Chinh's side
Behind the counter is the owner's world: the lineup of Vietnamese and Japanese shochu and whisky, the ceramic jar holding her mother's recipe, and the hands that pour every glass ordered in the room.
15B/16 Le Thanh Ton · Ben Nghe · District 1
BAR MITSUBOSHI
Eight stools, one wooden counter and an owner who pours every glass herself — the Japanese quarter's smallest bar, and maybe its most personal.
The counter — two sides of one piece of wood
One pours, one drinks
At Mitsuboshi there is no rotating cast behind the bar — only Chinh, the owner, behind the counter every night from 19:00 to 23:00, and guests facing her across the long wood.
The guest's side
In front of the counter are eight stools and enough quiet to hear the ice settle. Guests come for the shochu, and stay for the conversation with the woman pouring it.
Three frames to open
The door, the room and the house jar — how an evening at Mitsuboshi opens.
The door
A plain wooden door in a lit corridor — the bar's only entrance, with no loud sign.
The room
The long counter, eight stools and the glowing bottle shelf behind — the whole bar fits in one frame.
The house jar
The ceramic jar of homemade shochu from Chinh's mother's recipe — the bar's true signature is not on any price board.
Inside Mitsuboshi
Warm wood, bottles and one owner — Mitsuboshi through the house's photos.
