5ch Users Organize Impromptu Drinking Meetup at Ueno Station — “If You Don’t Enjoy Eating and Drinking Together, I Don’t Get You”

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The story

A thread titled “1pm Ueno Drinking Meetup” popped up on 5ch’s News VIP board, with the original poster calling for people to gather at the Midori-no-Madoguchi ticket counter by Ueno Station’s central gates. 5ch has long had a culture of “offline meetups” (offkai), where strangers who only know each other from anonymous posts end up meeting in person, and this was just the latest one. At first, most comments were skeptical — wondering whether anyone would actually show up — but as time passed, more people joined in, and talk turned to booking a yakiniku restaurant or the Torikizoku outlet near Ueno-Hirokoji. The thread saw back-and-forth over how much to budget, exactly where to meet, and which restaurant to pick, and it eventually wrapped up with photos showing how the meetup actually went.

What people said

1AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:03
Meet at 1pm at JR Ueno Station's central gate, by the Midori-no-Madoguchi ticket counter.
I'll be wearing a black hoodie.
17AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:16
How much money do you even have?
18AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:17
Re: #17
For now, budgeting around 10,000 yen.
20AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:24
If you're blocked from posting on 5ch ("gochan") as of October 2026, use this instead:
https://jbbs.shitaraba.net/bbs/read.cgi/internet/7252/1791002577/
21AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:24
Re: #20
If you can't post replies, go here.
26AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:37
I'll head over once a decent number of people have gathered.
27AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:38
Re: #26
If everyone says that, nobody's ever going to show up.
28AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:41
I'll go too. I live close by, so wake me up once there's a decent headcount.
30AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:41
Re: #28, Re: #26
If you two actually showed up that'd already be 3 people.
But guys like you never actually come.
38AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:44
Isn't that sushi place inside the gates a stand-and-eat place?
40AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:45
Re: #38
Looks like they actually have seats.
45AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:50
Ueno's the kind of place where a swarm of regular "named" posters (kotehan — people who post under a fixed handle instead of staying anonymous) show up for their recurring meetups. Makes me not want to go.
47AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:51
Re: #45
There's maybe like ten named posters there, tops.
49AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:52
Is there actually anything fun going on?
Or are you just going to eat?
50AnonymousOct 11, 2026 10:54
Re: #49
If you don't think eating and drinking together is fun, I don't know what to tell you.
54AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:11
Saw the thread's up.
I'm in.
56AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:12
Re: #54
I'll book either yakiniku or sushi.
58AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:14
Re: #54
If you've got a preference, I can book pretty much anywhere.
55AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:11
Ueno, huh…
That's kind of far.
57AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:12
Re: #55
I'll chip in for your train fare at least.
69AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:26
Re: #67
I'll call them at 11:30.
Is a cheap lunch course with all-you-can-drink okay?
71AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:29
Re: #69
Yeah, that works.
77AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:46
Sounds pricier than Gyushige (a cheap izakaya chain).
Guess I'd better withdraw some cash.
79AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:50
Re: #77
5,000 yen's fine.
80AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:51
Re: #77
Or if you manage to get through to Gyushige, feel free to book that instead.
83AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:55
Even if you're running late, it'll still be going for a while, so it's worth coming anyway.
86AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:04
Re: #83
Signal might not reach inside the station, so I'll be waiting at the central gate's Midori-no-Madoguchi counter in a black hoodie.
92AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:16
Already arrived.
98AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:56
Meat's on the grill.
101AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:58
105AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:06

107AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:08
Took a dump and now I'm hungry again.
Wish I'd gone.
118AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:20
Re: #107, Re: #108
Hurry up and get here.
130AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:38
Probably getting there around 2:30pm.
133AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:43
Re: #130
Anything in particular you want to eat?
If not, Saizeriya works.
143AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:24
Re: #130, Re: #131 Sorry, come to the Ueno branch of Banpaiya instead.
144AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:31
Re: #130, Re: #131 Sorry, come to the Ueno branch of Banpaiya instead.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/nj4QSfVR7sVvACQB8
131AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:39
I'll be there around 3:30.
How late is it open until?
139AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:58
You hungry?
Re: #131
140AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:11
Re: #131
At 4pm —
https://maps.app.goo.gl/GDyciwr2iZ5iozS38
booked Torikizoku Ueno-Hirokoji.
145AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:37
Here's their recommended menu.
159AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:29
More people showed up.

Background and key points of this story

5ch has long had a culture of “offline meetups” (offkai), where anonymous posts spark real-life get-togethers between people who’ve never met. The News VIP board is one of the hubs where this originated, and this thread was no exception — it began when the original poster (known as “1”) called for people to gather at the Midori-no-Madoguchi ticket counter by Ueno Station’s central gates. Two main points of contention emerged in the thread. The first was uncertainty over whether anyone would actually show up: against a group of fence-sitters saying they’d “come once enough people gather,” the OP pushed back, pointing out that “if everyone thinks that way, nobody ever will.” The second was cost — when participants asked about budget, the going estimate landed around 5,000 yen per person. One thing readers might easily misunderstand: this wasn’t an event organized by any company or restaurant — it was a private gathering arranged informally by a single poster on an anonymous message board. The meeting spot and restaurant names mentioned reflect what was said at the time of posting and may have changed depending on how the day actually played out.

※This article is an excerpt and summary based on the 5ch (News VIP) thread “1pm Ueno Drinking Meetup.”

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