April 8, 2008
Great place for a cool Guinness in Osaka.
The Pig and Whistle is on the second floor, and we climbed the stairs to find a "no smoking sign" prominently displayed. Excellent! How rare for Japan!
It was a false alarm though - there's no smoking allowed in the LOBBY. Smoke all you want in the bar though! (And everyone was.)
The decor at The Pig is dark wood, with flags on the ceiling, and a couple of traditional (non-electronic) dart boards. There is a nice bar, but no bar seating. You place your order standing at the bar and the drinks and food are either served to you right away or brought to your table.
The Guinness is the perfect temperature and delicious as always. The beer prices are competitive, maybe slightly lower, than elsewhere in Osaka.
A single pour is quite small in Japan (compared to US) so Steve ordered a double of Yamizaki whisky, which was about $12USD. I have nothing to compare this to, but it seemed expensive.
For dinner, I ordered the Camembert cheese plate (there were three types of cheese plates on offer), which was served overly chilled, on saltine crackers. Seemed a little odd, but it was tasty. Then I had the tomato salad, which was very good despite being a little overwhelmed with dressing.
Steve had the fish & chips, which he described as "adequate." The portion was somewhat smaller than you would normally expect of an English Pub. The food was piping hot. I sampled his chips and found them to be completely delicious.
The client mix was a good mix of Japanese, English, Canadian, America, and some others of indeterminate nationality.
Bottom line: Pig & Whistle is definitely a good choice if you are hankering for a well priced Guinness and the comfortable familiarity of an English Pub.
It was a false alarm though - there's no smoking allowed in the LOBBY. Smoke all you want in the bar though! (And everyone was.)
The decor at The Pig is dark wood, with flags on the ceiling, and a couple of traditional (non-electronic) dart boards. There is a nice bar, but no bar seating. You place your order standing at the bar and the drinks and food are either served to you right away or brought to your table.
The Guinness is the perfect temperature and delicious as always. The beer prices are competitive, maybe slightly lower, than elsewhere in Osaka.
A single pour is quite small in Japan (compared to US) so Steve ordered a double of Yamizaki whisky, which was about $12USD. I have nothing to compare this to, but it seemed expensive.
For dinner, I ordered the Camembert cheese plate (there were three types of cheese plates on offer), which was served overly chilled, on saltine crackers. Seemed a little odd, but it was tasty. Then I had the tomato salad, which was very good despite being a little overwhelmed with dressing.
Steve had the fish & chips, which he described as "adequate." The portion was somewhat smaller than you would normally expect of an English Pub. The food was piping hot. I sampled his chips and found them to be completely delicious.
The client mix was a good mix of Japanese, English, Canadian, America, and some others of indeterminate nationality.
Bottom line: Pig & Whistle is definitely a good choice if you are hankering for a well priced Guinness and the comfortable familiarity of an English Pub.
Mmmm, Guinness.
Camembert on saltines.
Perfectly poured.
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