Cafe Ataraxia Tokyo
An old-school classical music cafe with the finest drip coffee out there
I’m a passionate visitor of music-listening cafes. They’re always hidden in the basement or 2nd floor of odd business areas or small, older train stations in Japan. Ataraxia is in a traditional jazz kissa area called Jimbocho where there are some other 1960s style cafes I like. This was the first time I’d come to Ataraxia though. The name is written only in katakana so it’s not easy to Google and if you type in “coffee” it doesn’t show up either. The sound previously was not the best, but now the owner has switched to a rather excellent pair of vintage Telefunken speakers and they have a beautiful midrange that is especially good for opera. The music is typically high quality and if you like classical then it’s a welcome place to rest and relax. Their visitor guide book says it all:
The owner is cordial and professional and speaks a little English. Unlike many listening cafes, it seems as though talking is ok and the owner spoke at length with another customer. One patron even brought his own CD to listen to. It seems as though there is an established clientele and community spirit here. It was nice drop into. However, the highlight most certainly is the coffee.
I am not generally a drip coffee drinker. I’m too sensitive to caffeine to need a daily cup and I find the taste is usually unpleasant. I feel the same way about wine as well. This is not through any deficiency of palate. I’ve tried countless “top quality” wines and coffee in my travels. It’s just a preference. So, it can’t be overstated how remarkable it is when I find a drip coffee I love. This is one of those coffees.
There are 6 premium beans on offer at any one time, each costing 900JPY. I simply asked the owner which is favourite was and he enthusiastically pointed to the Bolivian Copacabana. I always ask the favourite of the owner. You can tell almost everything by the way they react. If they say hesitantly “Many people like this one…” or “What do you like?”, it is a very bad sign. I’m obviously looking for the best, and the true professionals have a certain ego related to their choices. Confidence is key. Even if I end up not liking the same taste as them, it shows me their perspective and I can learn more about why someone might like a particular thing. It’s conversely a magical experience when our tastes align. As people often say I’m looking for “my kind of people.”
The owner, in this case, proved to have the exact same taste as me. Before he brought the coffee I could smell it from the first touch of hot water and I stood up to look at the pouring. That's how noticeable it was. When the cup arrived I knew from the first smell that it was special. My brain activated in a way it rarely does. Like seeing a shooting star. When I took a first aerated slurp, everything was confirmed. This is a truly special taste which is difficult to explain. I generally dislike the tasting words for wine or coffee in the same way I dislike subjective terms in sound. They are too individual and convey vague concepts or feelings. In fact, I hold the view that the finest sensations are not reducible to such words. Instead they embue infinitely layered balance and “ringing a bell” correctness. For me it’s a 1 millisecond conclusion “yes” or “no”. Rarely if I start to dissect the “why” or the character of something does it mean that it is truly perfect.
Is that just how my mouth works? Is it my temperament or desire for utter peaceful bliss in my brain? One thing is certain, a very few experiences ever crosses my threshold. Is this “ataraxia” or is it exactly the opposite? I don’t know.
You can judge whether this mode of taste is important to you. I definitely seem to be in the minority, whereas the majority wants to talk endlessly about the acidity, the mouth feel, the memory of lying in grass in Tuscany at sunset as an allegory to the cup they’re tasting. Certainly if I needed to describe something to a person who values that way, I could find some words. But, by my definition, this coffee needs no explanation. It was as perfect a cup of coffee as one can make. Without compare. I’ll tell you one small justification to this lack of details…
The cafe also offers a Grand Cru bean costing 1500JPY. Already floored by the owners “premium” choice, I had to taste the top of the line. Is there any way it could be better? Or even to equal this cup? I was highly doubtful.
Before I ordered, I showed the owner a Google translate saying “This was the finest drip coffee I’ve ever tasted”, and he asked to take a photo of my phone to post on his social media. That gives you an idea of our interplay. Clearly we were on a good wavelength. When I asked him about the Grand Cru and whether it could be better than the Bolivian, he hesitated for a millisecond–just long enough for me to register a hint of doubt, however he quickly iterated that it was very special. So I ordered it. As with the first, the smell came at first drop during the brewing and wafted over the counter to where I was sitting.
The Grand Cru perplexed me. The initial smell and the first sips were disarmingly similar to the Bolivian cup. My first thought was “did he trick me with the same coffee?” My second thought was “is this just his taste and there are two shooting stars in one place?” As the cup cooled I started to notice slight differences. A little more fruitiness, acidity and clarity than the first. But both were totally balanced, knockout body and round mouth filling boldness. Not bitterness, sourness, astringency or unlikeable flavours. But, somehow I couldn’t get my mind off the first coffee and the first sip of it. Was it really better? Did it matter? Should I even question the two finest coffees I've ever tasted?
What would any insane reviewer do? He’d order another cup of the first bean! So I did. Already buzzing from the two coffees, I felt like I’d have a heart attack but I persevered. When the third cup arrived, I still had a little left of the Grand Cru to compare directly. At least because of the temperature, there were now subtle but noticeable flavour differences. The Grand Cru was as I suspected, slightly lighter, more acidic, fruit-forward. Was it down to the temperature difference and oxidization that 10 minutes can give? I don’t know. In the end I preferred the Bolivian. Had I tasted the Grand Cru first, would I have chosen that? Perhaps. The first time doing anything spectacular usually increases the potency of the memory. Regardless, both were knockouts.
CONCLUSION
Cafes like this will never be popular like a larger chain or more modern coffee shop that aims to hit high marks in all areas - decor, service, range of offering, price etc. This is a blessing and a curse. Many are dying out from the incredible competition in the marketplace. For me, finding a gem like this hidden away in a basement of a salaryman district is pure joy and I’m willing to overlook certain elements. The decor and the basement feel will dissuade tourists or the less-committed and ensure only the most serious will go. In that way it’s a bit like an automatic gate-keeper which reflexively builds a community of very serious patrons. I’m sure the owner is gratified by interacting with this quality of customer (as I would be) and is satisfied with a modest income to be able to practice his art.
On the coffee level, this Bolivian, and to an almost equal degree the Colombian, count among only 3 drip coffees I’ve had in my entire life that I can count as “keepers”. My standard might be ridiculously high, or it might just be an anomaly of taste. You may judge as you wish, however as any truly polarizing opinion begs, you should really try this place for yourself to know where you stand.
PRICE
$8 USD
AVAILABILITY
〒101-0051 Tokyo, Chiyoda City, Kanda Jinbocho, 2 Chome−12−4 エスペランサ神田神保町Ⅲ B1F.
THE RATING
10/10 Absolute
7/10 Relative
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