Tag: cafe

A Somewhat Magical Time at the Unicorn Cafe in Bangkok

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A magical land where all dreams come true, serving up rainbow food and more!

Bangkok is a bustling city riddled with markets, temples, food stalls, clubs, red light districts, and many more curious things, so picking exactly where to start your trip here can be challenging.  After doing some thorough research, I finally decided on the perfect place–one that stood out like a gem from the other places in the city.  A magical land in a not-so-faraway place with rainbow food and dangling stuffed unicorns overhead in the pastel sky.  Yes, you guessed it, the very first restaurant I went to in Thailand was the Unicorn Cafe!

Though some of my friends may shun me for not trying something more authentic as my first meal here, my idea was to try the themed cafes first and then go for the authentic food for the best tasting experience.  Additionally, this cafe has mixed reviews that appear with a quick Google search; some stating it’s the most magical place on earth and others refuting it’s most certainly not.  The controversy surrounding this cafe made me even more curious about it, so I decided to come here and witness firsthand exactly how magical it was for myself.

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The great debate on the Unicorn Cafe: Is it the most magical place on earth or not?                        My answer: It’s somewhat magical.

Coming here directly from the Bangkok airport with my luggage in tow, I took a short taxi ride and reached the so-called magical unicorn haven an hour before they closed.  This was actually a really good time, because it wasn’t as crowded as during the rush hour and I could admire all of the unicorns overhead in peace.  It nostalgically reminded me of the old room I had in America growing up in the 90s, except with 10x the unicorns!

Featuring rainbow spaghetti, waffle cones, cupcakes, burgers, and more, the menu is quite dazzling with a lot of different options!  The downside is the price is a bit expensive–you could get a larger quantity of food at the markets just a few streets down from here and at most restaurants in Bangkok.  However, I came here for the novelty of eating rainbow food, and I wasn’t about to back down after coming this far.  After some more debate, I decided on the rainbow unicorn cupcake:

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A unicorn in cupcake form.

My stance on this magical debate is that if you are looking for something different, you will definitely find it here.  This place has a bright and welcoming interior with an English-friendly menu, extremely unique desserts, and unicorns as far as the eye can see.  However, some may be disappointed by the price and lack of healthier options here, not to mention the cafe is normally overly touristy.  Some reviews have questioned the quality of food here, but it’s pretty much the same for all themed restaurants I’ve been to.  I enjoyed my time here, but I agree there are even more magical places to be discovered despite my love for unicorns!

I will be detailing a lot of unique destinations in Bangkok and Phuket in my next series of blogs, so please stay tuned for more.

 

Petting and Holding Otters at Tokyo’s Otter Room Cafe

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Two adorable otters huddle together for comfort at the Otter Room Cafe.

I never thought I’d have the chance to hold an otter out of water, but after almost 4 years of living in Tokyo, I should know that nearly anything is possible! With my recent visit to the Otter Room Cafe in Ikebukero, I learned they are not only adaptable and highly intelligent creatures, but also quite cuddly ones too.  This animal cafe was newly added as an expansion of the Usamimi Cafe that features rabbits, and visitors can choose a timeslot between 30 minutes to an hour to play with either species by submitting a form via email through the official website (JP/EN).

Upon arriving, my friend and I paid 1000 yen for 30 minutes, and were promptly handed an apron, hand sanitizer, and printed English instructions so we could brace ourselves for the otter outbreak.  We were then led to a room where three adorable otters were sleeping in a cage.  When the cage door opened, one of them was placed on our laps!  The otter was so adorable we didn’t even know how to react.

Wanting to see his friends, the otter would crawl on and off the seats and back to us.  Though otters are not intended to be kept as pets, these otters were kept in a very clean area and seemed to be healthy and happy.  It was difficult to take photos of them as they are a bit finicky, but I managed to capture a few.

The three otters we saw were named Gucchan, Taeko, and Wakabarasu.  Though there were a bit sleepy when we saw them in the afternoon, they seemed happy to be together.  Compared to the meerkats I saw in Korea that were quite scrappy, these bunch were very friendly and pleasant to be around.  Please come if you are interested in meeting otters!

One of the Strangest Collaboration Cafes: The Pop Team Epic x Sanrio Cafe

As a person that loves anime and aesthetic food, I have been to many of the strange and unique cafes in Japan.  However, the Pop Team Epic X Sanrio Cafe in Ikebukuro particularly caught my eye due to its hilarious-looking menu items and overall craziness of two unlikely series crossing over!

