Life on the Squid Hunt

Deep Tokyo: In a Corner of Little Manila

There is a town in Tokyo called "Little Manila. It is a corner of Takenotsuka, Adachi-ku, where about 50 Filipino pubs are concentrated. There is a famous one that is open 19 hours a day from early morning to late at night. In the morning, it is a diner that welcomes drivers coming off the night shift with a salmon set meal, in the afternoon it is a place of relaxation for pensioners who enjoy conversation at the bar, and in the evening it is a paradise for adults who come to drink because it is cheaper than in the city center. We closely observe this mysterious restaurant where people of all ages, genders, and sexes gather. We spent three days observing the human characters woven into the fabric of the place.