On Tuesday night this week, I popped into Queen Tokyo to see what it’s all about. Queen Tokyo is a new lesbian and women-focused bar that just sprang up in Shinjuku Nichome, Tokyo’s gay district, so I wanted to experience a night partying there first hand.
For some background information, Queen Tokyo is mainly marketed towards lesbians and other women seeking female friends or dates, but it is a “mix bar” (a bar where anyone of any gender can enter). But, it’s meant to be a space where women who don’t fully identify as lesbian but are questioning their orientation can comfortably hang out.
Queen Tokyo is also affiliated with the well-established gay bar right across the street, King Tokyo, as well as with Kingdom, another much-loved gay bar in Nichome.
First Impressions
The first thing I noticed when I walked into Queen was how small the space was. Like many bars in Nichome, Queen Tokyo is no more than 20 square meters (or about 200 square feet), no bigger than your average tiny apartment in Tokyo. But, despite its size, the energy of this bar packs a mighty punch.
Walking in, I was immediately greeted with excited people belting karaoke. The crowd was mostly foreigners, most of whom were probably tourists, and I heard English spoken more often than any other language, so Queen is definitely a good place to go if you don’t know much Japanese. However, if you’re not a native English speaker either, fear not! The staff at Queen can speak at least four languages: Japanese, English, Chinese and Korean.
Another thing I noticed is that despite it being marketed as a women-focused bar, there were many men there on the night I visited, maybe even more so than women. This was, at least, my experience on a Tuesday night. But it may be very different on the weekends.
Music, Vibe, and Decor
I really like the way that Queen Tokyo is styled. The entire front facade of the bar consists of baby blue French doors with expansive, wide windows so people can clearly see what’s going on inside just from walking by on the street.
In addition, two glowing pink neon signs displaying “Queen” in cursive light up the night outside the bar, giving it a retro, whimsical vibe. On one of the walls inside, a collage of polaroid photos is arranged in a heart shape, with a small string of white lights in the center, also in a heart shape. Each photo is of a customer who’s visited the bar, creating a collection of memories for newcomers and regulars to see.
The energy at Queen is pretty raucous, with the average volume in the room never dipping below a loud speaking voice. This bar is definitely not the place to go for a quiet night chatting with your bartender. However, it is a great place to meet new friends, party with good friends or to find a date.
Music wise, Queen is a karaoke bar, so its music is really determined by whatever somebody wants to sing at any given moment. So, this means that what’s playing on the speakers is usually pop, which is usually in English due to its main clientele. However, pop wasn’t the only thing I heard when visiting Queen, I also heard a guy sing Frank Sinatra on karaoke, and he did a pretty good job!
Drink Menu
Queen Tokyo’s drink menu has everything you need. With classics like a lemon sour and whiskey highball, a pretty wide selection of beers, and margaritas, there’s a lot on the menu for everyone to choose from! You can probably also ask for something off-menu, and if they have the ingredients for it, they should be able to make it for you. Additionally, Queen has a digital menu, so it’s easy for the menu to change regularly so you never get bored.
Queen also sells Kleiner Feigling shots for ¥600 each, which come in nine flavors such as Yuzu Mandarin and American Ice tea. These shots are popular at lesbian bars and are a fun thing to do with your friends. And if you buy two, you can get one free!
Queen Tokyo also offers all-you-can-drink every night from 6 pm to 10 pm, for only ¥1,500! This is a good deal considering that one drink in Nichome can easily cost you ¥1,000 or more.
Hours and Accessibility
Queen Tokyo is open on Sunday through Thursday from 6 pm to 3 am, and on Friday and Saturday from 6 pm to 5 am. So, don’t be worried about the bar closing early. If you want to party late into the night at Queen, you’ll definitely be able to!
It’s also only a two minute walk from Shinjuku Sanchome Station (for the Fukutoshin Line and Marunouchi Line), a five minute walk from Shinjuku Gyoenmae Station (for the Marunouchi Line), and a nine minute walk from Shinjuku Station (for the JR Lines, Marunouchi Line and more). Queen isn’t only easily accessible from multiple train stations, it’s also located right next to King Tokyo and many other bars in Shinjuku Nichome. So, if you want to go bar hopping, you’ll have no problem!
Conclusion
Queen Tokyo is definitely a lesbian/mix bar on the louder, more party-focused side of things. I had a good time checking out unique decor and meeting friendly people there, and will definitely go back soon. If you want to go to a bar where you’ll inevitably have a good time and meet lots of new friends, I’d definitely recommend Queen Tokyo for your next trip to Shinjuku Nichome!
Read about my experience at Adezakura below.
