A UNIQUE fitness themed bar filled with muscle bound women who are paid to slap punters is attracting people from around the globe.
Muscle Girls Bar in Japan employs women with bulging muscles to slap customers around, kick them and carry them in their arms.
The Tokyo-based bar is staffed by strong waitresses, including Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners, fitness influencers, professional wrestlers and actresses.
Customers can exchange Japanese yen for so-called muscle coins, with the costs of individual services as much as 30,000 yen or £163.
Guests can watch waitresses crush grapefruits with their bare hands to make the bar’s most popular cocktails.
For a fee, customers can also ride on their shoulders while they perform squats, with charges varying based on the customer’s weight.
Bar manager Hari, a former fitness influencer on YouTube, opened the venue in 2020 after her gym closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
A keen volleyball player since her childhood, Hari said she was confident about her slapping strength and technique.
A map of the world on a wall in the bar reveals the international nature of its clientele, with visitors hailing from Denmark, Mexico, and Germany, among other places.
Hari said: “After slapping an Australian customer, word spread, and his friends came specifically for the slapping service.”
One waitress, Maru, who weighs approximately 50kg, can lift and carry – princess style – a 130kg man.
Meanwhile, Hikaru, a Japanese male customer, smiled after being slapped and said: “The pain made me forget all my worries.”
Woman customer Samantha Low expressed her admiration for the staff, saying that they break the stereotype of Japanese women being frail and petite.
She said: “I feel very free and liberated in this bar.”
The bar has prompted much discussion on social media.
One person said: “Women need to put in more effort than men to build muscle.
“I admire these muscular girls.”
Another said: “Being slapped is a very unique way to relieve stress”
Some took a different view: “I can’t understand why anyone would go to a bar to experience physical pain.
“This is crazy.”
Japan is no stranger to themed businesses, it is also home to maid cafes, laboratory-themed bars and ninja restaurants.
The trend is also being copied in China, such as the academic-themed bar in Shanghai which gained popularity among young people after opening in July.
