Tommy

Tucked into the Gobankai (5th Alley) section of Shinjuku Golden Gai at 1-1-7 Kabukicho, Tommy stands apart from its 300 neighbors as a karaoke bar with a resident cat. Settle onto a stool at the tiny counter and you may find the house cat peering through a small cat-flap carved into the wall — a detail so perfectly Showa-era that it alone justifies the visit. In its heyday, the soundtrack leaned on anime themes and J-pop hits from the 1980s, and karaoke was free, a rare combination anywhere in Golden Gai. The setup is stripped-back: no menu, a ¥1,000 cover charge, drinks from ¥600. Staff rotates nightly, bringing a different personality to the bar each time. That said, most available information dates back several years, and no official social media account has been found. It's worth calling ahead (03-3209-8853) to confirm the bar is still operating. If the cat, the karaoke, and the old-school playlist are still in place, it's well worth stepping through the door.