'Tis the season for grazing -- coaxing the appetite to life, while nibbling on snacks and sipping on something nice and cool. And this summer, more than ever before, Tokyo is discovering the pleasures of tachi-nomi (literally "stand and drink") joints and their upscale counterparts, which eschew all low-life connotations by using the currently vogue term "stand bars."
It's not just the nomenclature that's changing, it's the concept itself. No longer is tachi-nomi the preserve of slumming salarymen and blue-collar Edokko swilling down shochu and motsu-yaki. We now have hole-in-the-wall pubs where you can belly up with premium imported and microbrewed ales. We have chic counters with designer downlighting, where fashionistas quaff prosecco (or champagne) with side plates of prosciutto and parmesan. But best of all we have a growing number of places that serve authentic Spanish tapas.
Our current favorite is Bar Camaron. Open since May, it is an offshoot of the excellent little Spanish restaurant of the same name in Toranomon. As diminutive and friendly as its name (Spanish for "shrimp"), the original place proved so popular that owner Shinichiro Sugama, a dyed-in-the-wool Iberophile, decided to open new premises just walking distance away, on the Azabu side of Kamiyacho station.