Off the beaten path: local watering hole...

If you live in a place long enough, I'm sure you find, after some time, a place you want to hang out at and keep hanging out at.  This place doesn't belong to me but I kind of want it to.

One night my friend, Nate the Great and I were wandering around his hood looking for a place to eat.  We happened upon this pizza restaurant (which doesn't mean the same thing in Japan as it does in America).  The owner sporting a green NYPD hat was beyond friendly, talked to us in English and even made me a special pizza.  The decor of this place is funky and sporadic and welcoming.  The best part of this night we learned soon after entering that it was open mic night.  We listened to some awesome music and were shoved on stage to sing "Stand By Me" which even though they had just played, they wanted to play again so we could sing it to the crowd.  Later Nate sang his favorite college sing along "Wagon Wheel."  (Google that gem.  I'm serious.  One of my favorite songs now.)

We vowed to return again and soon.  But time in a big city slips away from you sometimes and we didn't return in such a timely manner as expected.  Last night Nate wanted to show his friend Katie, who was in town, a place we loved dearly.  Although, I was tired from shopping and running around Shinjuku all day, I could not turn down an opportunity to return to the place that I had fallen in love with immediately.  The owner recognized me right away and was overjoyed I had returned for a second time.  My friend Kayo and I were coerced on stage (a popular theme here) to sing back up and I was handed a tambourine.

We spent a great deal of time trying to figure out a song to play.  Our group wanted to do "Wonderwall" but decided to save that for another time.  Eventually just before they closed down for the night we decided that Nate would do his signature "Wagon Wheel" (a crowd favorite) and I would sing backup on the chorus.  We closed the place on happy note and left.

After all this, I suppose you want me to tell you the name of this place.  Well, I'm not going to.  If you ever come visit me in Japan, I promise to take you there but since this place is small, I really want to keep it a secret from the masses.  No matter where you are, I hope you find a place you love and want to frequent.