10 Best Things to Do After Dinner in Sendai

Kokubuncho is the busiest downtown area in Sendai. In fact, Kokubuncho is probably the liveliest area in the entire Tohoku region, and it really comes to life at night.

While retaining an atmosphere of the good old days of Sendai, which came to prominence as the castle town of the Date clan, Kokubuncho now prospers as a nightlife district packed with izakaya pubs, cocktail bars, and karaoke boxes, as well as wide range of restaurants serving everything from ramen to beef tongue dishes. This is an excellent place to enjoy the night in Sendai.

Sendai Mediatheque is an entirely glass-walled public facility facing Jozenji-dori Street. As the name implies, this is a place where all kinds of media are brought together for the public to experience.

It houses the Sendai City Library, an event space, a gallery, an image center, a studio, a museum shop, and more, and is used as a hub for art and visual image culture activities. Designed by world-famous architect Toyo Ito, the building itself is famous and attracts architecture enthusiasts from all over the world. There's also a café where you can chill out.

Located in the Ichibancho 4-chome shopping district, Rensa is one of Sendai's largest live music venues. Famous artists often play here.

The acoustics of the venue are excellent and you get a great closeness to the performers. There are about 250 seats, or standing capacity for 400-700 people. The name Rensa means "chain" or "link" and is inspired by the Toichi Rensa restaurant district that existed before the redevelopment of the current building. This is a venue where you can really connect with artists and enjoy a great time as part of an enthusiastic audience.

CRAFTSMAN Sendai is a stylish, modern restaurant that serves craft beer and Italian dishes.

They have as many as 31 types of carefully selected craft beer fresh from the barrel. Visit once and you'll definitely want to return. The cuisine features ingredients harvested in the surrounding Tohoku region. Everything here is based on the concept of local production for local consumption, and the results speak for themselves.

Running east from Sunmall Ichibancho, Iroha Yokocho is an arcade-covered shopping district that (in a good way) seems to be stuck in the Showa era. Its 2 passageways are lined with shops with narrow storefronts, and there’s even an age-old well remaining at one corner.

Iroha Yokocho is believed to have sprung up in 1945, at the end of the Pacific War, when people opened an open-air market with the aim of rebuilding the city after it was burned to the ground in the Sendai air raids. This area is lively even now, crowded with local people coming for lunch on weekdays, as well as people who want to have a drink at a yakitori (broiled chicken on a stick) restaurant or izakaya (Japanese-style pub).

HIGHBALL BAR Mori no Miyako 1923 is a modern bar that specializes in highballs, which are basically whiskey and soda. This bar has one of only 16 special 5-level highball towers in Japan, producing a surprisingly delicious drink.

Using natural water obtained by treating raw water from Mt. Kai-Komagatake, careful attention is paid to the gas pressure at the moment of opening, and ice that has been re-tightened at -15°C is used to prevent melting. You’ll really get a sense of this bar’s passion for serving the finest highballs. If highballs aren’t your think, you can also try beer on tap and various cocktails. Hot whiskey is even served during the cold season.

Jazz-Villeban Sendai is a dining bar where you can enjoy a drink while listening to live jazz. Since its opening 40 years ago, it’s always supported the music scene in Sendai, the City of Trees.

Popular with an international clientele, you’ll hear conversation in various languages as the jazz plays, like stepping into a scene from an old movie. As well as beer, whiskey, and sake, the bar also serves more than 100 types of cocktails. Most of the gigs are free of charge, so this is a great place to experience live jazz music.

Bar, Isn't it? is a club located in the Vlandome Ichibancho shopping district. It has 150 seats and standing capacity for 250 people, making it one of the largest clubs in Sendai City.

You’ll find all kinds of music played here, from hip-hop, house and reggae to disco and R&B. They also have a great selection of cocktails on offer. There are coin-operated lockers, too, so you can leave your stuff there while enjoying the music. There’s a dress code here, so make sure you’re not dressed too casually. Sandals, for example, are a no-no.

Andy is a bar with a relaxing atmosphere in downtown Kokubuncho. Here you can relax and enjoy a drink in a space that feel cut off from the hustle and bustle of the city.

The concept is for a bar that even beginners can enjoy. It's certainly a great starting point. Whiskey and cocktails are the main beverages on offer. If you can't decide what to order, you can just tell the bartender what kind of drink you feel like and leave it to them to come up with something. Saying "Something light and refreshing, please!" should do the trick.

Ceskoya is a pub run by a Czech owner who’s fluent in Japanese. It's the only establishment in Tohoku that directly imports Czech beer and wine.

The owner even makes hearty Czech dishes that are well worth tasting. If you fancy a tipple, check out the selection of 39 beers on offer. It’s also a great place to get to know the locals and meet fellow travelers while drinking beer from all over the world, including Dutch, Belgian, Chinese, Thai, Indonesian, and of course Czech beer. Even if you're drinking alone, chances are someone will strike up a conversation with you here. Cheers!