"Ken Blake" wrote in message
...
We have a new Japanese restaurant that recently opened near us.
They serve something they call "box sake." Instead of the usual
small decanter, they pour into a an open-topped wooden box, about
three inches square, from which you then drink. The sake is
supposedly enhanced by the taste of the wood.

Has anyone ever seen this before?

Often in Japan. Rarely in the U.S.

Did this place make this up, or
is it common elsewhere and I just didn't know of it?

It is common in certain settings in Japan such as receptions or ceremonies .
.. . the "cup" will often be printed with information about the event. One I
hung onto was from when AEA opened their Tokyo office in the mid-1980s. I
have never these cups in general use in a neighborhood izakaya, for example.
Get a bit of a buzz on and they are tough to use unless you don't mind
spilling sake all over.