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Located in the Gourmet Stadium attached to Ikebukuro Station, this cafe is easy to access and requires no reservation.  We came around 3pm on the Saturday after it opened, and only waited 30 minutes to get in which is a very reasonable wait time.

Once inside, we were presented with this very unique menu including burgers of the Pop Team Epic characters cosplaying Hello Kitty, drinks containing cheese, the classic anime cafe parfait, and my personal favorite–corn on pancakes with an anime face and side of Pompompurin pudding:

The food was definitely very strange, but overall delicious.  I enjoyed the parfait because it had a crepe wrapped around it and also contained some delicious chocolate jello and whipped cream!  I did not have the courage to try the corn, but the pudding and pancakes were very creamy.  I would definitely recommend coming here for some desserts!

There was also a little souvenir shop with buttons, pins, and T-shirts!  I could not resist this adorable keychain of Pompompurin DJing:

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This cafe is running from February 7, 2019 – April 14, 2019.  As previously implied, I would recommend coming her for the lulz.

A Magical Time at the Wizarding World: Harry Potter x Fantastic Beasts Café in Tokyo

When I first started teaching in Japan 3 years ago, I was very surprised at how popular Harry Potter was here! Thanks to the Harry Potter attraction at Universal Studios Japan, the world of Hogwarts has captured the hearts of many people. I’ve loved the series since I was young, but I never imagined that I’d be going to a themed café in Shinjuku collaborating with HP and the new Fantastic Beasts movie that just came out!

Though the cafe space was actually quite small because it was located on the 5th floor of the Shinjuku MYLORD department store, it definitely had a magical atmosphere you wouldn’t find elsewhere in Tokyo!

My friend and I waited 2 hours in line to enter on a Sunday afternoon in early December because there was no online reservation system (unlike many other temporary theme cafés here), but we thought it was well worth the wait. Perhaps if you are just here on vacation you might think it’s a waste of time, but we’ve both lived in Tokyo for a while and are used to the long waits.

The cafe included a display case with autographs of Dumbledore’s Army, and also had Dan Folger (who plays Jacob from Fantastic Beasts) on the wall with the text WHO WILL CHANGE THE FUTURE?

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A very charming message indeed! My friend and I decided to try some of the desserts out. Me, being the flashy one, decided to order the Dumbledore Profiteroles with a chibi character print, a syringe filled with chocolate, and a pot of water to pour on the ice to produce a spell-like effect:

 

Maybe it wasn’t as cool as the Sorting Hat, but the creampuffs and fruits were delicious and I definitely felt like I was at the Hogwarts dining table!

Next, we ordered the Newt’s Pancakes that we’re topped with cotton candy and delicious maple syrup!

I have tried a number of fluffy pancakes in Japan before, but this was my first time trying them topped with cotton candy!

As for drinks, I ordered the Slytherin green tea one with whipped cream (even though I’m Gryffindor, I enjoy this flavor more) and my friend ordered the Chupacabra Calpico Milk. These drinks were better than average because they were blended and some of them even contained fruit!

You can see the fill food and drink menu listed below. Since my friend and I both don’t eat meat, we skipped the main dishes but I was very satisfied with both desserts we tried (that cost around 1200 yen).

The themed drinks were all 800 yen, but I think they were worth it! I would have ordered more if I wasn’t induced by a sugar overload!

This Café is available from November 9th 2018 – January 31st 2019. What makes me curious is the food item silhouettes on the first menu that say “Coming Soon”… Perhaps I will have to venture into this Wizarding World once again to see what they are!! This experience is highly recommended.

Eating Mutant Fruit Cakes at Kajitsuen

As a lover of all aesthetic foods (especially sweets), this cake at Kajitsuen immediately caught my eye with it’s beautifully pink-glazed icing stuffed with whipped cream and freshly cut strawberries of all shapes and sizes. From the outside, it looks like a regular frosted cake, but it actually has the same texture as angel food cake (which goes way better with fruit, in my opinion). Not to mention that perfect strawberry on top! It tasted fresh and simply amazing.

The price for cake by the slice was a bit steep compared to other cafés (1200円) but considering how expensive fruit is in Japan, I’d say the quality was worth it.

As you can see, these cakes are beautifully crafted and have a unique mutant-like appearance with the large slices of fruit.

Unfortunately I didn’t have the appetite or the budget to try more than one slice, but if I come back I’m definitely interested in the grape and strawberry green tea flavors.

