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Yakoboku

Kumamoto

New Entry

The southern Japanese city of Kumamoto is known for its towering castle, deep shochu culture and an inexplicably popular cartoon bear mascot, but until recently, never for cocktails. That changed when Shinya Koba returned home after five years in Singapore to open Yakoboku in 2020. Situated in a former ryokan in the city's old Minamitsuboi-machi entertainment district, the bar stands out from its neighbours with a dramatic cypress front wall that rotates open to the street. Inside is a long camphor counter, just 15 seats, and a room that's all wood and restrained, ambient-lit minimalism.

Koba's cocktails are deeply rooted in local culture. His Kyushu Old Fashioned employs homemade amaro, hinoki wood and an infusion of haze tree wax – a material used by Kumamoto's candle artisans, now a dying art he wants to help sustain. A Trinidad Sour is reimagined with Kyushu shiranui citrus from a local farm; a Naked & Famous gets a Japanese twist with ume-infused chartreuse. And you can't be a Kyushu bar without serving shochu, so Koba makes a pistachio-accented twist on an espresso martini, with shochu as the low-abv base. The name of the bar refers to night jasmine – a flower that only releases its scent after dark. It's a fitting metaphor for an establishment that flourishes, elegantly, after sundown. There's no concept-heavy framing, no Instagram bait. Just drinks made with care, balance, and a strong sense of place.

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