HIGASHIYA GINZA

Higashiya is a wagashi brand that sets out to make traditional Japanese confectionery part of everyday life again, and its Ginza branch, on the second floor of the POLA Ginza building, is both a shop and a tea salon. It describes itself as a modern Japanese tea salon offering a new style of tea experience, and the setting is calm and contemporary, with an interest in fine tableware that runs through everything it serves.

The tea list is the heart of the place. Sencha, bancha, gyokuro, whisked o-usu matcha and house blends are prepared with care and served with small seasonal sweets, and a seasonal tea and wagashi set is the simplest way to try both. For something more elaborate, a tea and sweets course pairs several teas with bite-sized wagashi in the afternoon, and there is a matching version with five alcoholic drinks, such as house-made infusions, sake and fruit liqueurs, for those who prefer something stronger. At lunch, a set meal in the ichiju sansai style, with soup and side dishes, is served until 14:00, and a kaiseki-style tea meal is available for two or more by reservation.

The shop and tea salon are open from 11:00 to 19:00, with last orders in the salon at 18:00. For the time being the salon is closed on Mondays, or on the following Tuesday when Monday is a public holiday. Some of the tea courses are served only at set times in the afternoon, so check the menu before you go. Prices are high for a café, reflecting the quality of the teas and the craftsmanship of the sweets.

Higashiya suits couples, tea lovers and anyone wanting a quiet, refined break from shopping in Ginza. The shop counter sells boxed wagashi, yokan, tea and tableware, which make elegant gifts. It is less suited to families with small children, given the hushed atmosphere.

The POLA Ginza building stands on Chuo-dori at the Kyobashi end of Ginza, a few minutes' walk from Ginza-itchome Station on the Yurakucho Line and Kyobashi Station on the Ginza Line, and around five minutes from Ginza Station. The department stores of Ginza and the Artizon Museum in Kyobashi are both close by.