What I liked about this fruit parlor is it had a large menu of just plain slices fruit, parfaits, pancakes, cakes, and even triangular watermelon!

That is definitely something you don’t see everyday. The other widely known and most famous fruits parlor in Japan is called TAKANO, and here’s a strawberry cake I recently bought from them in comparison:

Though it looks huge from this picture, it was actually quite small! I think TAKANO is a bit more expensive, and though they have a larger selection of fruits and more stores, I would say that the cakes are best at Kajitsuen.

If you love fruit and sweets, then definitely check out a fruits parlor at least once during your trip here!

Some of the Strangest Sushi I’ve tried in Japan

I’ll admit when I first started eating sushi, I wasn’t very adventurous at all. I’d stick to the basic avocado and cucumber rolls, maybe get wild sometimes with the omelet nigiri, but it wasn’t until many drunken nights out later that I daringly started picking sushi off the conveyor belt.

Behold, 2 of the best tentacle sushi that I have ever eaten (squid and octopus):

My favorite kind of tentacle sushi is slightly cooked (not fried), and glazed in soy sauce. The texture of tentacles is definitely more chewy than regular fish served in nigiri, but for whatever I enjoy the taste of it more. You could say I have a thing for food tentacle porn.

Additionally, there was another sushi called “Black kite kid”, which I find very interesting because Black Kites are actually birds.

It was actually surprisingly delicious. The topping actually tasted like slightly minced fish eggs (which took me a while to acquire a taste for), and was slightly seasoned. Whether it was actually fish or bird–it tasted amazing!

Since I was already a 500ml bottle of sake in, I decided to dive even deeper into the strange sushi realm and pick up this green sushi that looks abhorrent at first glance but actually tasted amazing:

If I was sober, I would have never picked this up off the conveyer belt (and it had been rotating around for quite some time already), but I was in the mood for something different than your typical nigiri or maki so I boldly grabbed this one. If memory serves correct, it was avocado spread and some kind of minced octopus. I really hit the jackpot that hit my tastebuds! I promptly ordered 2 more plates afterwards and my friends thought that I was crazy, but I am not at all ashamed of my tastes.

Quite buzzed and full, but wanting to end my meal on a good note with the Neon flying squid.

No, I did not see colors, but yes, the Neon Genesis Evangelion theme started playing in my head. At that time, I knew it was time to start heading back. All of these sushi dishes were extremely affordable and high quality compared to other kaiten sushi chains.

If you’re craving something that’s both familiar but also has some variety, then I highly recommend going to Kaisen Misakiko in Shinjuku because you won’t be disappointed!

Also worth mentioning, on Halloween in Shibuya, I was served chirashi sushi in a pumpkin at one of the popular Genki Sushi chains:

Life can be pretty surprising sometimes. I recommend that you try as many new things as you can because you might actually surprise yourself and find some food you really like! I evolved from a strict vegetarian diet in the states to a more healthy pescatarian diet here in Japan.

As for tips on how to work up the nerve to try new things? Drink a lot of sake with a group of Japanese friends and all order dishes together! Being intoxicated has made me more fearless when it comes to trying food, but I still have yet to try natto. Someday! Many aesthetic food journeys await!

Getting that Bread at LeBRESSO Café

As the primary breadwinner of my family (consisting of my cat and I), I take a lot of pride in feasting on a delicious roll. That includes baguettes, melonpan, cheesy bread, dessert bread, and whatever else I can find in my aesthetic food journeys. I recently stumbled upon LeBRESSO Café in Musashi-Koyama Tokyo, and was delighted at the vast selection of traditional and custom-made toasts they had.

The menu consisted of traditional buttered toast, salad toast, customizable toppings such as almonds paired with chocolate and various fruit spreads, as well as fish (for the less sweet and more salad-like toasts)!

The one that caught my attention was a very unique toast inspired by the fall season: sweet potato ice cream toast.

Now there’s something you don’t see everyday. What I love about sweet potatoes in Japan is that they’re purple with yellow filling instead of brown and orange like in America. It sure is a whole different world out here!

The toast was absolutely scrumptious–freshly baked that morning with the perfect amount crispness in every bite. The sweet potato was also softly baked and topped with just a tiny bit of vanilla ice cream with cinnamon sprinkled on it. It was absolutely amazing! Perfect for this beautiful fall weather (in December, nonetheless).

