At around 10 p.m. on a Thursday in early August, foot traffic at a dining and drinking district only one stop from Tokyo's Ikebukuro Station was unexpectedly sparse despite warm summer weather — ideal conditions for a cold beverage, or two.

Across streetcar tracks and under a torii-shaped arch, Italian restaurants, bars and ethnic food markets line a labyrinth of narrow side streets near the south exit of Otsuka Station on the Yamanote Line.

"We see fewer people than usual outside around here tonight, and it's been like this all week," said Daisuke Kusabiraki, an assistant manager at Titans Craft Beer Taproom & Bottle Shop.