcohol as “Izakaya Rokuyosha” after 5:00 p.m. Even though it is called an “izakaya,” it mainly serves Western-style alcohol and does not have a food menu, so it is actually more like a shot bar. It seems that bottle-keeping is also available, which gives us a sense of nostalgia for the Showa era. I think this is a very convenient place to have a drink after work every day.

Here are the details of the store…

P.S. If you want to spend an elegant cafe time in Kyoto, please stop by this article…

P.P.S.  If you want to have a quiet coffee time in Kawaramachi area, this store is also recommended…