This downtown Tokyo cafe is like a time machine that takes you back 50 years into the past

Beloved by one of history’s greatest manga creators, this Shinjuku landmark has its own sense of history too.

Out the west exit of Shinjuku Station in downtown Tokyo, on the first floor of the Odakyu HALC department store building, you’ll find a cafe steeped in an old-school atmosphere. Peace opened all the way back in 1955, and even the font of the sign tells you that this place has been in business for a long time, so they must know what they’re doing.

▼ ピース = Peace

But that unmistakable authenticity might actually make it feel a little intimidating for some people to walk through the door. Our Japanese-language reporter Masanuki Sunakoma has walked by Peace several times, but had never gone in until the other day when he was in the neighborhood and had some time to kill. So even though he wondered if he’d stick out amongst the dapper gents and elegant ladies he imagined frequented this establishment, he finally worked up the nerve to try it for himself.

Masanuki had known about Peace since he was a little boy, since it’s right in the middle of one of Japan’s busiest shopping and restaurant districts. He’d always thought of it as a very grown-up place, where the quiet is only occasionally punctuated by the soft sipping of coffee or the gentle rustling as someone turns the pages of their financial newspaper. But even though Masanuki is now a full-grown adult himself, his job isn’t exactly the sort of serious, business-suited salaryman role that had been his childhood image of adulthood, so he still felt a little unsure of himself as he took a seat on a sofa near the center of the surprisingly spacious interior.

The menu, like everything else about Peace, is traditional and classily understated. It didn’t take Masanuki long to decide on his order: the Hokkaido hotcake and blend coffee set for 980 yen (US$6.55).

▼ The Hokkaido hotcakes get their name because they use flour and milk from Hokkaido’s Tokachi region.

While waiting for his order, Masanuki took a look around and observed how the staff and customers were interacting. The waiters had a polished, old-fashioned politeness to their posture and cadence, and the customers likewise were speaking in clear, dignified voices. Gradually, Masanuki’s feelings of awkward nervousness began to fade away, and in their case came a sense of fun, as though he was at an amusement park where one of the attractions was a cafe that recreated what cosmopolitan Tokyo life was like 50 years ago.

Tasting his coffee after the server returned with it, Masanuki found a noticeable acidity paired with a crisp finish. Once again, unabashedly old-fashioned.

Likewise, Peace’s pancakes aren’t the type that are buried under a pile of sliced fruits and topped with a skyscraper’s worth of whipped cream. They’re a beautiful light gold in color, with a modest amount of maple syrup drizzled across the top and the cream on the side, thank you very much, so that customers can use as much or as little of it as they want, in accordance with their individual preferences. The pancakes have an enticing aroma, just the right mixture of starchy and sweet, and are fluffy and delicious. In short, they’re excellent in everything pancakes fundamentally are trying to be.

▼ Coincidentally, one of Peace’s regular customers used to be Fujiko F. Fujio, one of the pair of manga artists who wrote and created Doraemon.

With someplace as old-fashioned as Peace, it’s tempting to think of it as a throwback, but that’s not really an accurate description. Peace has simply stayed true to its vision of the sort of atmosphere and experience it wants to provide for close to 70 years. It never changed because it never needed to, and we hope it stays just like it is for a long time to come.

Cafe information
Peace / ピース
Address: Tokyo-to, Shinjuku-ku, Nishi Shinjuku 1-5-1, Shinjuku Nishiguch HACL 1st floor
東京都新宿区西新宿1-5-1 新宿西口ハルク1F
Open 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m.

Photos © SoraNews24
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

Credit: