Riding Japan’s shinkansen bullet trains, some of the fastest trains on this planet, is the highlight for many tourists – but have you ever sat in a coffee shop and sat watching them whiz right past your nose?

I had such an experience when I wandered into Café JUNE in Yurakucho. An ‘”All Round Café” since 1965’, this café embodied an age forgotten. The understated atmosphere momentarily put me off, with dark, wooden chairs clustered around dark, wooden tables. But I was greeted at the entrance by a friendly old waiter who looked as old as the café itself, and as soon as I sat down, I was welcomed by the flawless smiles of waitresses in tuxedos to a background of 70s music. It seemed to be a café popular with businessmen who come for a quick rest and a smoke. As a result, the air was pleasantly musty, enveloping the little chandelier hanging in the centre of the room.

It was all the more because of this quiet, traditional atmosphere that I jumped out of my skin as the gleaming white of the bullet train whooshed by the large French windows, so fast and so close I couldn’t even snap a photograph. It appeared I was seated alongside the elevated train tracks, raised just to the level of the café on the third floor. This surprise entertainment was repeated every few minutes as shinkansens of various lengths and shapes rushed by screeching past the balcony, on to which I had taken my coffee in my enthusiasm.

While inadequate as a mainstream tourist attraction, this modest, retiring little café certainly treated me to an unexpected train-spotting opportunity.

Café JUNE is located on the third floor of Kotsu Kaikan opposite Yurakucho station. Come out of the station using exit nearest the Tokaido Line.