Tokyo Yakatabune — Dinner Cruise on Sumida River

Yakatabune (屋形船) are low-slung wooden boats with tatami floors and sliding paper windows that have been hauling partying Tokyoites up and down the Sumida River since the Edo period. The modern versions added engines and electric lights, but the concept hasn't changed: you take off your shoes, sit cross-legged on cushions, and spend 2.5 hours eating tempura and drinking beer while the boat putters past the city's lit-up landmarks.

The boats hold 20-50 people depending on the operator. You're eating with strangers unless you book the whole boat, which costs enough that most people don't. Waitstaff in happi coats shuffle around the tatami delivering courses — sashimi first, then tempura fried in the boat's tiny galley (you can smell the oil), grilled fish, rice, miso soup, fruit for dessert. The tempura comes out hot and crispy because they fry it 10 feet from your table. It's better than it has any right to be for boat food.

Drinks are all-you-can-drink for the cruise duration: Asahi and Kirin on tap, sake in ceramic carafes, shochu with soda, and soft drinks. The drinking starts the moment you board, and by the time the boat passes Rainbow Bridge, the crowd gets loud. Salarymen loosen their ties. Someone always stands up to toast the table. The boat rocks gently enough that you forget you're on water until someone tries to walk to the bathroom and wobbles.