HOSHINOYA Kyoto has introduced a new hotel plan in an attempt to bring a little luxury into people’s lives and lift their spirit during this stressful time. The plan will have people going to Arashiyama to experience a bit of Kyoto culture and hospitality to lift their mood.

You will board a small boat located at the port near the hotel entrance and be taken to your private room. During your sail, you will be able to soak in the gorgeous sights of nature all around. Check-in is being carried out in guest rooms, meaning you won’t have to come into contact with other guests.

You have arrived at your room. HOSHINOYA Kyoto is located in Arashiyama which was formerly a holiday home destination for the Heian aristocrats. There are 25 rooms inside the garden, all of which look out onto the Ōi River. When you slide the window open, you can feel the gentle wind sweep through the valleys. Guest room walls are plastered with beautiful traditional kyokarakami wallpaper and fitted with HOSHINOYA Kyoto-original tatami sofas. Each and every part of the rooms are imbued with Kyoto culture. The rooms are not only comfortable and provide you with everything you need, but also offer a luxurious stay.

Inside your room, there are sutras which can be used for sutra copying, known as sakyou in Japanese, as well as equipment for making matcha to enjoy your own private tea ceremony without having to worry about the tradition’s strict rooms. It’s your very own private Kyoto cultural experience without having to worry about other people.

Dinner can be enjoyed in the main dining hall or in your room. The dining hall is fitted with semi-private booths where you can enjoy a seasonal Arashiyama 9 course kaiseki-ryori dinner with rice, vegetables, a special bento assortment, and more. For breakfast you can enjoy a morning hot pot which uses a special dashi stock packed full of seasonal veggies.

There are also activities to enjoy Kyoto’s breathtaking green outdoors. Mosquito nets made from Japanese red cedar are provided under which you can take part in a stretch routine which uses breathing techniques and meditation.

Outdoor activities are severely restricted right now as a result of COVID-19, but HOSHINOYA Kyoto has made it so you don’t have to do much moving around at all while still enjoying the fruits of nature.

HOSHINOYA Kyotoーthe Arashiyama-based hotel where every room offers a river viewーis launching a new kaiseki multi-course dinner this summer which offers the chance to enjoy the early summer breeze together with the spectacular views of the rainy season. Served with nine dishes, the kaiseki meal will be available between June 1 to July 31 this year.

The days of June in Japan are hot that the month itself also goes by the name minazuki which translates to “the month without water.” However, the evenings are enjoyed for their cool and refreshing air, and so June is also known as suzukurezuki, or “the month of cool dusk.” Not only will guests be able to enjoy the refreshing feeling of the season, but their kaiseki meal will be inspired by the sights of the rainy season, as well as the verdant smells of early summer, too, adding an extra level of freshness.

HOSHINOYA Kyoto’s dining concept goes by the name Gomi Jizai, which has people enjoying all five different tastes: sweet, salty, spicy, sour, and bitter. Ichiro Kubota, the Executive Chef at HOSHINOYA Kyoto, has truly honed his cooking abilities over the course of his career. His father was the head chef at one of the most famous restaurants in Kyoto’s Gion district. It was there that Kubota really began to learn his craft, and he went on to work at first-class and Michelin star restaurants in both Japan and abroad. He has set the standard for Japanese cuisine for the next generation.

Suzukurezuki Appetisers: See and taste early summer with a Hassun dish

A hassun is a kind of dish or tray often used in kaiseki course meals to serve numerous different foods. This hassun is inspired by Nagoshi no Harae, an ancient and traditional summer purification ritual that takes place at temples and shrines in Kyoto in June. It includes goma-dofu, a food similar to tofu made with crushed sesame seeds that’s eaten as a confection during Nagoshi no Harae to cool yourself down during the hot month of June.

It also comes with sweetfish dashi and watershield for that added feeling of coolness, as well as hotarukan which looks like fireflies gathered in the bamboo grass, and a texture-laden bamboo shoot and smoked salmon wrap.

Cool Kamo-nasu Eggplant Assortment: Sweet early summer vegetable appetisers

For appetisers, guests can look forward to some refreshing early summer vegetables, including kamo-nasu eggplant that’s been mixed in lots of dashi, fried, and seasoned with eggplant to elevate the sweetness and combined with ice cream. There’s also red sea urchin which is rich in sweetness, ginger foam, and new lotus root for bite. The bowl it’s all served is made by Nobuyoshi Sasaki and features a lace design. The use of glass serves to enhance that level of freshness from the food.

