Nana’s Green Tea is serving up a brand-new dessert in collaboration with Häagen-Dazs for Valentine’s Day at 77 branches in Japan. The dessert was released on January 6 and will be available up to February 14.

Matcha Chocolate Glass with Häagen-Dazs | ¥880 (Before Tax)

The dessert is a tempting sight to behold – not only is it delicious but visually appealing to the eye too, and layered with various textures so that every bite is a surprise.

The dessert is made with Häagen-Dazs’ “Sweet Chocolate” ice cream coupled with Nana’s Green Tea’s own original matcha ice cream, soft and crunchy meringue sticks, crumbled cookies, white chocolate whipped cream, and matcha chiffon cake. Sat at the bottom waiting to be discovered is a sweet strawberry sauce for a tangy kick.

Saryo FUKUCHA in Kyoto is now serving up a very special selection of succulent strawberry and matcha parfaits until May 30, 2021. These exquisite delights will see only 10 made of each per day.

Saryo FUKUCHA is a cafe that was opened by FUKUJUEN in Kyoto Station in April 2019. This year, they have brought back their extremely popular strawberry and matcha parfaits : the Konome, Konoha, and Konoka. They have also introduced a new addition to the line-up: the Strawberry & Matcha Milk Parfait. Also on the menu is a strawberry matcha latte.

Matcha & Strawberry Parfaits

Konome | ¥1,350

Konoha | ¥1,450

Konoka | ¥1,550

Strawberry Matcha Milk Parfait | ¥800

Strawberry Matcha Latte | ¥650

Discover the taste of Japanese tea in a new way with Saryo FUKUCHA’s matcha and strawberry parfaits and latte.

Tully’s Coffee Japan is adding a new seasonal drink to its menu on December 26: the “Brown Sugar Syrup & Soy Flour Matcha Latte.”

Brown Sugar Syrup & Soy Flour Matcha Latte (Hot/Iced) | Tall ¥520 (Before Tax)

Matcha beverages at Tully’s Coffee are all made with Uji matcha from Kyoto. The powder is prepared in-house at Tully’s Coffee, ensuring that the original taste and fragrance of the matcha is fresh. Their new seasonal beverage takes their classic Uji Matcha Latte and sweetens it with brown sugar syrup and Hokkaido soy flour.

Brown Sugar Syrup & Soy Flour Matcha Suwakuru® (Frozen) | Tall ¥540, with tapioca +¥100 (Before Tax)

Adding tapioca pearls creates a perfect combination with the syrup and soy flour, creating a taste and texture that’s like the traditional Japanese confection warabimochi.

Uji Matcha Kouign-amann | ¥290 (Before Tax)

Tully’s Coffee is also baking up some seasonal treats, like a Japanese-style Kouign-amann and red bean paste-filled doughnuts.

Milk Red Bean Paste Doughnuts | ¥300 (Before Tax)

The doughnuts are also made with milk from Hokkaido.

2021 Year of the Ox Mug | ¥1,500 (Before Tax)

And to celebrate the upcoming Year of the Ox, the coffee chain is also rolling out a cute ox-themed mug.

Starbucks Coffee Japan has revealed that its second instalment of its limited-edition holiday season 2020 beverages will be the “Matcha x Matcha White Chocolate” and “Matcha x Matcha White Chocolate Frappuccino®” which customers can order from November 24. A new batch of festive Starbucks merch will also hit Japanese branches on November 30.

A harmonious fusion of matcha and sweet white chocolate

Matcha x Matcha White Chocolate Frappuccino® Tall ¥590 (Tall-size only)

Matcha x Matcha White Chocolate: Short ¥450 / Tall ¥490 / Grande ¥530 / Venti® ¥570 (Hot option only)

Matcha is one of Starbucks Japan’s signature flavours and just to happens to have been in the spotlight in last year’s holiday season drinks. This year sees marbling mixture of of rich matcha sauce and sweet white chocolate syrup with the Frappuccino®, finished with a squirt of whipped cream, brownie bits, and snowy powdered sugar. The hot version comes as a marriage of matcha and white mocha mixed together with steamed milk to warm the cockles of hearts during the cold months.

