Tapas Bar Near Me in Ginza: BROWNSTONE's Basque Cheesecake and Paella

BROWNSTONE Tapas Bar GINZA is open every day from 11.30am to midnight on the ground floor of Granbell Square at 7-2-18 Ginza, about five minutes on foot from Ginza Station on the Marunouchi Line. Order the house Basque cheesecake for ¥1,034 and the garlic shrimp ajillo for ¥2,134. If you typed tapas bar near me somewhere between Ginza and Shimbashi, this glass-fronted room is open late every day and has staff who speak English, Chinese and Spanish.

BROWNSTONE was founded in 2010 and runs several restaurants in Shanghai, but according to the company its first store opened here in Ginza. The name refers to brownstone, the reddish-brown sandstone coloured by iron oxide. The kitchen is led by Spanish chefs Aitor Olabegoya and Daniel Vaquero Camps, and the company says its team has spent more than 13 years visiting Barcelona, Madrid and Seville to learn regional dishes.

The dessert that defines BROWNSTONE is its Spanish-style Basque cheesecake, credited to Aitor, a chef from the Basque Country who trained for years in Michelin-starred restaurants in Spain. According to the restaurant, it is made with five kinds of Manchego cheese to a recipe it keeps secret, and cut into small triangles so the soft centre shows. The house slice costs ¥1,034.

There are two variations: a caramelised vanilla Basque cheesecake at ¥1,144 and a matcha Basque cheesecake at ¥1,430, the one concession to Tokyo on an otherwise Spanish menu. If the table can only manage one dessert, take the original, because the Manchego is the point. The homemade crème brûlée at ¥836 is the lighter choice.

The ham on the board is Ibérico bellota from pigs raised on 100% acorns and air-dried, aged for 30 months or more depending on the weight of the leg. A plate of the 30-month Ibérico ham is ¥4,598, which makes it the most expensive tapa on the list and a dish for two or more people. A mixed Spanish salami plate for two is ¥2,398.

A cheese selection chosen to go with wine costs ¥2,618, mixed olives are ¥1,034 and mixed nuts ¥550. From the salad section, the bellota ham and orange salad is ¥1,562, the avocado and tomato salad is also ¥1,562 and gazpacho is ¥1,188. Seasonal vegetables with a garbanzo dip are ¥1,034.

The hot tapas lean on seafood bought at Toyosu, Tokyo's wholesale market. Garlic shrimp ajillo with baguette is ¥2,134, squid ajillo is ¥1,562 and mushroom ajillo is ¥1,364. Clams steamed in white wine with garlic are ¥2,002. Extra baguette for mopping up the oil comes four slices to an order for ¥440 including tax.

Octopus with mashed potato and Spanish sauce is ¥1,782, and the grilled mushrooms with Ibérico chorizo are ¥1,474. The cheapest plates sit at ¥1,034, including spicy Spanish chicken wings, shishito peppers seared with British sea salt and fried river shrimp with squid. Manchego-scented skin-on fries and the house Spanish omelette are both ¥924.

Paella is the dish the restaurant itself recommends first. The seafood stock behind it is simmered for five hours, then cooked with fresh seafood, tomato, onion and paprika. Seafood paella is ¥4,598 for two and ¥8,338 for four, paella mixta is ¥4,378 for two, and the squid-ink arroz negro is the cheapest at ¥3,498 for two.

Larger plates include a Black Angus misuji steak with garlic at ¥2,079, pollo asado roast chicken at ¥2,838 and grilled lamb chops at ¥3,168. Spanish-style barbecue pork ribs are ¥3,168 for two and ¥6,270 for four. The A4 wagyu sirloin with Spanish sauce is ¥9,878, and it is better value to put that money into ham and paella for the table.

The drink the restaurant pushes hardest is its homemade sangria, in red or white, alongside sommelier-selected bottles and original cocktails. On 7 October 2026 it added five Halloween cocktails: the Halloween Party dessert cocktail of Kahlúa, espresso milk and marshmallows at ¥1,518, a Cosmopolitan and a Lychee Martini at ¥1,298 each, a Cranberry Rouge with rosemary at ¥1,188 and a Bloody Mary with a skull-shaped ice cube at ¥1,078, all including tax.

Every Wednesday is Wednesday Ladies Day, when women get 50% off selected drinks. Courses with a two-hour free-flow drinks package start at ¥8,000 per person, while the food-only BROWNSTONE course with ham and orange salad, omelette, fries, fritters, shrimp ajillo, seafood paella and cheesecake is ¥6,000 per person.

The kitchen runs straight through from 11.30am, which is unusual in Ginza, with the last food order at 10.30pm and last drinks at 11pm. That makes a late lunch or a mid-afternoon plate of ham and a glass of sangria the easiest time to walk in. Evenings fill with after-work groups and course bookings, so reserve for dinner after 7pm.

Tables can be booked online through the official website's TableCheck page or through Gurunavi. Course bookings are charged in full if cancelled on the day or the day before, and a seat-only booking that is a no-show is charged ¥7,000 per person, so cancel ahead. Groups of six or more are asked to contact the restaurant directly, and the whole 50-seat room can be hired for 20 to 50 people.

The glass frontage makes the room feel open from the street, and the interior is designed to recall a Barcelona alley, a Madrid plaza and a Seville courtyard. There are 50 seats, including counter seats and couple seats, and the restaurant also has a projector and screen for private events. Children are welcome and the whole room is non-smoking, with a smoking room on the third floor of the building.

The courses on the menu show who the room is built for: an Anniversary course that comes with a dessert plate and an instant photo, a women-only lunch and dinner course, and welcome and farewell party plans for office groups. Solo diners are also listed as welcome, and a seat at the counter with ham and a glass of wine works well on your own.

Granbell Square sits on the Shimbashi side of Ginza, a five-minute walk from both Ginza and Shimbashi stations, close to the Corridor-gai strip of bars and restaurants that runs beside the elevated railway. That makes BROWNSTONE an easy first stop before a bar crawl along Corridor-gai, or a late dinner after shopping on Chuo-dori.

From Ginza Station, walk south toward Shimbashi through the 7-chome side streets rather than along the main avenue. Hibiya Park and the Imperial Hotel are a short walk west across the railway, which makes a lunch here easy to combine with an afternoon in Hibiya.

Address: Granbell Square 1F, 7-2-18 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0061. Phone: +81 3-6263-9529. Hours: daily 11.30am to midnight, last food order 10.30pm, last drinks 11pm; no regular closing day. Payment: Visa, Mastercard, JCB, American Express, transit IC cards, Rakuten Pay and PayPay. English menu available. Menu prices are listed in yen on the Gurunavi page.