Conger Eel Hanami: Recreating a hydrangea Hanami in a bowl

The bowl includes fatty conger eel which is topped with more conger eel that has been minced as well as arrowroot daffodils to make it look like blossoming hydrangeas. It is said that conger eels that drink the water at the end of the rainy season become more delicious. Gion Matsuri, a festival held in Kyoto in July, is also called Hamo (conger eel) Matsuri. The dish also includes bonito, tuna, and kombu.

Young Fried & Salted Sweetfish: Smell the verdant fragrances with fried food

Sweetfish is a popular ingredients during early summer in Japan, and this one has been salted and fried. Sweetfish (ayu in Japanese) is also known as kougyo in Japan which means “fragrant fish.” It’s known for its fresh smell which is likened to that of greenery. It’s fried on a charcoal fire for some time which makes the head and tail smell incredible.焼

Cherry Mille-Feuille: A dessert gift from the early summertime

The crowning cherry of this dessert is smothered in acacia honey and then roasted, locking in all of that sweetness. The dessert is made with fresh cream, almond biscuit, and custard cream, all of which is layered to create a multi-textured pie. It’s served with a tonka bean ice cream. Tonka beans come from the same rose family as cherries, meaning they work wonders together.

Kyo no Ondokoro Marutamachi is set to open in the Goshominami area of Kyoto on April 25, 2020. The single-accommodation hotel is a complete renovation of a traditional Kyoto-style townhouse.

Kyo no Ondokoro Marutamachi comes as the 7th branch of hotels from Kyo no Ondokoro. It’s a single building to rent for up to 4 people, who can enjoy taking a soak in the man-made carbonated spring bath which is kind to the skin and hair, using the soft water shower, and getting ready in the spacious makeup corner. It’s the perfect getaway for girl groups travelling together.

The hotel is in a convenient location for sightseeing in the ancient capital of Kyoto. The building has been completely renovated to adapt to modern lifestyle while still retaining those traditional elements of a Kyoto townhouse that was built during the Meiji Periodーand in an area that’s rich in traditional scenery.

The lounge space sofa seats are inspired by Japanese rock gardens

The lounge space, which connects the second-floor bedrooms and the washitsu Japanese-style room, are furnished with unique round sofas. All the rooms open up to each other so guests can enjoy the company of each other during their travel stay.

Hinoki cypress artificial carbonated spring bath

Amenities

The round bath is made from hinoki cypress, and the carbonated water lets you stay glowing and nice and warm after you step out of it. The bathroom is also stocked full of amenities like shampoo courtesy of popular brand THREE.

Up to four people can apply their makeup together in the makeup corner

The makeup corner is big enough to sit four people so they can get ready for their day or night out together while chatting.

Colourful art pieces also adorn the walls of the makeup room, Japanese-style room and elsewhere to add a touch of beauty to them.

If you’re planning a trip to Kyoto with the girls then why not book at Kyo no Ondokoro Marutamachi when it opens on April 25?

“HARAJUKU AR BOX -table projection mapping cafe-,” a cafe in Harajuku whose name speaks for itself, has announced its second collaboration with Rilakkuma to bring the new Rilakkuma Fruits Cafe which will open for a limited time from April 3, 2020 to June 28, 2020.

The cafe’s first collaboration with Rilakkuma was in December last year. It was called “Korilakkuma Cafe: another me in the mirror” and earned itself many fans for its cute food and decor, but especially for its interactive tables which used projection mapping technology to have Rilakkuma and friends running around people’s tables.

Harajuku’s Korilakkuma Cafe: another me in the mirror | Food Review: https://www.moshimoshi-nippon.jp/284456

Fruit is the theme of the new Rilakkuma Fruits Cafe, which follows that Chairoikoguma and the other characters have gathered lots of nutritious fruit to fill up the belly of hungry Rilakkuma.

Food

Rilakkuma’s Fruit Salad – ¥1,590

Get your fill of refreshing fruit from this fruit salad plate which has Rilakkuma poking his cute face out from behind it all. When you order this dish, you’ll need to touch the fruits that appear on the table to give them to Rilakkuma.

Korilakkuma’s Apple Cheese Gratin – ¥1,690

A combination of hot apple and melted cheese, you’ll find yourself addicted to the sweet and sour mix of flavours. Pick lots of apples with Rilakkuma and company with the projection mapping game. (*Serving April 3, 2020 – May 17, 2020 only)

Chairoikoguma’s Orange Burger – ¥1,690

The bun of this hearty burger is branded with Chairokoguma’s cute bear face. But what happens when you squeeze Rilakkuma’s orange? (*Serving May 20, 2020 – June 28, 2020 only)

Desserts

Rilakkuma’s Maku Maku Fruit Tree Parfait – ¥1,590

Korilakkuma’s Maku Maku Strawberry Tree Parfait – ¥1,590 (Serving April 3, 2020 – May 17, 2020 only)

Kiiroitori’s Maku Maku Peach Tree Parfait – ¥1,590 (Serving May 20, 2020 – June 28, 2020 only)

For dessert, you have a selection of fruit-topped parfaits to choose from featuring Rilakkuma, Korilakkuma, and Kiiroitori.

