Hours:
Friday + Saturday 1 - 11 pm;
Sunday 12 - 10 pm
Special Note about hours of Shofuso Japanese House & Garden during Parks on Tap: The Japanese House itself will be open for extended hours until 6 pm each day for a special $5 admission. The Japanese garden will be FREE admission and will stay open until 8:30pm. After that, you can look at the beautiful grounds with your beer until Parks on Tap closes, but cannot go in to that section. Thanks!
About:
Shofuso Japanese House and Garden is a traditional-style Japanese house and nationally-ranked garden in Philadelphia’s West Fairmount Park that reflects the history of Japanese culture in Philadelphia, from the 1876 Centennial Exposition to present day.
The garden offers a koi pond, teahouse garden, and courtyard garden as well as the Sakura Pavilion which hosts various events. The Japanese House and Garden was conceived as part of an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Designed by Japanese mid-century modernist architect Junzo Yoshimura in 1953, the house was built in Nagoya, Japan, using traditional materials and techniques. The house was part of “The House in the Museum Garden” series, which exhibited three different types of structures that influenced mid-century modern American architecture. Shofuso was the last structure in the exhibit and was moved to Philadelphia at its conclusion in 1954. Shofuso was reassembled at the current site in 1957-58, where there has been a continuous Japanese presence since the 1876 Centennial Exposition, when the first Japanese garden in North America was installed behind a small Japanese bazaar.
Events in the Park:
All weekend - special hours & deals at Shofuso: FREE admission to the garden and special $5 for admission into the house! And house will stay open until 6 pm each day of Parks on Tap.
All weekend at 5 p.m. CoZara and Zama Chef Zama Tanaka will be serving Japanese street food including Temake Hand Rolls and Chicken Skins at their exclusive pop up. PLUS we will have cucumber ginger sake cocktails and Zama sake shots!
7/9: Family Tanabata weekend: 11:00am to 5:00pm. This full day of activities includes Japanese storytelling, musical instrument demonstrations, origami, and calligraphy. Free with admission into the Shofuso house.
7/9: Maha Yoga at Parks on Tap: 12:00pm to 1:00pm (pay what you can)
7/10: Family Tanabata weekend: 11:00am to 5:00pm. This full day of activities includes Japanese storytelling, musical instrument demonstrations, origami, and calligraphy. Free with admission into the Shofuso house. Click here for a full schedule.
7/10: Japanese Tea ceremony: 1:00 to 2:00pm. $30 for non-members and $25 for members—reservations required
- 7/10: Japanese Tea ceremony: 2:30 to 3:30pm. $30 for non-members and $25 for members—reservations require
Indego Bike Station:
4601 Parkside Avenue
Public Transportation:
Accessible via SEPTA Bus Route 38 at Lansdowne Drive and Belmont Avenue. Also via SEPTA Bus Routes 40, 43, 64 at 49th and Parkside.
Parking:
The closest parking is the free parking lot located on Horticultural Drive.
