Kyary Pamyu Pamyu made waves with music lovers around the world last month when she performed at Coachella, one of the largest and most famous music festivals on Earth. On May 28, Kyary will perform in Ehime, and the artist has released details about another collaboration as part of the LOCAL POWER JAPAN Project, launched to energize Japan through the appeal of regional towns and cities.

In Ehime Prefecture, Kyary is teaming up with Poeme, a famous sweets shop in Setouchi close to the Seto Inland Sea. The shop itself opened in 1950 with a different name and quickly became popular for its Butter Manju. The buns, baked in a buttery biscuit dough with red bean paste, were an extravagant confectionary at the time. In the late 1950s, a friend of the founder Okada Kazutarou tasted the Butter Manju and said “This is a poem,” hence the current name of the location. After 76 years, the name of the shop still reflects Poeme’s mission that has been present since the company’s founding just after WWII. 

The collaboration logo for the project was inspired by Kyary’s 2018 album Japamyu, which was released after four successful overseas tours. The album cemented the artist as one of Japan’s top talents, and the logo combines Poeme with Japamyu to make Poemyu.

A collaborative T-shirt is also on sale featuring the new logo and the singer’s 10th-anniversary logo. The shirt is only available until June 8 on the official LOCAL POWER JAPAN Project website.

Otabe, one of the most popular sweets souvenir shops in Kyoto, Otabe, is known for its delicious matcha and mini-desserts. Starting May 12, the company has released nine uniquely packaged sweets inspired by Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. The limited-edition packaging will feature popular characters from the series. Previously, the company released matcha cakes for the crossover–this time, fans can enjoy choco-an flavor!

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Choco-an

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Matcha

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Otabe (with Original Sticker)

Original Sticker: 15 varieties, 1 given at random

Focusing on the hashira from the series, fans will want to be on the lookout for their favorite character. These sweets can be bought at select stations in the Kyoto and Osaka area, major Kyoto tourist attractions, and online. In addition, matcha flavored treats will also be on sale featuring Tanjiro Kamado, Nezuko Kamado, Zenitsu Agatsuma, Hashibira Inosuke, Kagaya Ubuyashiki, and Muzan Kibutsuji.

©吾峠呼世晴／集英社・アニプレックス・ufotable

Those passing through Gotanda Station in Tokyo might want to keep an eye out for some tasty treats on sale for a limited time. Patisserie Giraud has opened a limited-time pop-up location inside the aptly-named shop Have You Eaten This Before? The pop-up will be open until May 31, 2022.

Have You Eaten This Before? features a rotating selection of products perfect as gifts, souvenirs, or as a treat for yourself. Along with six cakes made to look just like fruits, a selection of other baked goods will also be available.

Lineup

Strawberry

Orange

Lemon

Red Apple

Green Apple

Melon

While it might be difficult to eat these beautiful cakes, you’ll never forget the way the juice-filled mousse and crispy pastry fill your mouth. Which one would you like to bring home?

Folk Kitchen, a restaurant on the second floor of Hilton Osaka, will hold the Sanrio Characters Sweets Buffet ~Joyful Summer Festival~ from May 20 until September 11, 2022. The event is being held to celebrate Cinnamoroll, Pompompurin, and Pochakko coming in first, second, and third in the Sanrio Character Awards. A lineup of 25 different sweets will be available, including those filled with summer fruits like mango, peach, and watermelon! In addition, a “Zero Leftovers Campaign” will be implemented–so be sure to clear your plate!

Happy Festival Heart Mousse

Joyful Pink Cake / Lime & Raspberry

Fluffy and Crunchy Mango Pavlova

Decorated with chocolate and adorable character designs, the Happy Festival Heart Mousse is a scrumptious dish blending the flavor of banana, caramel, and rum. The Joyful Pink Cake will be a smash-hit with Sanrio lovers, featuring the soft taste of white mousse and raspberry compote with a fresh lime flavor. Tons of other original sweets will be available, including everything from gingerbread to orange tarts.

Visitors can also find plenty of vegan sweets. Summer Blue Sky Jello features contrasting colors of pineapple pulp and soymilk cream that look like clouds floating against a summer sky. Be sure to try the Almond & Watermelon Jello and Grapefruit and Lychee Jello too!

Pearl Lady, a tapioca and crepe specialty shop, will begin selling a special crepe inspired by the Sanrio character Cogimyun starting April 8, 2022! These gorgeous treats will be available at participating Pearl Lady locations while supplies last.

Cogimyun’s Sparkling Strawberry Crepe

Cogimyun’s Sparkling Strawberry Crepe, topped with a Cogimyun cookie, includes sweet and sour strawberry cream. 

The dough, made with tapioca flour, offers a slightly chewy texture with a rich milk and butter flavor. Customers will also receive a special sticker as a purchase bonus. Be sure to enjoy the new Cinnamoroll drink available at Pearl Lady’s sister shop CHABAR!

CHABAR x Cinnamoroll Collaboration Drink

Hibiya Hayashiya Shinbei in Tokyo Midtown Hibiya is now offering a scrumptious Strawberry Matcha Parfait until April 24, 2022! If that’s not up your alley, four Kyo Hayashiya locations in Shinjuku, Omiya, Yokohama, and Ikebukuro will begin offering a Matcha and Berry Mascarpone Parfait from April 1 until May 8, 2022. 