New holiday season merchandise

The theme of the second batch of merchandise is “Brilliant Season” which capture the bright and sparkly vibe of winter like with the snowflake-covered stainless steel bottle, a glass mug with beads in it that move around when shaken, a snow globe, and more. The perfect line-up for capturing the holiday season mood during your coffee break.

Starbucks Japan is currently serving the Berry x Berry No-Bake Cheesecake Frappuccino® and Berry x Berry White Mocha holiday season drinks for the holiday season until November 24 when they will be replaced by the Matcha x Matcha White Chocolate and Matcha x Matcha White Chocolate Frappuccino®. It is also serving the Starbucks® Christmas Blend, Gingerbread Latte, and Macadamia Toffee Latte until Christmas Day.

Bandai’s character-inspired Japanese confectionery series Tabemas has revealed that its next batch of sweet treats will be inspired by the Little Green Men and Lots-o’-Huggin’ Bear from the popular Pixar movie franchise Toy Story. The confections will hit 7-Eleven convenience stores in Japan on November 21, 2020.

Tabemas Toy Story | ¥258 Each (Before Tax)

The lovable Little Green Men and Toy Story 3‘s main antagonist Lots-o have been fully recreated, down to the finest details, into delicious confections. The details are well crafted you can almost hear the aliens chanting “OOOOOH” in unison! The sweets are also made with a dough called “nerikiri” which is used in making traditional Japanese wagashi sweets.

The Little Green Men are matcha flavoured while Lots-o is strawberry flavoured. Both contain Japanese bean paste, and neither use artificial colourings. Their colours comes from the original ingredients. Each sweet is also only 100kcal making is a perfect quick treat.

‘Tabemas’ is an abbreviation of the Japanese words taberareru masukotto, meaning ‘mascots that you can eat.’ It is a Japanese confectionery series that combines well-known characters and Japanese sweets made from ingredients like red bean paste, sugar and rice flour.

©Disney/Pixar

Mister Donut Japan revealed last month that it is set to team up with Pokémon this winter with a special campaign starting on November 15. Before then however, from November 13, the doughnut chain will be releasing the “Mister Donut Chansey Christmas-chu Collection” of doughnuts and merchandise.

Mister Donut Chansey Christmas-chu Collection

Pikachu Doughnut (Custard Whip) | ¥240 (Before Tax)

Mister Donut is releasing four doughnuts this year, one of which is the popular Pikachu doughnut from last year which is coated in chocolate.

Chansey Doughnut | ¥200 (Before Tax)

Chansey, which is known as Lucky in Japanese, is bringing you luck this year in the form of a strawberry chocolate-coated doughnut complete with an adorable face, ears, and belly.

Poké Ball | ¥200 (Before Tax)

Great Ball | ¥200 (Before Tax)

The Poké Ball doughnut has also been transformed from the classic Pon de Ring doughnut from last year and turned into an actual ball shape. It’s filled with whipped cream and coated in a strawberry glaze while the Great Ball version is filled with custard whipped cream and is coated in chocolate.

Pon de Ring Wreath: Pudding Flavour, Strawberry Flavour, Chocolate Flavour | ¥150 (Before Tax)

For the holiday season, Mister Donut is also bringing back their classic Pon de Ring series in three flavours.

As well as doughnuts, Pokémon fans can get their hands on a selection on Christmas mugs and bowls too. Perfect for putting under the tree this year.

©2020 Pokémon. ©1995-2020 Nintendo/Creatures Inc./GAME FREAK inc.
ポケットモンスター・ポケモン・Pokémonは任天堂・クリーチャーズ・ゲームフリークの登録商標です。

World Matcha Inc. launched the Cuzen Matcha machine in the USA on October 21, 2020. The product arrives to the North American market after a hugely successful Kickstarter campaign where it achieved 235% of its funding goal. It has already received praise from some of the country’s top chefs and hoteliers including Tartine’s Chad Robertson and SingleThread’s Kyle Connaughton.

