Ryu Tanaka

About

Ryu's family has run a Tokyo coffee shop since his grandfather opened it in the 1960s, and he grew up in the trade before eventually competing nationally as a barista. Today he splits his time between the family shop and Tokyo's newer micro-roaster scene, which gives him a rare view across both the old guard and the specialty-coffee wave reshaping the city's neighborhoods.

Qualifications & Experience

• •Third-generation owner of a Tokyo coffee shop founded in 1966
• •National barista championship finalist
• •Close ties to Tokyo's micro-roaster community across Shimokitazawa and Kiyosumi-Shirakawa