About The Kissa Club

In Japan, a kissaten (喫茶店) is an old-school café — quiet, unhurried, with tea or coffee made carefully and served without fuss. This site brings a bit of that feeling into kitchens outside Japan.

The Kissa Club is written from Japan. That matters for one simple reason: a lot of what's sold abroad as "matcha" or "Japanese tea" would surprise people here. We explain what Japanese people actually drink, how they prepare it, and which brands are worth your money — without hype.

Who writes this

I'm Sen — thirty-something, working at an IT company in Tokyo, and decidedly not a tea master. I grew up the way most Japanese people do: cold-brewed tea bags in the fridge in summer, a grandmother who brewed proper sencha in a kyusu, and my first real matcha encounter on a school trip to Kyoto (the ice cream came first, the tea came later). My wife is from Tango, the quiet northern coast of Kyoto — the sea-and-rice-fields side of the prefecture that tourists never see — which keeps me honest whenever I'm tempted to romanticize the postcard version of Japan.

I write this site as that person: someone who drinks tea every day, has bought the bad tins so you don't have to, and can tell you what's actually normal here versus what's marketing.

What you'll find here

• Brewing guides for matcha, sencha, hojicha, and genmaicha
• Recipes for café-style drinks and Japanese sweets
• Honest buying guides for tea, teaware, and Japanese kitchen tools

How this site makes money

Some links are affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission if you buy — at no extra cost to you. We keep it honest: recommendations are based on Japanese market knowledge and research, and we clearly separate what we've personally used from what we've researched. Details in our disclosure.