Eager for more, I then decided to go for the vegetable curry toast. Given that the average one costs around 500 yen–well worth the price for the quality, in my opinion–you can eat 2 toasts and become pretty full.

Once again, I was amazed at the creativity and flavor that was packed into this bread. The curry wasn’t very spicy and had a pleasant mild taste. I wasn’t sure exactly what vegetables they chose to use, but I tasted carrots and green peppers. This tasted even better than hummus spread to me!

Next time you rise and grind in Tokyo, be sure to treat yourself to that bread. You can’t go wrong here at LeBRESSO (- Product of Japan -).

Dominique Ansel Bakery in Tokyo: Creatively Crafted Sweets and Desserts

Over the course of my nearly 3 years in Japan, I’ve been to many bakeries, but my favorite recently has been the Dominique Ansel Bakery located right off the main streets of Harajuku. This bakery creatively crafts sweets, breads, and desserts with influences from all over the world, and is arguably most famous for their blowtorched frozen s’more:

With a delicious and melted marshmallow exterior, the inside contains sweet vanilla ice cream and is in my opinion, the world’s best s’more. Besides this delectable treat, they also have many other sweets you can order for around 400~800 yen each:

A huge variety of sweets and breads to choose from! All of them have a beautiful design and unique flavor!
My personal favorite: The Magnolia Cake! Not only did it have a beautiful design, but it had some really good lemon cream inside.
The square watermelon cake. I bought this one for pure meme factor. Who needs to buy a $200 square watermelon when you could have this beautiful glazed cake?
Tomato bread filled with basil! I was surprised because I thought it was a cake, but it tasted just as good as one!
The infamous frozen s’more after it was blowtorched. It’s gooey, filled with ice cream, and served on a plastic stick to make it feel authentic.
Last but not least, a cookie shot to finish everything off! There is a chocolate layer around the cup so when you eat/drink it, the milk turns chocolate!

Everything that was displayed here looked absolutely delicious–almost like works of art! So whatever sweet you choose to order, it’s hard to go wrong! There may be a wait to get inside due to this bakery’s popularity, but luckily there are a lot of tables and tons of shopping nearby to do if you don’t feel like waiting.

I will be back in the future to see what other aesthetic food items they add!

Mameshiba Cafe in Harajuku, Japan

It goes without saying that Shibas are the most beloved breed of dog in Japan. From the Hachiko statue in Shibuya, to the many memes of them that have surfaced of them the internet, it’s no surprise that Mameshiba Cafe would be opened in Harajuku where many tourists and shoppers flock. Not being able to resist the urge of to pet these adorable dogs, my friend and I decided to go visit!

The cafe is quite popular now, but they have a well-organized ticketing system to make sure that everyone gets in. You go up the stairs, pay the entrance fee of 1350 yen (a little more expensive than other animal cafes, but perhaps these dogs cost more to take care of), then are handed a numbered ticket. We went on a crowded Saturday so we had to wait for 2 hours, but luckily we could go shopping and come back! The cafe is in central Takeshita Street so fortunately there are many things to do!

Though we only had 30 minutes to play with the dogs, the atmosphere was happy, relaxed, and you could see the dogs were too! You are able pet them and take non-flash photography, but you are not able to hold them. What’s interesting is all of the dogs were female. Mameshibas are shibas that are tinier than average, so that made them all the more cuter!

Taking pictures of them was hard because they move around so much, but it kind of like felt like playing Pokémon Snap! They had adorable huge plus shibas as well as keychains for sale. I would say I enjoyed this cafe more than other animal cafes, because sometimes the animals aren’t as social. Being with these doggos definitely boosted my mood, so if you have time, I think you should go!

Botanist Cafe: Very Aesthetic Smoothies

Continuing the sunflower theme from the last post, here is a very aesthetic sunflower smoothie I had at the newly opened Botanist Cafe in Tokyo:

I had originally walked by this cafe in Omotesando, and watched a video from Red Duck Post that claimed that these smoothies were “anti-aging” and and figured that this was just another big marketing ploy for this shop to sell their beauty products, but I was pleasantly surprised. This smoothie was absolutely delicious!

Composed with pineapple, tiny pieces of crushed cookies, a surprise layer of caramel chips, and what appeared to be some type of whipped cream–I truly enjoyed eating it!

It was a bit expensive (maybe around 1000円) but fun just for the experience, and the service was fantastic too. I’m naturally drawn to aesthetic things, so I’m happy I tried this!