The small, buzzy wine bar that goes by the unusual name of Ahiru Store — which I introduced in my JT column on Friday — stands on the corner of a quiet side street off the long Tomigaya shopping street that connects Shibuya with Yoyogi Hachiman Station. It's a good 10 minute walk from either end, and well off most people's beaten track. But there are plenty of people, myself among them, who think it's definitely worth the extra effort to get there...
Through the back window you see the wine — three dozen or so bottles, all "bio" (i.e. organic, biodynamic or naturally fermented), just about all from France, and all priced very affordably.
In the window next to the door you see the bread — all baked in house, 7 or 8 kinds each day fresh out of the oven: campagnes and baguettes to go with the range of home-cooked bar snacks, and savory herb- or fruit-spiked loaves that are just fine for nibbling on just as is, while you sip your wine.
As mentioned, I almost always order the grissini bread sticks, which come with slices of prosciutto draped over them. And there's usually a nice warming potage or chowder — here a seafood soup that's almost bouillabaisse-rich — that demands a basket of the excellent campagne.
Owner Saito-san makes his own sausages, hanging the pork, grinding it by hand and stuffing them himself. They're not just tasty, they're hefty too. Served with a cold potato salad, that's plenty for two to get stuck into (though by no means impossible to polish off solo).
The menu is up on the blackboard on the wall above the kitchen: drinks list on the left; bread on the right; and snacks/cooked foods in the middle. Most of the dishes are put together by Saito-san's sister, Wakako, and she does really good simple hearty country cooking.
I need to go back and get a proper portrait of the two of them together — they're always too busy to stop and pose whenever I drop in — but in the interim, here's a couple of Saito-san.
And how did this place get its name Ahiru ("duck") Store? It's nothing to do with the menu; and a lot to do with his nickname. He'll tell you the full story himself perhaps, if you're there at the counter late one evening and he has some quiet time to chat...
Be warned: Ahiru Store only has seats for 8 and standing room for the same again. You can reserve seats no later than 6:30 pm. So either get there early or be prepared to wait.
Here's a map link...
