Bar Albatross

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Cozy, Welcoming, and Full of Personality” I recently spent an evening at Albatross in Astoria and it felt like stepping into a home-away-from-home. The vibe is warm and inviting, with friendly bartenders and a laid-back crowd that instantly put me at ease—just like one Redditor described: “Albatross is super friendly and inviting. I’d recommend it on Saturday nights especially.”  The bar has a compact, neighborhood-dive feel—nothing flashy, but that’s precisely its charm. It’s a place where you can chat with friends or make new ones over cocktails and karaoke, and you’ll probably leave feeling part of the community . What stood out: • Atmosphere: Cozy and casual, perfect for a chill evening. • Crowd: Friendly locals and welcoming newcomers—great for socializing. • Events: Drag shows, bingo, karaoke nights—lots of fun without being overwhelming. Cocktails were well-crafted and reasonably priced for the area. The staff genuinely care about making your night enjoyable. Bottom line: If you’re looking for a relaxed, inclusive bar with good drinks and a sense of community, Albatross is a solid pick. Great for both locals and visitors wanting authentic Astoria nightlife.

Excellent service, classic atmosphere, & a vintage vibe 🪩 🕯️ what more could you ask for! Black pepper gin tonic & Shinjuku Bomber drinks are 10/10

Such a cool place. It’s intimate and small and the perfect izikaya for a late night drink. It is veryyyy small so small groups (less than 4) are best. Full bar with draft beer! Definitely recommend.

Great atmosphere, 3 levels, top is open air roof. We ordered the Shinjuku Bomber and Tokyo Olympic cocktails, both were great.

Wonderful atmosphere. Bartenders are friendly. They laughed at my bad Japanese but were very nice about it! Drinks are very tasty. Place is cramped but vibe is perfect.

The staff is very nice and keeping a look out for bad behavior. The cocktails super nice and the bar is super cute and well decorated. If you want to try original Japanese cocktails come for sure!

Amazing experience! Drinks are straight forward, open late, and vibes are great! Reminds me of home. So glad they were available👌🏼

Very great atmosphere and the drinks were so good! We got the ume-shu soda and it was amazing!

5 - If I ever came back to Japan, I would definitely come back here. Service - Placed us on the second floor. It was very peaceful, quiet, warm, and comforting. Decor - Old and nostalgic. Somehow all of the clutter came together and made me feel like I was home. Top Floor - Not that great of a view of the Tokyo skyline but still nice and worth checking out. Drinks - Decently priced. Ordered sake and a moscow mule. The other customers we shared the floor with were very friendly, drank a lot, and chatted with us the entire time even though we couldn't speak the same language.

This was such a fun experience. Small bar in the memory lane area where everything looks old post world war 2 and has not been changed. This adds such a unique touch to the experience. Albatross has seating at the first level and it gets full quick. We ended up on the 2nd floor where there is a floor closet that you order through. You just open it up and can see the bartenders head. He will hand you your drinks through that closet. How cool is that?? Must try if you're visiting. Lots of tourists too so you'll make new friends from all over the world.

Super aesthetic and eclectic bar right in a bustling night market alley in Shinjuku! Enjoyed some great cocktails after the best yakitori right across the alley! This place gets super busy but if you wait around you'll get a table in 15-20 minutes. Overall a really unique bar in Tokyo.

