Kyoto-based tea company Itohkyuemon is now serving its gorgeous new “Hydrangea Parfait” at each of its cafes.

Hydrangea Parfait: ¥1,290 (Tax Included) / With Drink ¥1,690 (Tax Included)

In Kyoto’s city of Uji, where Itohkyuemon’s cafes are based, lies Mimuroto Temple which is famous for its hydrangeas. The temple bustles with tourists and sightseers during Japan’s rainy season who flock to see the gorgeous gardens. During this season, wait times for the cafe can last up to three hours.

The Hydrangea Parfait is made with mashed sweet matcha hydrangea, hydrangea-coloured crushed jelly, tea leaf-shaped matcha cookies, blueberries, and more.

Itohkyuemon will also be serving a special “Hydrangea Chakai” tea set for ¥1,900 (tax included) which sees the parfait topped with warabimochi. You also get a drink of your choice.

ALL HEARTS COMPANY, a Japanese company that develops bakeries and patisseries across Japan, opened its new bakery and confectionery shop Kyoto Neko Neko in Shijo, Kyoto on June 1, 2020. There, they are serving cat-shaped pastries and desserts including Kyoto-exclusive products from their Neko Neko Bread brand and Neko Neko Cheesecake shop.

Kyoto Neko Neko Danish Bread: ¥1,200 (Before Tax)

This butter-loaded Danish pastry is folded into a braid shape and baked which keeps the pastry moist. It’s topped with a sprinkling of sugar, leaving it glistening. It’s recommended that you first try the pastry as it is—soft and moist. You can then try lighting toasting it which gives it a crispy texture and brings out the delicious aroma of the butter.

Products are packaged in a cute box making them a great gift idea.

Kyoto Neko Neko Cheesecake (On sale from mid-June 2020)

This cheesecake is made with Brie de Meaux cheese and is laced with black cocoa. The luxurious cheese combined with black soy beans and brown sugar syrup jelly makes for a marriage between Japanese and Western flavours. You get an extra layer of deliciousness too with a dusting of soy flour.

Kyoto Neko Neko Bread (Plain): ¥550 (Before Tax)

This Kyoto version of the Neko Neko Bread is still made without water, but rather than using only milk, Kyoto Neko Neko has added soy milk made using soy beans from a tofu shop in Kyoto, lending a smooth and rich flavour to the bread. And instead of mascarpone cheese, Kyoto Neko Neko uses soybean cream, and instead of dairy butter a soy cream butter.

Kyoto Neko Neko Bread (Houjicha): ¥680 (Before Tax)

Kyoto Neko Neko Bread (Matcha): ¥680 (Before Tax)

There’s also a houjicha flavour made with houjicha tea and white chocolate, as well as a matcha flacvour combined with black soybean.

With shops and businesses temporarily closed as a result of lockdown measures in Japan, Japanese convenience store chain FamilyMart is currently collaborating with famous shops around Japan. They recently teamed up with famous matcha company Kanbayashi Shunsho Honten to stock some authentic matcha treats on its shelves.

For its 5th collaboration, FamilyMart is collaborating with Eitaro Sohonpo, a Japanese confectionery store that has been around since 1818, to bring the company’s brown sugar syrup dorayaki to their own shelves from May 29, 2020. Since being released in December 2018, the dessert has been sold over 1 million times.

The dorayaki is made with Eitaro Sohonpo’s brown sugar syrup and coarse sweet red bean paste. Each and every ingredient is chosen with care to create this luxurious dessert. The adzuki beans are soaked in a brown sugar syrup made from sugar from Okinawa Prefecture. It’s also made with whole soybean soy sauce and a whipped cream that’s made from a blend of fresh Hokkaido cream and 26% milk.

The dorayaki pastry is soaked in brown sugar syrup which when eaten with the whipped cream and coarse sweet bean paste makes it truly a dessert for the gods.

Beauty Connection Ginza and its second floor fruit course cafe Fruits Salon have been closed since April 8, 2020 as a result of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. But that hasn’t stopped Fruits Corner wanting to deliver its tasty treats to customers as it reveals its new mango themed menu which is set to run for the whole month of June. It will be taking online orders.

