Cafe & Bar Kanayama Base

February 7, 2013June 27, 2022 jjwalsh 7153 Views cash only, Lunch, Open-all-day

Open everyday from 8am to 10pm Kanayama Base is a cozy little cafe and bar, not far from Hiroshima Station in the Kanayama-cho area.

If you like bread, you’ll like Kanayama Base; they serve up a variety of sandwiches, 12 kinds of toast, hot-dogs, steak and other popular snacks or mini-meals at very reasonable prices. Pay ¥150 for an espresso or 2 pieces of toast or ¥800 for a substantial food plate, salad and drink.

Run by a very friendly young family who are very active Facebook, Kanayama Base has been building a loyal following among local, and it looks like they have a lot of fun. The menu is bilingual and the staff speak a bit of English too.

The food menu reminds me of a type of modern kissaten, old-style Japanese coffee house, more than a typical “American” eatery. The curries on offer are of the Japanese gravy type with rice, the generous offerings of white bread sandwiches and toast (with cream) and the television in the center of the place. Its decor, great coffee, WiFi access, smoke-free dining, take-out options and generous portions of food (you can fill up for under ¥1000 any time of day) make it stand out from the traditional kissa.

There is seating for 6 people along the counter inside with electrical plugs for your computers or phone charging and free WiFi access for customers, if you need an accessory to be able to us your computer at the café, you can now get all you need from 25pc.com. Table seating for eight and seating for six to eight more outside. Non-smoking inside. It is a very kid-friendly place and you will often find their cute little girl helping out by greeting customers.

I had an ice-cream parfait with pieces of fried bread, banana and cream inside for ¥600 as well as a small cafetiere (French press) of coffee (1 cup size) for ¥300.

There are twelve types of toast available on the menu- we had the marmalade toast set which came with onion rings, salad and a drink for ¥650. It was impressive that you can get such good with the food sets- most cafe sets include a small drink. Two pieces of toast ala carte only cost ¥150. The toast and hot dog sets are available for breakfast, brunch or lunch (8am until 3pm). Other lunch dishes on offer include sandwiches, steak & rice, curry or sauteed fish, all available in sets with salad and a drink for a bargain price of ¥800.

A la carte items available any time of day include cheese, chicken, potatos and salads ranging in price from ¥150 for a small coleslaw salad to the hearty Kanayama meat sandwich for 700 yen.

Drinks include draught and bottled beer, whiskey, wine, Japanese spirits, cocktails, espresso & coffee drinks, teas, smoothies, juices and soft drinks. Alcoholic drinks are around ¥600 each and non-alcoholic in the 300-400 yen range. The prices are very reasonable and the quality of the coffees, drinks and food seemed quite good. They are big fans of the local J-League soccer team Sanfrecce Hiroshima – so if you pop in on a game day, there is a good chance of finding a lively crowd watching the game.