Drinks

Rilakkuma & Friends Maku Maku Drinks – ¥790 / With Glass – ¥1,990

Warm & Fluffy With Everyone Cafe Latte – ¥890

Pick between one of the cold beverages, or if it’s a cold day, warm up with a hot drink. Feel warm and fluffy like Rilakkuma and his friends with a warm beverage after your parfait.

Exclusive Merchandise & Bonus Items

Pin Badges (9 Designs/Chosen Randomly) – ¥400

Acrylic Key Rings (8 Designs/Chosen Randomly) – ¥500

Get your hands on a selection of original merchandise too, including pin badges, acrylic key rings, and more.

Stickers (4 Designs/Chosen Randomly)

Coasters (4 Designs/Chosen Randomly)

Book a table online in advance and receive one of four possible stickers. Order a drink at the cafe and get one of the four coasters!

You’re sure to get your five-a-day when you dine at the Rilakkuma Fruits Cafe, opening for spring on April 3, 2020 in Harajuku.

©2020San-X Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

Sanrio’s popular character Pompompurin is celebrating his 24th anniversary at three branches of the Pompompurin Cafe in Harajuku, Yokohama, and Umeda with a special birthday menu that will be served for the whole month of April.

A special celebratory menu for the floppy-eared golden retriever

The official date for Pompompurin’s birthday is April 16. The birthday menu line-up includes two food items, a drink made in collaboration with popular Japanese picture book author Yukako Ohde, and some novelty gifts.

Birthday Menu

Happy Birthday Flower Bouquet Bisque – ¥1,590 (Before Tax)

This cute bisque soup has Pompompurin and Muffin holding a colourful boquet made from broccoli and mashed potatoes made to look like roses. It has a rich but mild flavour, and is both adorable and filling.

Happy Birthday Strawberry Mousse – ¥790 (Before Tax)

The strawberry mousse has a fluffy texture and refreshing, sweet taste. It can be eaten as it is or drizzled with the accompanying raspberry sauce.

Yukako Ohde x Pompompurin Lemonade – ¥550 (Before Tax)

Take a sip from this delicious lemonade from a straw adorned with a cute, warm illustration of Pompompurin by Yukako Ohde.

Exclusive Anniversary Novelty Gifts

Lunch Mat Design

Customers who dine at any of the three cafes during the anniversary celebration will receive a free lunch mat.

Coaster Designs

And those who order the lemonade will receive a coaster with designs illustrated by Yukako Ohde. The designs are different at each branch of the Pompompurin Cafe. You can also receive another special coaster if you spend over ¥1,000 each (tax included) at Pompompurin Cafe Umeda and KIDDY LAND Osaka Umeda. Simply show your receipts at the cafe.

©1996,2020 SANRIO CO., LTD. APPROVAL NO.S605291

Bread, Espresso & is a cafe chain with 17 branches in Japan, including Omotesando. The company is set to open an entirely new cafeーspecialising in Bread, Espresso &’s popular mū breadーcalled mūya on April 17, 2020 in Asakusa Mizumachi.

Bread, Espresso &: https://www.moshimoshi-nippon.jp/254815

Mizumachi is a new shopping centre also opening on April 17, 2020. It’s near Solamachi in Tokyo Skytree Town, and sits betwixt Kaminarimon and Tokyo Skytree.

mū

Mū is an original bread recipe baked up by Bread, Espresso & that’s made with lots of butter, giving it a rich taste. The word means “soft” in French. When you break a piece off the fluffy loaf, that rich buttery smell fills your nose.

inside the cafe

The mū loaf is a cube shape, and the interior of the shop has cube designs all over it.

Customers sit at tables with chairs that stack up like cubes – a unique and original design.

French toast

Mū is the main dish at mūya, which can be served as it is, as a sandwich, as French toast, or even in a parfait.

When you’re passing through Asakusa, be sure to pop into mūya to try the famous mū bread of Bread, Espresso &.

GELATO PIQUE CAFE branches in Japan began their “Strawberry Fair” on Wednesday serving up drinks and desserts made using seasonal strawberries.