Following the pear, citrus fruits, and strawberry line-ups, the new mango course is made up of four different vitamin-packed and refreshing accompaniments, all made with fresh mangoes from Miyazaki Prefecture.

Mango Full Course: ¥4,400 (Tax Included)

1st. plate “Terrine”

2nd. plate “Airy Tart”

Each of the four plates, packed full of rich and sweet mangoes, offers refreshing taste to give you that early summertime vibe.

3rd. plate “Parfait”

4th. plate “Dried Fruits/Mignardises/After-Meal Drink)

The third plate is a gorgeous, eye-catching parfait centred on mango gelato and made up of delicious ingredients that all come together harmoniously. Mix everything together to create new flavours. The full course is 90 minutes, and beckons you to use all five of your senses to enjoy it.

Saryo FUKUCHA is a cafe that was opened by FUKUJUEN in Kyoto Station in April 2019. A new batch of seasonal summertime menu items are set to arrive this June, including shaved ice drizzled in Uji tea and fruit sauce, a refreshing Uji matcha soda made with fresh fruit and jelly, and floats. These items will be served from June 1 to September 30 with a takeout option available.

Summer Menu

Uji Matcha & Fruit Shaved Ice

Matcha Berry Shaved Ice: ¥950 / Strong Matcha Berry Shaved Ice: ¥1,100 / Houjicha Banana Shaved Ice: ¥950 (All Before Tax)

The “Matcha Berry” shaved ice is paired with rich Uji matcha ice cream and berry sauce. It’s also topped with a wafer cake shaped like a flower and filled with white bean paste, rice flour dumplings, and fruit.

Uji Tea White Peach Soda / Uji Tea Lemon Soda: ¥650 Each (Before Tax)

Full-bodied kabusecha tea from Uji made into a soda with fresh fruit pieces and jelly for a refreshing combination. Pick from super refreshing lemon or subtly sweet white peach.

Uji Matcha Float / Houjicha Float: ¥700 Each (Before Tax)

These floats are made using the best tea leaves selected by FUKUJUEN which are used to make a rich and frothy tea latte. Added to that is a dollop of soft serve ice cream topped with red bean paste and dried wheat gluten. Choose between authentic Uji matcha or aromatic houjicha.

Takeout Menu

Strawberry Flower Wafer Cake / Chestnut Houjicha Wafer Cake: ¥350 Each (Before Tax) 

Fruit wafer cakes are a popular dessert at Saryo FUKUCHA, and for the first time ever they are making them available for takeout so customers can enjoy them at home too. Pick from the strawberry flower flavour made with white bean paste or the chestnut and houjicha with chocolate cream.

Cream Anmitsu (Matcha/Houjicha): ¥700 (Before Tax)

FUKUCHAs specially-made anmitsu, or syrup-covered anko bean jam, is the perfect way to cool down on a hot summer’s day. It’s mixed with Uji tea honey and topped with various toppings like milk agar-agar, black soybeans, rice flour dumplings, white peach, raspberry, and mizu manju.

VMG HOTELS & UNIQUE VENUES is now serving a certain strawberry mille-feuille at several locations across Japan’s Kansai region. Available from May 26 to 31, t’s a recreation of the legendary dessert “Napoleon Pie” from Ginza in Tokyo.

In 1966, Sony co-founder Akio Morita opened a restaurant called Maxim’s de Paris with the idea in mind to create a place for adults to meet and socialise over food. Since opening, it has tickled the taste buds of customers with its authentic French cuisine and dazzled them with its deep crimson decor. The “Napoleon Pie” is an especially popular dessert that has gained a legendary status. The custard is laced with fragrant cointreau, and the thick pastry is stuffed with strawberries. The dessert gets its name from how it looks like Napoleon’s hat.

This strawberry mille-feuille is now being sold at select locations in Kyoto and Hyogo for just six days. It’s the first time for the dessert to be served in Kansai.
The dessert is available for takeout so customers can enjoy an at-home cafe experience.

