An elderly gentleman, just about entering into Stand
Retro Style Japanese Bar Izakaya
This is one of the most popular Izakaya's in town. The ambiance is more like an old Japanese style bar, but the foods and beverages they serve are of Japanese Izakaya. I love this place, and whenever I sit on a retro (old) bar stool there I feel like I am taken back in time to the Showa era (1926 - 1989). In fact, this bar style Izakaya was founded in 1927, right after the era turned to Showa from Taisho. There were some interior renovations, but the overall decor has not changed since it was originally founded. I particularly like the marble counter-top bar which takes up almost one-thirds of the floor. The heavy solid marble is reminiscent of good old days.
My favorite stir fried vegetables over deep-fried noodles. I guess it is Hong Kong style fried noodles, but the taste and flavor are unique here.
Huge Menu
Stand has a huge menu - they prepare as many as 100 menu items every single day. If I go there for lunch, I can order one of the lunch plates (main dish with steamed rice, Miso soup and a small plate of Japanese pickles) for less than Yen 1,000 or if I want to drink Beer, I would order a daily Beer set menu (Yen 1,000) which comes with a medium mug of draft Beer, 2x appetizers, Hiya-Yakko (cold Tofu with grated Ginger, sliced Scallions, dried Bonito flakes and Soy sauce). If it is late in the afternoon or early in the evening, I normally start off with a mug of draft Beer, followed by cold Sake. They have Gekkeikan "Densho" which is my most favorite Sake in Kyoto. Gekkeikan brews many different types of Sake, and many of them are available anywhere in Japan. "Densho", however, is not sold at any liquor shops, and is distributed to only selected Izakaya's, restaurants and bars, meaning it is a limited edition of Gekkeikan's premium Sake's using high quality rice and pure mineral water. If you like warm Sake, they have a house Sake good for drinking warm (and it is less expensive). Foods ? They may have anything that you can think of.
Warm Sake - Gekkeikan, brewed in Kyoto
Japanese Comfort Foods
They have Japanese style curry over steamed rice, potato Croquettes, Ramen noodles, deep fried Pork cutlet, salads, Sashimi (freshly sliced raw fish), Kyoto style Eggrolls, fried noodles, stir fried vegetables, Tempura, and more... What I like are 1) Croquettes 2) Eggrolls 3) Stir fried vegetables.
Foods at Stand are not necessarily superb or phenomenal, but they are hearty and all of them are comfort foods perfect to accompany Beer and/or Sake. Oh, if you are not in the mood to drink Beer or Sake, pick what you want from the beverage menu - they have Whiskey Highballs, Wines, Shochu (Japanese Vodka), etc.
The famous marble counter-top (right) and individual tables (left) - all of them are "community counter and tables".
There are couple of things that you may want to know before experiencing lunch or dinner at Stand. First, there are no non-smoking tables at Stand. And the smokers' population there is relatively bigger than those of the other places. So, there is a high probability that someone sitting next to you may be smoking. The other thing is that all the tables and the marble counter seating are all shared. This place will be perfect if you like chatting with someone new to you, but if not, your experience at this place could be below your expectation.
