What is a hostess club?

Girl bars, or hostess clubs – known as キャバクラ “kyabakura” in Japanese – are small, dimly lit rooms with comfy booths for you to sit in, drink and talk to the females that work there. There are also host clubs for women to go to and gay host clubs for all our lovely homosexual chums.

Jade’s Guide to Hostess Clubs

How they work

Bodyguards outside the front of the club alert the manager (known as “Mama”) that customers are approaching. The Mama(s) then bark at the girls (known as hostesses) and get them to stand up and make a line in front of the door so that the men may see them clearly as they walk in. Mama will match up the girls with the guys, and if the customer has a preference, Mama will see to it that he gets to sit with his favourite girl, and the men pay money for half an hour (or an hour) of all-you-can-drink.

Some customers become regulars and become attached to one girl in particular. In this case, they always come back to visit their favourite hostess, who regularly messages them throughout the week to entice them back to the club.

The types of girl you will find

At a traditional Japanese hostess club, you will find a variety of Japanese girls (obviously). They are usually dressed in elegant skintight dresses and wearing alluring make-up and, often, coloured contact lenses. The girls range in age from 18 to their 30s, although I always find that Asians look ten years younger than what I think they are (being a scabby aging white girl). Asians always guess my age to be between 5-10 years older than my actual age too, so I think this age discrepancy thing goes both ways. Wish I had youthful Asian skin. Anyway, I digress…

At a foreign hostess club, all the girls will either be half-Japanese or completely foreign (go figure). The hostess club that one of my friends works at has mostly girls from the Philippines working there, including the two Mamas that run the place. There are also girls from Poland, the Czech Republic, Bolivia and Australia (my friend). The girls range in age from 18 to anything up to 60 years old (again, they don’t look their age).

To work in a foreign hostess club, you must be able to speak conversational Japanese and have a working visa that permits such activities.

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Snack bars

A スナック “snack” is the term Japanese people use for older hostesses. The hostesses at these clubs are usually Japanese and range in age from their 40s and up. They provide entertainment to older men who dislike very young girls and prefer women closer in age to themselves.

Opening hours

For traditional Japanese hostess clubs, they are usually open from 7/8pm until midnight.

For foreign hostess clubs, from 10pm-6am (or later should there be a healthy amount of customers still eager to stay and spend). My friend once worked until roughly 11am.

The girls’ duties

The hostesses must say “welcome” and smile seductively (or cheerily depending on the personality they are trying to put on) as the prospective customers walk in. It is then their job to hand the customers heated moist towelettes and pour and serve them drinks throughout the night. If they smoke, it is preferred that the hostesses light the customers’ cigarettes, and from then on they must entertain them with conversation and provide them with their utmost attention.

The clubs usually have karaoke available for an extra fee (my friend’s club charges 1,000¥ – approx. £7/$9 – for five songs), and there is sometimes a small stage and a pole for girls and customers alike to use for their entertainment.

Not the same thing as brothels

Hostess clubs are not places where the girls perform sexual favours. They might gently touch the men on their arms or knees, but it is certainly not the job of hostesses to do anything sexual. They must simply appear glamorous and appealing to the customers at all times.

The men are not allowed to touch the girls. This rule seems to be bent a bit more in foreign hostess clubs, but the limits depend on the girls and what they are willing to do. Remember that as a rule of thumb, you should not expect any sexual contact from the girls you drink with. They are there to provide entertaining conversation and nothing more.

If any problems are to occur, there are always several bodyguards on site at all times, and the girls have complete power to refuse to cater to a particular customer should they prove to be obnoxious, drunkenly uncontrollable or hands-on.

Who goes to hostess clubs?

Mainly middle-aged to older chronically single or unsatisfied married Japanese men. Some go alone, but many go in pairs or groups of three or four. A lot of Japanese businessmen seek out the attention of hostesses after work and go there to relax and perform business or create firmer bonds with both coworkers and clients alike.

Not only men go to hostess clubs. Sometimes female coworkers or even lovers (read more on Japanese marriages here) go alongside the men to hostess clubs. And, especially in the case of foreign hostess clubs, foreign couples are sometimes ushered into the bar unaware that it is actually a hostess club.

Can foreigners go to the clubs too?

In general, unless you can speak Japanese, you are not allowed to visit a Japanese hostess club. This is because a hostess’ job is to chat and flirt with you, so if you can’t understand what she’s saying, she can’t do her job.

However, you are welcomed into foreign hostess clubs, where you will find Asian and western girls alike.

What’s the catch?

The way that the girls make any money is by receiving a bonus for any drinks that they sell. They must sell a certain number of drinks and bring in a specific amount of money for the hostess club before they make any money in commission for themselves.

How much for a drink?

The friends I have who are hostesses tell me that the drink menu looks something like this:

• A glass of wine: 3,000¥ (approx. £20/$28)

• A small bottle of wine: 10,000¥ (approx. £70/$90)

• A large bottle of wine (which is actually regular size): 20,000¥ (approx. £140/$185)

• A bottle of champagne: 50,000¥ (approx. £360/$460)

So, as you can see, as the guys have already paid a set fee for their own drink supply, trying to get them to buy drinks for the girls too is a steep challenge.

How much must the girls earn for the club before they receive a commission?

This depends on the hostess club, but the place that a friend of mine works at states that the girls must sell at least 30,000¥ (approx. £215/$275) worth of drinks before they can receive 10% on any drinks sold past that point.

If they fail to reach that target, they receive 10,000¥ (approx. £70/$90) for their night’s effort. Again, salaries depend on the hostess club, but this is an example of a hostess’ earnings.

Where to find a hostess club

In general, Kabukicho in Shinjuku is seen as the red light district of Japan, so you will find streets full of them there. There are also plenty of hostess clubs in Shibuya, Roppongi and Ginza – although the ones in Ginza and some in Roppongi too are more upmarket and charge more for their services.

The foreign club one of my friends works at is called Diva and is located in Shinjuku.

The Japanese club that another of my friends works at is called “Yuzuriha” (楪) and is located in Ginza.

The other side of the coin

In Japan, alongside hostess clubs, there are also a wide variety of host clubs, which cater to the female population. As well as standard host clubs, there are gay host clubs for the gay community in Shinjuku too.

As always, I hope this helped you on your discovery of all things Japanese!

じゃあね！

Jade xxx