“Jazz washes away the dust of everyday life”- Art Blakey. Visiting Tokyo? Want to wash down the dust of life with a cool beer? We’ve just the place for you! And it’s located smack bing in the middle of Asakusa’s side streets. It might surprise you that we’re talking of the HUB Asakusa. Wait a minute- that’s a British Pub? Well, yes and in this case, no. The HUB Asakusa is officially called the  “Hub Asakusa – From New Orleans Bourbon Street”.

Keep the Jazz (& bourbon!) Flowing!

If you’ve been to another HUB you’re in for a surprise. Jazz legends adorn the walls and there’s probably a few sitting at the counter too. A quick look beyond the counter and it’s easy to see the Japanese tradition of “bottle keep” is alive & well here.  Locals & musicians buy their bourbon by the bottle (!) and “keep” it at the bar until they’re done. It could be weeks or months but they’ll keep coming back until it’s done. The music never dies!

Jazz in a Hub Pub in Downtown Tokyo

The Jazz fraternity are a loyal bunch and the HUB Asakusa has been their go-to place for years. Now they run the show with live performances on an almost nightly basis. The music is categorised into Bourbon, Dixie, Swing, Wonderful, Country & Special with a heavy leaning towards Dixie & Swing.

Like many jazz clubs you pay on entry- anywhere from 1,000 yen (Bourbon Night) to 2,500 yen (Special Night) but that’s waived if you come after the 2nd performance of the night. Having re-opened on the 17th March 2019 after extensive renovations the place is hopping and there’s music every night for March & April according to the Live Schedule available on the door.

When does the show start?

As a rule of thumb the HUB Asakusa opens from 6pm weekdays (5pm weekends) and the music loosely adheres to the below schedule;

1st SET: 7:20 pm- 8:00 pm

2nd SET: 8:30 pm- 9:10 pm

3rd SET: 9:40 pm- 10:20 pm

So what are you waiting for. Grab a seat, order a bottle of Bourbon and settle in for the night..or longer.

Oh…you probably don’t need reminding but every SIM sold by Mobal in 2019 comes with a free drink coupon at any of the 100+ HUB Pub outlets- that includes Asakusa- the first bourbon is on us!