Ok, here comes more Tokyo confusion... I don't think this is considered Golden Gai, is it? Some are calling it so and I heard some random in the place call it so but I went to Golden Gai and it's not here - its about 200 other bars through alleys and this is what I thought was considered Omoide Yokocho (or Memory Lane/Piss Alley). With that cleared up, we were here and wandered in while walking through the area to check things out. Had never once heard or known that Anthony Bourdain had come here so it was a complete wander in because it looked like a cool little spot. I ordered the Sparkling Sakura drink which I'm not sure is seasonal but since the main reason for this trip was the Cherry Blossoms I thought why not. It was sweet but I wouldn't need a second as I don't care so much for sweet drinks. I think I could have enjoyed the place until some random chick who I'm fairly certain was a prostitute (which I have no problem with so long as you aren't annoying as hell) or out to rob someone while skeezin' was on my absolute last nerve! I was ready to grab the closest yakitori stick to drive into my ear so I wouldn't have to hear the bullshi*. I'm not sure if she was working with this other girl or what the deal was but it was all around so super red flag fishy (although the scheming wasn't taking place on me, I'm fairly certain I give off that do not f with me with your tricks vibe) I could not enjoy myself in here and wanted to finish my drink pronto and bounce. This was the first bar we visited after landing in Tokyo and while it can probably be an enjoyable experience the last thing I wanted to do was sit around with a bunch of annoying tourists and very possibly up to no good broads. So I left.

Literally the worst customer service. Overpriced and buzz kill! Shitty place. If you are not a local you are treated like shit.

There's some discussion in the other reviews of whether Albatross is in Golden Gai or Piss Alley. It's in Golden Gai, gets pretty crowded and is dark, so maybe the other reviewer missed it. I think it would be preferable to sit in the first floor (out of 3) to sit at the bar. It was jam packed when we got there, so we went up to the second floor up the narrowest steepest stairs ever. Another group of Americans almost didn't make it up. Overall the service was nice, and I can actually recommend their bloody mary if you like spicy drinks.

This was our second stop in the omoideyokocho area, the first one being an ancient, but roomy, been there for generations, Japanese-only - type of smoky speakeasy with no English menus and populated with older Japanese barflies. This was the exact opposite. It was teeny but sexy and inviting. Bf and I were directed to sit in the corner next to the window, which was barely big enough for a stool. No wiggle room. Patrons were definitely on the younger side, and international. Cocktails were creative and solid (passionfruit and koume chan). I really enjoyed the teeny tiny bar filled with ambience and personality. Definitely suggest this on a Tokyo itinerary. I had no idea that this place was popular because of Anthony Bourdain, until I returned home and Yelped my review. Lucky me, I guess!

Great bar in the Golden Gai section of Shinjuku. Not all bars in the area permit foreigners, but Albatross welcomes them. Good mix of travelers and locals. The drinks are good and reasonably priced. Overall a nice experience. We will be back for sure. Quirky decor adds to the appeal of this bar.

I enjoyed good service happy bartender I've tried half the drinks, they're all good. You can't go wrong. Its one of those places, there's no must- do, it's all about mood

Multilevel bar, very nice chili gin and friendly bartenders, awesome interior decor. Must go in Golden Gai

Drinks were on the mark! Let's just say everyone had a FABULOUS time!! Really enjoyed the atmosphere!

My boyfriend and I stopped here on a buzzy Friday night around 2-3:00 a.m. while venturing down the alluring streets of Golden Gai. After spending a good amount of time at a 60s themed bar, we wanted to top the night off in a bar with a mellow, intimate vibe. Let me introduce Albatross. There was a cover fee for each person (somewhere along 800-1,000 yen) but the inside was so lush and inviting we didn't mind. With enough space for about 5 folks, we decided to take a spot at the end of the bar. There was a chandelier hanging to our right and Nujabes playing in the background. This was probably the perfect setting for a night in Tokyo. There is an upstairs (for the restroom and another more well lit bar), but we stayed downstairs simply for the music and atmosphere. For reference, we had 3 rounds of Jameson shots and 2 beers each, and our bill was about 6,600 yen. There are complimentary rice snacks in a bowl if you're not a germaphobe. If you're wandering the streets of Golden Gai, and would like a more romantic, soft setting, I would recommend this place up and down! I will remember this night for years to come.