BOTANIST Tokyo, the flagship shop of BOTANIST in Omotesando, has announced a new collection of limited-edition drinks will be served on the second floor BOTANIST Cafe from July 12, 2020. BOTANIST Tokyo is currently closed but it scheduled to reopen on June 1.

There are three new refreshing drinks to choose from, all of which can be ordered for takeout. From apple mint to grapefruit, each beverage us the perfect accompaniment for cooling you down in Japan this summer.

REFRESH MENU

Refresh Soda: ¥600 (Tax Included)

A combination of grapefruit jelly and fizzy soda water make this one of those drinks that you go “Ahh!” afterwards on a hot summer’s day. There’s also a hint of sweet green apple.

Botanical Melon Soda: ¥800 (Tax Included)

This is a smoothie which blends together two types of melon soda and adds melon jelly and a dollop of ice cream. It’s like a dessert in a cup!

Banana & Avocado Refresh Smoothie: ¥720 (Tax Included)

Enjoy the sweetness of banana and sugar beet together with the smoothness texture of the avocado in this smoothie which has apple and mint mixed into it for that refreshing summertime kick.

The cafe’s regular menu has also been revised to add three new desserts.

REGULAR MENU

Vegan Waffles w/Drink: ¥800 (Tax Included)

These vegan waffles are healthier for the body if you’re looking for some guilt-free indulgence. It’s topped with soy whipped cream, maple syrup, and fruits of your choice.

Lemon Cheesecake w/Drink: ¥1,000 (Tax Included)

A crunchy cookie base, a creamy cheese top, and a lemon to top it all off. The combination of the salty flavour with the sour hit is a match made in heaven.

Homemade Rich Pudding: ¥500 (Tax Included)

An in-house made purin, which is a type of Japanese custard pudding. It’s a delightful mix of rich egg and subtly sweet soy whipped cream.

Customers who spend over ¥4,000 (tax included) on items in the Refresh Series will also be entered in for a chance to win a “Refresh Soda.” The soda is available while supplies last.

Japanese confectionery company Kanro has revealed its new limited-edition, tropical flavoured Pikachu gummies which it developed in collaboration with Pokémon for its Puré gummy range. They will be released in Japan on June 2, 2020.

The sweet and chewy tropical gummies are made with pineapple juice which is the main flavour, mango juice, and banana juice. They also added a soda flavour for that Pikachu thunderbolt kick (and to balance the flavours!)

They come in limited-edition Pikachu shapes

A packet of these gummies includes the classic heart-shaped Puré gummy sweets as well as Pikachu-shaped ones. There are also four packet designs all featuring original and exclusive Pikachu illustrations.

Additionally, for a limited time, the regular lemon, grape, and muscat grape Puré gummy packaging feature Pikachu’s paw prints on the front and back. There are even hidden Pikachu-shaped gummies inside these regular packets.

Pikachu online promotion

The product is being promoted over on the official Puré Twitter page. Pikachu is set to take over the page this June with promotional videos.

With shops and businesses temporarily closed as a result of lockdown measures in Japan, Japanese convenience store chain FamilyMart decided that since people can’t as easily get their hands on authentic matcha right now, they would collaborate with the famous matcha company Kanbayashi Shunsho Honten to stock some authentic matcha treats on its shelves. They were released at FamilyMart branches across Japan on May 19, 2020.

Umami Matcha Parfait

The parfait begins with a soft sponge bottom and is then layered with milk mousse and matcha mousse before being topped with matcha jelly, red bean paste, and other tasty accompaniments.

Umami Matcha Cheesecake Baumkuchen

The matcha baumkuchen is made using authentic Uji matcha and is baked to look like a cheesecake. You get the full rich matcha kick with this one.

Hidetoshi Kanbayashi (Kanbayashi Shunsho Honten) | Comment

“We use a blend of first-grade Uji matcha and top it with jelly and matcha mousse. We have made it in such a way that you can enjoy the full flavour and aroma of the matcha itself. Please enjoy.”

