A generation back, the average izakaya tavern was noisy, cheap, smoky and the clientele overwhelmingly male. There would usually be one brand of beer; two choices of sake, warmed or room temperature; and food that ranged from reliable to rough and ready.

Things have changed. The intervening years have seen the old-school izakaya go the way of the suit-clad salaryman: They still exist in Tokyo but they're far less visible. Instead, a more refined type of izakaya has emerged, with premium sake, quality food to pair with it and substantially more nonsmoking locations.

Iyaiya Sanbai takes the idea a step further away from those roots. It's still without question a place where drinking and eating share equal importance, where you can settle in for conversation or just while away the hours until you're satiated or the last train calls. But in both look and feel, it reflects a contemporary approach to the time-honored pleasures of the izakaya.