Is Golden Gai the Bourbon Street of Tokyo? Very likely. Every white person I know told me to go while on vacation, but it was Anthony Bourdain that convinced me to make it part of my plans. He made a stop during his Tokyo adventures in Parts Unknown [http://www.cnn.com/video/shows/anthony-bourdain-parts-unknown/season-2/tokyo/], so who am I to argue with America's favorite traveler? I encountered zero locals while hopping around this microhood full of tiny bars, so my gut tells me it's a tourist trap. I was a tourist, so I suppose it was fine, though I generally have a propensity to avoid oversaturated expat destinations. But it's a shame waspy frat bros have driven Tokyo residents away from this neck of the woods, because it's a pretty cool experience. The concentration of bars all have different themes, but if you're a Lower East Side dive bar enthusiast, you'll like Albatross. The music skews towards indie rock and the bartenders look like Japanese members of The Strokes. It's dark with the only illumination coming from a haphazardly hung chandelier and a few candles. And it's small. Like, eight people can comfortably fit on the first floor small. Note that anywhere in Golden Gai is best experienced with a group of two or three people max. If you're a large group, I'd avoid this entire area in favor of regularly sized bars elsewhere. Beware that there's a cover at almost every bar in Golden Gai. It was ¥500 at Albatross, which is right in the middle of what you'll find in the surrounding area.

Stumbled into this little bar - great atmosphere and some old Stevie Wonder playing. Cooled off with a draft beer (or two) and had a Suntory to accompany it. Nice little joint.

Small, sexy and intimate bar in the Omoide Yokocho area near Shinjuku Station. Dramatic chandeliers, mellow music, and lively patrons from all over the world make this place a great stop after a long day of shopping, eating and taking in Tokyo. There is a 500Y cover charge, which is well worth it. Drink menus are in English and drink prices range between 800-1500Y, also well worth it. Bartender was extremely kind and patient the night that I was there (even to the rowdy Americans that were less than kind to him - ugh). Albatross is a bit tricky to get to, but it is SO worth the hunt!

Really cool tiny bar to drop in and have drinks. I saw it on Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown Tokyo so I had to come. There's very limited room to sit and there's a decent mix of locals and foreigners. The sake was delicious and the drinks were also pretty good. There is a cover charge of 500 yen per person so make it worth your while and stay for a few drinks!

This is the tiniest bar I've ever been to but so incredibly fun. We planned on just having a couple drinks here but ended up staying the entire night. Drinks were great (and cheap) and sake pours are very generous. You'll meet the friendliest tourists and locals here. Very much worth the visit.

Easy to find, this place has a very cool old world charm to it. Def shabby shabby chic, it has 3 levels, seats 10 at most each area. Downstairs at the bar the downside was people having to squeeze behind you to make it upstairs. Not ideal when you have super wasted people trying to walk through. Also on the second floor once the ac stopped working it was super stuffy. Other than that, good music, great service! Must check out.

I guess what attracted us to this place is because it was featured on Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown. It's up the street from the train station in the Shinjuku Golden Gai area known for it's small alleyways filled with bars and small restaurants. There's a 500 yen ($5) flat cover charge at the door. The drinks are pretty expensive and the place is quite small but it does have 3 floors. Don't be surprised to be seated on the same table as total strangers, that's the culture in Japan - drink and make friends! We got seated on the top floor balcony table (best seat in the place) with some fun locals and enjoyed our night!

This place has a very speakeasy feel. It's got funky decor and the staff is great. It's sooo cramped, but we knew that going into it. We were seated on the third floor where there is little den area that seats five. You have to yell down to the bar to order and then they pass your drinks up. The drinks were great. I had a cactus sour and have zero complaints. The reason for four stars is they turned the air conditioning on where we were sitting and t turned into a refrigerator. We were absolutely freezing.

This was my favorite bar in Japan! Their drinks are very exotic they even carry absinthe. The chandeliers on every level. My favorite flower was the third-floor

This bar is in the heart of shinjuku. It's in a small alley by the tracks on the west side, called Omoide Yokocho. This ally is filled with old bars and food places and it really gives you a vibe of Showa Japan. Albatross is a two story bar with the misty interesting interior. CHANDELIERS! Where ever you look there's a chandelier. There's also a roof top section which is amazing. You get a nice view of the surroundings and it's nice for private parties on a warm night! The drinks were nice and not too expensive. ¥700 for a beer. So if you want something a bit different in the city I absolutely recommend Albatross. Enjoy!

