Character cafes are popular types of themed cafes (think maid cafes and cat cafes) that celebrate different characters from anime and manga. These cafes usually offer limited edition food and drinks. Some are permanent cafes with fixed themes, while others are pop-up cafes or have changing themes. If you are a big fan of anime or manga, it will be a lot of fun to enjoy your meal at a character cafe and buy some character goods to take home. Check out these 5 adorable character cafes in Tokyo to indulge your sweet tooth and meet your favorite characters!
5 Must-Visit Character Cafes in Tokyo
Here are some of the most fun character-themed cafes in Tokyo!
- Kotori Cafe
- Animate Cafe
- Cafe Mugiwara
- Moomin Cafe
- EGG&SPUMA Pop-Up Character Cafe
1. Kotori Cafe
Kotori Cafe is an animal cafe, which is a place that you could enjoy a meal or a cup of coffee while interacting with animals. Kotori means "bird" in Japanese, so if you like birds this is the cafe for you! On their website, you can find a list of their "staff" which shows all the birds’ names and species. The meals are also related to the bird theme. The desserts are served in a birdcage and are placed on a plate with bird patterns. After enjoying the meal, you can spend time with the birds! You definitely cannot resist their cuteness when they step on your finger.
Until June 30th, the cafe will host a collaboration event with the pink rabbit character called Kanahei and a little white bird character called Pisuke. You'll be able to try a unique version of dorayaki, a popular Japanese dessert that made of sweet red bean sandwiched between two pancakes. Instead of red bean, chestnut is used as a filling for the “Parrot and Usagi Dorayaki." The pancake is fluffy and matches perfectly with the chestnut fillings. There are special menus for each shop location. The cafe offers parrot yogurt cakes at the Ueno location and Kanahei souffle in Kichijoji. Kotori Cafe also has a location in Toshima City.
2. Animate Cafe
Die-hard anime fans, you should definitely go to Animate Cafe, one of the best character cafes in Tokyo for anime fans! The themes of the cafe are always being updated, so it's worth going back to more than once. The most recent theme was an anime called Bingo Stray Dogs. You need to enter the online lottery to reserve a seat. After you choose the time and place, you have to wait for the result. The website also shows vacancies, so you can make a reservation and guarantee that you get a seat, though you'll have fewer options.
Stepping into the cafe, you will be immersed in an anime world. The staff members cosplay as anime characters and animation goods are sold on shelves and animation cardboard cutouts are placed everywhere. The Animate Cafe is located in Ikebukuro, close to Animate, which is an anime shop that sells all kinds of anime characters merchandise.
3. Cafe Mugiwara
Cafe Mugiwara is the One Piece library cafe located in Tokyo Tower. Before you enter the cafe, you can take photos with Sanji, a One Piece character. Since all the dishes are themed depending on the One Piece character, you can choose a dish representing your favorite character! There are also birthday events every month. For example, during Perona's birthday month, you can get Perona cards when you order the themed curry rice.
At this One Piece character cafe in Tokyo, you can also get some comics and magazines to read from the bookshelves during your mealtime. The Perona burger contains cheese, bacon, and egg. It is satisfying to have a bite of burger with the crispy “smiling face potato fries” dipped into the tomato sauce. But this dish doesn’t feel greasy with the fresh red leaf lettuce and purple cabbage. Chopper’s Sweet Sakura Latte is topped with strawberry whipped cream and caramel sauce. The iced latte is sweet and refreshing. Then, you can end the meal with fancy themed desserts!
4. Moomin Cafe
Moomin is a character created by Finnish-Swedish artists. It is so popular in Japan that there are two Moomin character cafes in Tokyo. They are located at Tokyo Dome and Skytree Oshiage Complex. The menu at the Moomin Cafe changes seasonally so you will gain a brand new experience every time you visit.
For extra coziness, there are Moomin soft toys placed in every corner of the cafe. The character rice with meat provides a balanced meal with vegetables, tomatoes, eggs, and hashed meat. You can choose Hattifattener or Moomin character rice. But the Moomin House Pancake is the must-try food at the Moomin Cafe. It is a seven-layer pancake decorated with a little model Moomin house (with mousse inside) and garnished with fruits. The pancake is spongy and creamy, but not excessively sweet. With such a fairytale environment and fascinating food, why don’t spend your time here with Moomin?
Check out our blog post about our own Moomin Cafe experience >>
5. EGG&SPUMA Pop-Up Character Cafe
Sanrio is a prominent Japanese company known for creating cute characters. Melody and Kuromi are two of them. Until June 30th, 2019, EGG&SPUMA has the temporary theme: “KUROMI♡MY MELODY." The foods are almost too cute to eat. “Melody’s Cute Omelet Stew” looks like Melody, with her ears made out of bread and pink sauce on the top of the omelet. Want to take some fancy food pictures? Go to this character cafe in Tokyo with your friends and share the tea set together!
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