Cafeography
Nagoya · Imaike & Chikusa

Cafés in Imaike & Chikusa

Live houses, late kitchens and small roasters around Imaike, Chikusa and Ikeshita.

Photo: Huu Huynh, Pexels License

Imaike (今池) takes its name from Imaike Shinden, a former subdivision of Chikusa village, and an old irrigation pond near today's Imaike Junior High School; the town of Imaike-chō was created in 1935 and split into today's 1- to 5-chōme in 1979 and 1980. A story that the name began as Umaike, a pond where horses were washed, is considered doubtful.1 The station, in Imaike 5-chōme, is on the Higashiyama and Sakura-dōri lines, and Chikusa and Ikeshita are the next stops either side on the Higashiyama Line.12

It is one of eastern Nagoya's sub-centers and an entertainment district, with many live houses and mini-theaters and a name for counterculture; the Imaike Matsuri has run every autumn since 1989.1 In 2019 the district had about 7,940 registered residents.1 Its cafés are small and spread out, from Aoi 3-chōme near Chikusa Station east to Takami and Nakata around Ikeshita.

Local tip: Plan a late Imaike evening around Misen, which serves until 01:00, and breakfast the next day at Hanagoyomi in Ikeshita, open from 07:30.35

At a glance

60Cafés listed
2With opening hours
07:30Earliest opening
00:30Latest closing

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Coffee chains in Imaike & Chikusa

Getting to Imaike

From Sakae, the Higashiyama Line reaches Imaike in three stops, after Shinsakae-machi and Chikusa; Kakuōzan, the temple district, is two stops further east, beyond Ikeshita.2

Late kitchens

Imaike eats late. Misen's main shop at Imaike 1-12-10, which calls itself the original Taiwan ramen house and marks 50 years in business, opens 17:00–01:00 (last order 00:30) every day except 31 December and 1 January.3 Taiwan ramen is said to have started there.1

For dessert and coffee afterward, Massimo Mariani serves 12:00–00:30 every day.

Roasters and coffee rooms

Suidomichi Coffee, at Imaike 4-1-14, serves specialty coffee with bread it bakes itself, in a room of 10 seats, with a menu that runs from morning toast to lunch and sweets; it closes on Wednesdays.4 Matsushima Coffee is at Takami 2-11-2, hapuna coffee at Imaike 3-17-8 and Coffee Westhouse at Imaike 3-2-9. Coffee Break is in the basement of the Sunshine Nakata building at Nakata 2-19-8.

The older names are on the side streets: Hakushaku at Nakata 1-11-16, Kissa Tachibana at Uchiyama 3-31-27, and Shinrakuen's main tea shop at Chikusa 1-27-7. North of the station, in Higashi Ward, Still Life is at Tsutsui 1-14-18. Le Jardin occupies the seventh floor of the Fukiage History Building on Chikusa-dōri.

Animal cafés

Animal cafés gather here too, most of them on upper floors along the streets south of the station. Hemingway, a café for rescued cats, is on the fourth floor of the Kudō Building at Imaike 4-16-27; Sweet Owl keeps owls; and put on lap, at Uchiyama 3-31-14 in the Sunshine Imaike building, has dogs and cats.

Ikeshita

One stop east, Ikeshita Cafe Hanagoyomi sits inside Central Garden at Takami 2-9-12. It opens 07:30–22:00 (last order 21:15) with no regular closing day, serves a morning until 10:00, and in autumn 2026 sold a chestnut parfait for ¥1,880.5 Air Cafe also has a branch at Central Garden, and the Hanagoyomi company runs its Shirakabe café on the same hours.6

Sources

  1. 今池 (名古屋市), Wikipedia (Japanese), accessed October 2026
  2. 名古屋市営地下鉄の混雑状況（東山線、2026年10月14日の状況）, Nagoya City Transportation Bureau, accessed October 2026
  3. 味仙 今池本店, 台湾料理 味仙 (official site), accessed October 2026
  4. SUIDOMICHI coffee, SUIDOMICHI coffee (official site), accessed October 2026
  5. 池下カフェ 花ごよみ, 花ごよみ (official site), accessed October 2026
  6. 白壁カフェ 花ごよみ, 花ごよみ (official site), accessed October 2026
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In Imaike & Chikusa, also browse: Open late

FAQ

Imaike & Chikusa cafés: questions

What is Imaike in Nagoya known for?

Imaike is an entertainment district and sub-center of eastern Nagoya with many live houses and mini-theaters and a reputation for counterculture. The Imaike Matsuri has run every autumn since 1989, and Misen, said to be where Taiwan ramen started, serves at its main shop until 01:00.

Which cafés in Imaike and Ikeshita, Nagoya, open early or late?

Hanagoyomi in Ikeshita's Central Garden opens 07:30–22:00 with no regular closing day and serves its morning until 10:00. In Imaike, Massimo Mariani serves 12:00–00:30 every day. Suidomichi Coffee, a 10-seat specialty café, closes on Wednesdays.

How do you get to Imaike by subway in Nagoya?

Imaike Station, in Imaike 5-chōme, is on the Higashiyama and Sakura-dōri lines. On the Higashiyama Line it sits between Chikusa and Ikeshita, a few stops east of Sakae, and the same line continues to Kakuōzan.

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