Cuzen Matcha

Cuzen Matcha allows for any person to produce fresh matcha with the company’s shade-grown whole organic leaves and award-winning technology. Users simply add fresh leaves grown in Kyushu to the machine, and with the press of a button, it instantly creates freshly-ground matcha, delivering the superior health benefits of matcha to everyone. Sustainability is also at the heart of the brand which incorporates sustainable tea farming, sustaining a tea-growing tradition, and wrapping it all up in sustainable packaging

Eijiro Tsukada (World Matcha Inc., Co-Founder and CEO)

“We have been helped by a lot of people and have put our trusts in them while developing Cuzen Matcha. Now we’re launching it into the world to lots of people, even if it reaches only one. We will deliver fresh matcha in a way no one else is along with all of its health and lifestyle benefits. And I hope to create a more sustainable future together with our customers around the world.” (Translated from Japanese by MMN)

Asakusa welcomed the newest and third branch of matcha dessert specialist shop Kaminari Issa on October 2, 2020, which opened its doors along Dempoin Street. The shop is just a 3-minute walk from Asakusa Station and 2-minutes from Kaminarimon.

Signature delights on Kaminari Issa’s menu include the Okoicha Warabi Latte and Okoicha Gelato. Everything on the menu is made with rich, high quality matcha, from the matcha tea lattes to the matcha beer, parfaits, ice cream, dacquoise, and more. If you love matcha, and you’re in Tokyo, this place is a must-visit.

There are plenty of items to get your hands on in this newest store, which also has its own eat-in space, tea leaf display, and more.

They even sell kits so you can make your own Okoicha Warabi Latte and Wakocha Brown Sugar Warabi Latte at home.

Sanrio is once again collaborating with the EGG & SPUMA cafe located on the 8th floor of Shinjuku Lumine EST to celebrate the 45th anniversary of Ichigo Shimbun, a monthly magazine published by Sanrio which includes information about the latest character merchandise, the Sanrio Character Awards, and more. The limited-time cafe will run from November 1, 2020 to late January 2021.

Sanrio fans can expect a very special menu line-up of food, drinks, and desserts based on their favourite characters from the Sanrio roster.

There will in fact be two different menus served on separate occasions. The first menu will welcome a soufflé omelette topped with a potato salad Pochacco while the second will see an adorably pink My Melody cream stew.

There will also be an incredibly cute two-tiered afternoon tea set with desserts and savoury items.

For drinks, there is a Hello Kitty strawberry milk, Cinnamoroll milk, and milk caramel pudding Pompompurin.

© 2020 SANRIO CO., LTD. APPROVAL NO. L613344

And everyone who orders from the collaborative menu will receive one of eight possible coasters as thanks for visiting.

Pokémon Cafe and Pikachu Sweets by Pokémon Cafe are releasing a new teatime menu at their respective branches on October 24, 2020.

Pokémon Cafe

Polteageist & Sinistea Tea Party! Fruit Tea Set ~Apple Flavoured~ | ¥1,188 (Tax Included)

Polteageist & Sinistea Tea Party! Fruit Tea Set ~Strawberry Flavoured~ | ¥1,188 (Tax Included)

Pokémon Cafe is serving up two different fruit tea sets based on the Ghost-type Pokémon Polteageist and Sinistea. Customers are free to pour in their desired amount of fruit syrup which changes the colour of the tea. The sets come with a cute cookie too.

Pikachu Sweets by Pokémon Cafe

Left: Polteageist’s Tea Party! Fruit Tea ~Mixed Berry Flavour~ / Right: Polteageist’s Tea Party! Fruit Tea ~Peach Orange Flavour~ | ¥700 Each (Before Tax)

Pikachu Sweets by Pokémon Cafe is also going to serve up some Polteageist themed fruit teas as well as a selection of desserts like macarons and financier almond cakes which have Pokémon tail and ear designs.