What is GELATO PIQUE CAFE all about?
“Desserts for adults” is the concept at GELATO PIQUE CAFE, a cafe brand developed by GELATO PIQUE which specialises is comfy loungewear. The cafe, which has branches in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and elsewhere in Japan, serves comfort food and is interested in the health and happiness of its guests. Their menu is overflowing with ideas, with all options made using only the best selected ingredients.

The enticing line-up is nothing short of kawaii, and screams springtimeーfitting for the season as Japan celebrated Vernal Equinox Day yesterday, the first day of springーwith sweet and sour strawberries adorning their crepes, smoothies, gelatos, soft serve ice creams, and more.

Strawberry Mille Feuille Crepe – ¥830 (Before Tax)

Topped with a whole strawberry, this mille feuille-inspired seasonal crepe is made with an in-house crafted strawberry cream, mille feuille puff pastry, and vanilla gelato. The strawberries used are a mix, all grown in Kumamoto Prefecture, including yuubeni, koinozomi, koiminori, and others. Much love and care is put into growing strawberries in Kumamoto, making them sweet and delicious.

White Strawberry & Red Strawberry Gelato – ¥460 (Before Tax)

This two-coloured serving of gelato ice cream is made with sweet-smelling white strawberries and a brand of red strawberry from Fukuoka called amaou. No strawberry lover will be able to resist this pick.

Strawberry Smoothie – ¥590 (Before Tax)

Enjoy a cold strawberry smoothie made from seasonal strawbs, milk, and honey. Indulge in the refreshing sweetness of the strawberries, and enjoy the cute pink flavour of the beverage.

Strawberry Milk Soft Serve Ice Cream – ¥450 (Before Tax)

Or grab yourself a cone of soft serve ice cream to enjoy the combination of flavours: sweet and sour strawbs and sweet, creamy milk.You can also get a mix together with the light blue vanilla flavour.

Shirasagi Coffee, a cafe in Ehime Prefecture, has released a new seasonal menu full of strawberries and cherry blossoms to commemorate the spring season.

Shirasagi Coffee’s logo features a heron, a reference to a legend that says the locals of Matsuyama in Ehime noticed that a white heron healed its injured leg by bathing in the hot springs of Dōgo Onsen, one of the oldest hot springs in  Japan. The cafe was renovated using furniture made from scrap wood from when Dōgo Onsen was built. It’s an artistic cafe that has garnered much attention from both locals and tourists.

Thick-Cut Natural Yeast Toast

This thick-sliced bread is provided by Panya Uzu, a bread shop also in Matsuyama, Ehime. Perfect for breakfast or lunch, it’s topped with a cherry blossom jam and mascarpone cheese cream.

Top: Cream Soda / Right: Cherry Blossom Tea Latte / Left: Cherry Blossom & Strawberry Mint Sour

This line-up of three drinks are made using seasonal strawberries grown in Ehime Prefecture.

Sweet Bavarois

Bavarois is a classic dessert at Shirasagi Coffee, and this one is made using matcha grown in the village of Shingu in Ehime and is coated in a cherry blossom cream.

Spring Madonna Parfait

This limited-time parfait is stacked with 12 different ingredients of varying textures and flavours, including cherry blossom, as well as Ehime strawberries, chestnuts, and matcha. It’s the culmination of Ehime’s springtime ingredients.

Takeout Drinks

Mini Parfait

The cafe also serves mini parfaits, drinks and other items for takeout. Pick something out and go and observe the cherry blossoms for Hanami at Dōgo Park.

In Vietnamese cuisine, a Bánh mi is a baguette stuffed with various ingredients and served as a sandwich. It’s a popular meal in Vietnam, and in recent years has seen an appearance in Japan.

Bánh mi Tokyo opened in Gaiemmae, Tokyo on March 16, 2020. They serve bánh mi with a Japanese taste, and their bread is made from 100% rice flour with no artificial flavourings or purified sugar.

Bánh mi are generally made with lard or margarine, but at Bánh mi Tokyo, they are made with with ingredients with good-quality oil content like rice koji sweet sake and nuts, which give them a richness and creaminess and remove things like trans-fats that are a burden on the body. This also greatly cuts calories and other fats too.

Mackerel Curry Bánh Mi

All bánh mi overflow with original flavours, from the chicken-filled “Standard Bánh Mi” to the “Mackerel Curry Bánh Mi” which is made with curry flavoured grilled mackerel, “Five Spice Char Siu Bánh Mi” stuffed with juicy pork belly, and more.

