After having perhaps the best meal of my life I was keen for my Hiroshima experience to continue, which is what brought me to Flat Sake Bar, seemingly an institution within the city.
And me and my group were not to be disappointed, with the place not only having great service and ambiance, but also offering a great chance to delve into the world of sake.
What the Flat Sake Bar?
Located in downtown Hiroshima and around what seems to be the bustling heart of the city. Here you will find many bars, massage parlors and the like, but few hostess bars. On the surface at least Hiroshima seems to be a slightly more classy city.
Flat Sake Bar though seems to be a bit of a gem in the right here though, with there being very little written about online – in English anyway. We found this via local expertise, something that really defined my Extremes of Japan Tour.
As you might expect this is a place for the sake lover and can be considered mid-range and far from pretentious.
The Flat Sake Experience
This is one of those bars that I would describe as more of an experience than just a place to drink. Like many Japanese bars it is pretty small and could maybe fit 20 in at a stretch. Despite this there are hundreds of battles of sake accompanied by staff that know what they are talking about.
For me and my initial partner this meant selecting a small carafe in the suggestion of the bartender and giving it a try. This came though after the genius quirk that is selecting your sake cup, which you will see in the photos.
Doing this we happily plied through three different small carafes barely going through $20 all in all. For the group that joined a little later they cleverly opted for the mixed set, which is where you get to try three very different sakes, again as you can see.
To me anyway this made this the perfect place for the sake amateur, of which I consider myself. And honestly I found it so good that I might have to reset my thoughts on Soju vs Sake.
Flat Sake is without doubt one of the best bars in Hiroshima and indeed one that simply has to be tried when you visit this bustling city.
For me also it was the perfect way to digest my recently tried Lopez Okonomiyaki and what was truly a culinary trip through Hiroshima.
Flat Sake Bar Address
Empire of Japan
〒730-0034
Hiroshima,
Naka Ward,
Shintenchi,
1−10 新天地スクエア 2F
Finding here can be a little hard with GPS not really working, nor it being signed well. Persevere though and if all else fails ask at the next door Family Mart.