After ordering one of the Polteageist fruit teas, customers can place their cups under the Polteageist tea pot as pictured above and activate the pot to dispense their drink, so it’s like Polteageist  really pouring tea for you.

Left: Swirlix Strawberry Macaron | Middle: Pikachu Vanilla Macaron | Right: Galarian Ponyta Pistachio Macaron – ¥500 Each (Before Tax)

Treat yourself to one of the super cute Swirlix, Pikachu, or Ponyta macarons each with designs that tell you instantly which Pokémon they’re inspired by.

Polteageist Fruit Tea and & Pikachu Macaron Set

Customers can order a tea and macaron combination set too.

Pikachu Parfaits

Pikachu Glass Parfait Set | ¥1,500 (Before Tax)

An adorable set of Pikachu parfaits, one being caramel banana flavoured and the other chocolate.

Pikachu Tea Party Assortment – Pika Pika Pikavee Set | ¥2,800 (Before Tax)

Another set to share between friends and family, this time with two Pikachu glass desserts as well as Pikachu and Eevee cupcakes.

Pikachu Tea Party Assortment – Ghost Type Set | ¥2,800 (Before Tax)

This set comes with the Pikachu glass desserts as well as Ghost-type Gengar and Litwick mousse cakes.

The Polteageist teapot and Sinistea teacup used at the Pokémon Cafe and Pikachu Sweets by Pokémon Cafe will also be released at Pokémon Center Online in Japan on December 5, 2020.

© 2020 Pokémon.©1995-2020 Nintendo/Creatures Inc./GAME FREAK inc.
Pokémon, ポケットモンスター, and ポケモン are registered trademarks of Nintendo, Creatures Inc., and GAME FREAK inc..

L’OCCITANE CAFE Shibuya is getting ready for Halloween with the reveal of its sweet potato and apple parfait which will be served from October 21 to 31. The Tokyo-based cafe is centred on the food culture and lifestyle of Provence in southern France.

Sweet Potato and Apple Parfait | ¥1,280 (Tax Included)

The seasonal treat is a mix of purple sweet potato and regular sweet potato, baked apples, apple sherbet, and vanilla ice, all topped off with whipped cream, roasted nuts, and almond tuile biscuits in the shape of ghosts and a pumpkin.

Major bookstores across Japan are rolling out the Rilakkuma Book Fair where fans can get their hands on short Rilakkuma fairy tails, exclusive merchandise, and more.

In line with the event, Fruits Parlor & Bakery Season & Co., a cafe in Umeda, Osaka, is serving up a special menu with the theme “Rilakkuma Book Cafe” from October 30 to November 30. This includes a afternoon teas which also celebrates the cafe’s 1st anniversary, more exclusive merchandise, and novelties for customers who order from the Rilakkuma menu.

Rilakkuma Zukin Afternoon Tea | ¥4,000 (Before Tax) *Reservation-only

A special afternoon tea featuring 13 different goodies from desserts to a sandwich, quiche, and more. It comes with a fruit iced tea welcome drink too.

Rilakkuma Yuki Hime Afternoon Tea | ¥4,000 (Before Tax) *Reservation-only

A different afternoon tea that serves up 12 items. This also comes with a fruit iced tea.

Rilakkuma’s Honey Apple Smoothie | ¥800 (Before Tax)

A honey apple smoothie topped with refreshing vanilla ice cream, smooth fresh cream, and a Rilakkuma jelly candy.

Rilakkuma’s Royal Chocolate Milk Tea | ¥1,200 (Before Tax)

Classic royal milk tea served with chocolate Rilakkumas. Eat on their own or dip into your tea!

The cafe is now taking reservations for the afternoon teas. Bookings must be made two days in advance by telephone or the official website.