Wanoshou Azabu Juban Itchome Bar

Azabu Juban, Tokyo

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Design: Mental Fat Design Studio
Takachiho product used on interior walls: Biocera

Wanoshou Azabu Juban Itchome Bar made its debut at 6 pm on Monday February 4, 2008. The new establishment is a refined bar space that upholds the style of the Wanoshou restaurant branches located in Tokyo’s upscale neighborhoods of Aoyama and Ginza. It was conceived as a bar/restaurant offering simple Japanese dishes designed to spotlight high-quality ingredients.

There are tables in front and a bar counter at the back. The bar counter is set slightly above the table level to discourage crossing eye lines from interfering with the discrete ambiance. It’s a space designed for simple elegance.

Top: The tables are enveloped by a gentle illumination.
Bottom: The bar counter has a simple design.
Plaster finish: SN-14 soft hairline finish

The interior was designed by Manabu Takahashi of Mental Fat Design Studio. Takahashi learned of Shirasukabe plastering material from Nikkei Architecture magazine (Published by Nikkei Business Publications), then shortly afterward attended the 2007 Japan Home Show (at Tokyo Big Site), where he visited the Takachiho booth. He says, “I was looking for an interior material that would work well with the new bar’s interior. Shirasukabe had an attractive texture and coloration, so I thought I’d give it a try. The gray works well.”

Applying Shirasukabe was a new experience. “My plasterer was good with diatomaceous earth plasters but hadn’t worked with Shirasukabe before. He didn’t like it at first!” Takahashi remembers with a grin.

The plasterer’s experience eventually prevailed. Although slow going at first, he eventually managed to create a natural-looking soft hairline finish with a few wavy trowel lines to bring out the material’s texture.

The well stocked bar offers a wide selection of beer, spirits, whiskey, shochu and sake. Indirect lighting creates a relaxed atmosphere by casting shadows on the Shirasukabe plastering material.

A bar space removed from the everyday
Wanoshou Azabu Juban Itchome Bar is an elegant space with a comfortable ambiance of uniquely Japanese serenity created by the use of natural materials. The air inside stays very clear, and free of tobacco or alcohol odors.

Takahashi says he wanted to create a space that would encourage leisurely meetings over drinks.

Wanoshou Azabu Juban Itchome Bar gives urban executives a place to enjoy good times and quality beverages at the end of their busy work day.