Lonely

Top choice in Shinjuku & Northwest Tokyo


Arai-san established Lonely 50 years ago because he wanted his friends to always have a place to go. Some of those friends, like the creator of classic manga Ashita no Joe – you'll see posters on the wall – also happened to be famous. Lonely is everything you want a Golden Gai bar to be: rough around the edges but warm and full of character(s).

It's on the street perpendicular to the alleyways, with an English sign out front. No cover charge.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Shinjuku & Northwest Tokyo attractions

1. Golden Gai

0.02 MILES

Golden Gai – a Shinjuku institution for over half a century – is a collection of tiny bars, often literally no bigger than a closet and seating maybe a…

2. Hanazono-jinja

0.03 MILES

Merchants from nearby Kabukichō come to this Shintō shrine to pray for the solvency of their business ventures. Founded in the 17th century, the shrine is…

3. Godzilla Head

0.19 MILES

Godzilla, a portmanteau of the Japanese words for gorilla (gorira) and whale (kujira), is king of the kaijū (strange beasts) that ruled Japanese popular…

4. Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower

0.49 MILES

This Nishi-Shinjuku landmark building (completed in 2008) is a 50-storey webbed tower designed by Tange Associates. Easily identifiable among the blockier…

5. Shinjuku-gyoen

0.61 MILES

Shinjuku-gyoen was designed as an imperial retreat (completed 1906); since opening to the public in 1951, it has become a favourite destination for…

6. Place M

0.62 MILES

Run by four veteran artists (including pioneering street photographer Daido Moriyama), this gallery serves as a hub for the city's photography scene…

7. Shinjuku I-Land

0.67 MILES

This otherwise ordinary office complex is home to more than a dozen public artworks, including one of Robert Indiana’s LOVE sculptures (on the southeast…

8. Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building

0.82 MILES

Tokyo's city hall – a landmark building designed by Tange Kenzō – has observatories (202m) atop both the south and north towers of Building 1 (the views…