Hiroyasu Kayama grows herbs on his Saitama farm, forages wild plants from the Japanese countryside, distills his own spirits in-house, and applies this self-sufficient philosophy to cocktails that taste like nothing you have encountered anywhere on earth. BenFiddich occupies a ninth-floor room in Nishi-Shinjuku with the atmosphere of an apothecary crossed with a Victorian explorer's study — bottles of house-made absinthe, jars of dried botanicals, a mortar and pestle on the counter. Kayama's movements are part chemistry, part herbalism, and part performance, and the cocktails carry flavors that are genuinely new — wild mint distillates, smoked herb infusions, ingredients with no name in English because they have never been used in a bar before.
Location
Shinjuku, Tokyo
Map
Insider Intel
Tell Kayama-san what spirits or flavors interest you and he will build something from his library of house-made ingredients. The absinthe-based cocktails are the house specialty — he makes multiple absinthes in varying styles. Anything involving his foraged herbs will be singular. If you enjoy bitter or herbal profiles, say so; this is where BenFiddich's genius lives. The chartreuse-adjacent house spirits are remarkable.
Weekday evenings from 7pm for the quietest experience and the most interaction with Kayama-san. The bar fills after 9pm and weekends can involve a wait for the elevator. Monday and Tuesday are the calmest nights.
Ninth floor of a building in Nishi-Shinjuku — look for the building name and take the elevator. No reservations, first-come-first-served. The bar seats about 15 across the counter and tables. Cocktails run 1,800-2,500 yen. Cash preferred, cards increasingly accepted. The table charge (otoshi) is standard. Kayama-san speaks some English and communicates through the universal language of putting a glass in front of you that makes words unnecessary. Dress is smart-casual.