Brasserie a Route

Brasserie a Route? The owner here, Shohei Hashimoto, is a former railway worker who spent 17 years at JR West.

And the origin story is great too. He drank craft beer at an okonomiyaki shop in Tarumi and was shocked, thinking, "Why isn't something this delicious more widely known?" From there, he researched breweries all over Japan and trained for a year at a brewery in Tsurui Village, Hokkaido.

And the location is fantastic. It's inside the Suido-suji shopping street in Nada Ward, Kobe. This area has eight shopping streets and four markets, and they use spring water from Mount Maya for the brewing water. The signature beer, "Nada Central Market 100th Anniversary Beer," is an IPA with 6.5% ABV and a bright aroma like orange and passion fruit.

What's more, you can bring in snacks bought at the shopping streets or markets. They have a menu called the "Craft Set," where two beers come with a plate and cutlery for 1,800 yen. You can stroll through the shopping street, buy your favorite side dishes, and pair them with beer here.

Exactly. But food from supermarkets isn't allowed, only from independent shops in the shopping street. Apparently, Hashimoto also recommends nearby stores. The name "A.Route" plays on the shopping street's "road" and the railway man's old "route," and the idea is to make it a base where customers can take a "detour" through the shopping street.

You can see eight fermentation tanks through the glass. They usually have about three house beers on tap, and the lineup changes every ten days, so it's the kind of place that makes you want to keep coming back while you're out walking through the shopping street.