I absolutely loved Albatross! I also loved Golden Gai, which reminds me of the little rows of bars you would find in a Southeast Asia town. I originally found this place thanks to Anthony Bourdain in Parts Unknown. As with all the bars in Golden Gai, the bar is tiny. With maybe 8 seats on the first level and probably something along the lines on the second floor. Luckily for me, we were able to meet the bartender from the show. Drinks are a bit limited but its enough to make due. The pricing at the time I went (August 2015) was pretty reasonable and cheaper than you would find stateside. The bartender and the locals in the bar were friendly as well. Highly recommend a stop if you're in Shinjuku. Looking forward to coming back and checking out the other bars in Golden Gai!

When I went to Tokyo I made SURE I had stop by this place for a drink, but I ended up staying for past that. Awesome tiny bar with good drinks and awesome bartenders. Thanks to Anthony Bourdain I never thought in a million years I'd end up here but there I was getting a good buzz. I highly recommend this place for a drink!

Cute and different sort of atmosphere to the rest of the Golden Gai area. (The Golden Gai has something like 50 eight to ten seater mini bars jammed into three narrow alleys in Shinjuku.) This place charged a ¥500 table fee (which seemed common for all the bars here and is about $4) and draft beers were ¥700 (we'd been paying about ¥500 everywhere else in Japan). They carried Japanese whiskey, both hibiki and Yamazaki, for about ¥1500 a glass! This was more than double we'd paid anywhere else!! I had a Moscow mule cocktail for ¥700-800. We got a little dish of cracker snacks and ran into a pair of Americans and a pair of Australians (no locals). My husband and I specifically sought out this bar because Anthony Bordain visits it in an episode of Parts Unknown. And apparently it's also listed in an article by him as one of his ten recommended spots in all of Tokyo. Must be why the guys have jacked up their prices ;) Cool spot but don't stick around too long. There are much more authentic style places that are much more fun and much cheaper.

Tiny little bar, very friendly staff and local patrons. Great spot for drinks among the many food stalls in the area.

Cosy and baroque little bar. 500jpy seat cover. Very nice and exotic list of cocktails. Room on second floor.

Cool rating and cool area to explore at night it is amazing with all the lights. It's a tiny spot and a little hard to find but Apple maps got us there. The upstairs is interesting but we preferred sitting downstairs.

The drinks were amazing. The bartenders were kind. The atmosphere was dark and cozy. The only real drawback? The loud Americans. People, please don't be that American who is aggressive, obnoxious and downright offensive, believing that everyone wants to hear your tired sexual exploits. Yes, this could have been amusing, but they were so incredibly obnoxious that we had one drink and left. We totally felt for the bartender who clearly was having an awful time serving these arrogant assholes. The area is fabulous - intimate bars with friendly locals BUT the majority of customers are foreigners, mostly white men (I saw only two women in our entire night of drinking) who talk loud, have no respect for others and who made our experience at Albatross gross. I would definitely try again, but if you enter and there are white men talking loudly it's your sign to exit (there's a 500 yen cover charge to sit down).

Awesome bar with so much art and chandeliers and excellent drinks on the Golden gai food alley. Incredible area, highly recommend coming for dinner and drinks.

Such an amazing place and great experience for us as we traveled through Tokyo. Thank you!

Friendly bartender. Excellent drinks. Authentic japanese. Very tight squeeze, but we'll worth it.

This is probably the classiest bar in Golden Gai and the drink specials are quite good. They have a drink that is spicy gin & ginger ale which is really nice. The sake cocktail was also great. I think the specialty cocktails here were better tasting than what we had at New York bar or Ritz-Carlton. Best cocktails we had in Japan.