Bánh mi Tokyo also serves high-quality original coffees which are a must-try together with your bánh mi

MUUN SEOUL is a cafe located along Tonchan-dori Street in Harajuku that serves Instagram-worthy South Korean food.

Photo by Nagisa Kobayashi @popo_318

Photo by Nagisa Kobayashi @popo_318

The cafe sells “fatcarons,” a South Korean-style macaron which have proven very popular with young women in Japan.

Photo by Taeco @taecostagram

Fatcarons are larger than the standard macaron. They are topped with things like strawberries, given marble textures, and more to give them a cute appearance. MOON SEOUL serves many different varieties, all of which are standout compared to normal macarons.

Photo by Sara @__sar310

But the fatcaron experience at MOON SEOUL isn’t complete without ordering the drink above. It’s strawberry milk flavoured, but the milk is whipped until it’s fluffy, giving it a taste like no other strawberry milk you’ve tried. It also has sliced strawberries inside and on top, so if you love strawberries, you’ll love this.

Photo by Yuina @popochan726

You can order your fatcarons for takeout too in a clear takeaway box so you can go have a dessert picnic with your friends, and get a great photo of them all together too.

FLOWERS BY NAKED is an annual flower-themed digital art event held by NAKED Inc. As part of this year’s event, FLOWERS BY NAKED 2020 – Sakura –, a special addendum event entitled “Nijo Castle Sakura Matsuri” will take place during the evenings at the World Heritage Site Nijo Castle From March 20 to April 12 this year.

FLOWERS BY NAKED is an interactive digital art experience. It has been held at Nijo Castle during the autumns of 2018 and 2019, but this will be the event’s first time being held in Kyoto during the spring season. 2020’s theme is cherry blossoms, and this will be showcased in a number of wonderful ways.

Prologue | NAKED BIG BOOK

“NAKED BIG BOOK, a monument of the beginning of this exhibition, will show collaboration works by an artist Ryotaro Muramatsu and a photographer LESLIE KEE. LESLIE KEE contained energy into photographs as the quiet expression, and Ryotaro Muramatsu reinterprets his works to dynamic photography art.​”

Arrival of Spring | Kara-mon Gate (Important Cultural Property)

“Projection mapping expresses the coming of Spring on Karamon-Gate as an important cultural property.”

Flowers Wall ~ SAKURA ~ | Inner Moat

“Projection mapping of impressive sakura on the moats in Nijo-jo Castle. The landscape will transition following sakura.”

Sakura Droplets | Seiryu-en Garden

“A mystical space surrounded by real sakura where bubbles confined spring fragrance float as the sakura droplet.​ ​”

The event is working on countermeasures against the coronavirus, such as installing disinfectants and having staff wear masks. It requests that visitors take normal measures against the infection such as cough etiquette and washing your hands. Click here for more information.

FTG Company, which operates 74 restaurants inside and outside Japan, is set to open its new restaurant Nikukappou Futago at THE JUNEI HOTEL Kyoto in Higashiyama, Kyoto on March 27, 2020 where it will serve authentic Japanese wagyu beef and full courses.

THE JUNEI HOTEL Kyoto is a small luxury tourist hotel housing eleven rooms in total, including its Bamboo Suite. Bamboo can be found throughout all the rooms as part of the hotel’s concept: “A sojourn embraced by bamboo in a moonlit space.” The rooms, as well as the hotel interior overall, showcases beautiful traditional handiwork using bamboo.

Inside Nikukappou Futago

Nikukappou Futago fuses traditional Japanese elements with modern ones. It features half-size eating areas as well as private areas. Customers can expect their private dining experience to include freshly-cooked full courses with high quality Japanese wagyu and seasonal ingredients.

Menu in Japanese　*Menu will change monthly

Nikukappou Futago’s concept is “A relaxed adult’s Iki.” The word iki here refers to a range of different meanings in Japanese, like “sophistication,” “breath,” “spirit,” and “life.” The restaurant will work to serve a hospitable service that enables each and every person to enjoy that iki that lives inside them.

Foie Gras & Wagyu Filet Mouthful Bowl

Wagyu Loin & Kyoto Vegetable Shabu-shabu

The course is made with seasonal ingredients and vegetables. Plus, in using a range of cooking methods, the original flavour meat of the meat is intensified.

Wagyu Sirloin Sumiyaki

Enjoy a selection of high-quality rare wagyu cuts like sirloin, filet, loin, and more. You can also enjoy a selection of classic Japanese dishes like yakiniku, shabu-shabu, and sukiyaki, all in one course.

Like the changing seasons in Kyoto, the menu will be altered every month to bring something new. Discover your iki and enjoy a great meal at Nikukappou Futago.