SKINCARE LOUNGE BY ORBIS is the debut concept shop by Japanese beauty company ORBIS, and it’s set to open in Omotesando this summer. The shop’s teaser website opened on May 13 where information on its conception, special content, interviews with the company’s partners, and more will roll out in the run up to the grand opening.

ORBIS established themselves in 1984, and in 1987 launched their mail-order service. Since then, their mission has been to “create a world filled with people who are true to themselves, think positively, and lead lives of beauty.” They believe in the beauty each of us has inside them and want to unlock its full potential.

SKINCARE LOUNGE BY ORBIS aims to have people learning about their own skin and to unlock its full potential. “Feel,” “Learn,” and “Take” are the keywords of the concept shop.

The shop’s creative directors are Hisato Ogata, who is a designer and innovator at takram, and Momo Kudo of Tokyo-based architecture and interior design studio MMA Inc. They are also supported by George Amano of GEORGE CREATIVE COMPANY.

SKINCARE LOUNGE BY ORBIS has two floors. On the first floor, customers are free to test various products as well as learn about the correct way to look after their skin. The second floor offers skincare treatments, workshops, and various private events. You must be a member on the shop’s official app and book in advance for the second floor services.

If you’re strolling around the Harajuku and Omotesando area this summer, pop into SKINCARE LOUNGE BY ORBIS and learn all there is to know about proper skin care.

With just a small bit of ingenuity, turn everyday food into something cute using Kaori’s Easy Recipe! With a few simple ideas, an ordinary recipe magically transforms into a cute dish.

In today’s recipe, I’ll be showing you how I made a batch of Pompompurin cheese tarts made using store-bought tart cups.

Ingredients (Makes 9-10)

9-10 store bought tart cups
200g cream cheese (brought to room temperature)
20-30g sugar
1 egg yolk
50ml fresh cream
8g potato starch (katakuriko)
Vanilla beans to taste (can be substituted for vanilla extract)
1 tbsp lemon juice

Step 1

Pour the following ingredients into a bowl in this order: cream cheese→sugar→egg yolk→vanilla beans→fresh cream→potato starch. Mix well. Make sure when you put the potato starch in last that you sprinkle it thinly.

Step 2
Bake the tart cups in an oven at 180℃ for 15-20 minutes. If you don’t have store-bought cups, you can use small cocotte dishes.

Step 3

Leave to cool. Now you can start drawing the face.

For the hat I used sliced chocolate, for the ears sliced cheese, and for the facial features a chocolate pen.

Once you’ve drawn the face, it’s time to tuck in!

Kaori invites you into her world of character-themed food dishes in her recipe series. Be sure to check out her Instagram where she has uploaded many pictures of her character dishes!

ALL HEARTS COMPANY, a Japanese company that develops bakeries and patisseries across Japan, is launching an all-new cheesecake shop called Neko Neko Cheesecake which will open in Jiyugaoka, Tokyo on May 20, 2020. Serving cat-shaped cheesecakes, the shop will also take online orders.

Neko Neko Cheesecake is a sister brand of Neko Neko Kuu Pan from the same company which serves cat-shaped bread. Online deliveries will make for the perfect opportunity to bring that cafe experience to your own home.

Neko Neko Cheesecake – ¥1,800 (Before Tax) / Size: 11cm, 475g

The cake is made from the luxurious French brie cheese Brie de Meaux which is mixed with a homemade apricot jam to create rich, deep flavour. This means the cheesecake not only looks cute, but is the real deal too.

Their secret to bringing about amazing flavour and not just adorable looks can be broken down into four simple steps.

①They use the king of cheeses, Brie de Meaux.
②Although baked, the cheesecake is so soft it has a similar texture to a no-bake cheesecake.
③The sweet and sour homemade apricot jam elevates the overall flavour.
④The combination of mature cheese and the apricot jam changes the flavour to create a completely new kind of cheesecake.

The cheesecakes are boxed in box that has a simple yet chic design with two cats sat side by side.

The store will open on May 20, and online orders will launch on ALL HEARTS MALL on the same day.