Strawberry Matcha Parfait

The Strawberry Matcha Parfait is an eye-catching mix of green and pink, reminiscent of cherry blossoms and bright green grass. Green tea blends with rose jelly and lychee sorbet, offering a refreshing taste with a hint of bitterness. The sweet accent of crunchy chocolate feuillantine gives each bite a little kick.

Matcha and Berry Mascarpone Parfait

The Matcha and Berry Mascarpone Parfait mixes the deep, bitter taste of Uji matcha, the sweet and sour taste of berries, and the gentle sweetness of mascarpone cream. The berry sauce is blended with crunchy chocolate feuillantine, a layer of whipped cream, green tea jelly, green tea ice cream, and milk panna cotta. To finish, it’s garnished with refreshing raspberry sorbet, bittersweet matcha ice cream, and fresh strawberries.

McDonald’s Japan locations with ‘McCafe by Barista’ areas will begin selling special spring treats for a limited time starting April 6, 2022. Customers will be able to grab the ‘Strawberry Uji Matcha Frappe’ and the ‘Uji Matcha Mont Blanc Tart.’

McCafe by Barista invites guests to enjoy high-quality frappes and smoothies. The Uji Matcha Frappe was added to the regular product lineup in June 2021, and features a mellow matcha flavor. The Strawberry variant is coming back for the first time in three years. The Mont Blanc Tart is a new addition, and is a perfect treat to enjoy with this popular frappe! 

Strawberry Uji Matcha Frappe: ¥490

The Strawberry Matcha Frappe mixes together the full-bodied flavor of matcha together with sweet and sour strawberries. It includes both a strawberry paste made from whole strawberries and a strawberry whipped cream at the bottom. The drink is topped with more strawberry whipped cream and a sprinkling of matcha powder. The refreshing taste of the strawberry sauce coupled with the whipped cream serves to elevate the great flavor of the Uji Matcha even more.

Uji Matcha Mont Blanc Tart: ¥390

The Uji Matcha Mont Blanc Tart is made with Uji Matcha batter, Uji Matcha whipped cream, white bean paste, and green tea cream. The refined sweetness is complemented by the mellow aroma and slight bitterness of Uji Matcha.

How would you like to enjoy these treats beneath the cherry trees?

Mister Donut is teaming up with Gion Tsujiri, a traditional green tea maker in Uji, Kyoto, for some tasty new treats starting March 25 for a limited time. Four new items will be available until the end of April. To celebrate the new collaboration, a new TV commercial starring actor Masaki Suda has started airing nationwide.

Fresh Pon de Uji Green Tea

Fresh Pon de Uji Green Tea with Brown Sugar Syrup

Uji Hojicha Warabimochi

Uji Hojicha Mochi with Whipped Cream

In the new ad, Suga is seen in a manly kimono with one of the new products in hand. Remaking on the soft and chewy texture of the new items–which are kneaded with Gion Tsujiri’s Uji Green Tea–Suda slowly falls in love with Mister Donut and commands viewers to do the same. How could you not?

Which of these new items look the best? 

Interview

――How do you feel about the Fresh Pon de Uji Green Tea and the Fresh Pon de Uji Green Tea with Brown Sugar Syrup?

“They’re so crazy delicious. Each of them are so moist and smell so yummy, and the topping…I mean, that’s everyone’s favorite, right?”

――Speaking of toppings, what are some of your favorites?

“I love garlic and green onion on just about everything. Cheese is also my go-to. Condiments are everything.”

――How about the Warabimochi and the Whipped Cream Mochi? 

“I can’t get enough of them. I’d definitely buy them myself. They aren’t too bitter, and I could really enjoy the rich aroma of the hojicha. It’s honestly amazing that Mister Donut can come out with these creative new items so often. This isn’t like memorizing lines in a play or following a formula. It must take so much work.”

――Do you prefer matcha or hojicha?

“That’s really tough. (laugh) I like both. I love the flavor of matcha but I think hojicha has flavors that aren’t as common. I find myself eating a lot of chocolate, drinking lattes, or grabbing hojicha more often.”

――How did it feel to shoot the Mister Donut commercial in a kimono?

“It was so lightweight, it felt great. The stylist told me that it was entirely made of silk. I typically only wear kimono during rehearsals or things like that, but I’d love to wear something like this during a festival. Someday.”

――The new commercial will begin airing during graduation season. Is there anything you’d like to ‘graduate’ this year since it’s the last year in your 20s? 

“That’s true, I am almost 30. I hadn’t thought about it! In my job, everyone is so polite to me, and I have the habit of leaving things up to other people. I need to be more personally responsible. For example, if I have to be somewhere for a meeting in the morning, I always get up at the last minute. Why don’t I get up 10 minutes earlier, you know? I need to be better.”

――What would you like to tell those who are coming of age this year? Do you have anything to say to students and working adults who will start new grades and jobs in the spring? 

“As you grow older, you have less and less to do outside of work. I’m really impressed by people who do something consistently during their free time. I thought I should have done something like that back when I was a teenager, so I tried saving ¥500 coins last year. It was hard to do, even though it was something so small. After a year, I had saved up about ¥40,000 and I felt satisfied, so I stopped. But doing something each day outside of work is important.”

The sweets shop Patisserie Pinede will be offering the Yummy Kitty Cat Mille-feuille from March 18 until March 22, 2022!

The store holds a special ‘Meow Meow’ event on the 22nd of each month. In Japanese, the word for two, ni, sounds similar to nyan, the Japanese word for meow.

The event means tons of cat-themed sweets and decorations, including a tasty strawberry mille-feuille. This includes layers of puff pastry, cream, icing, and plenty of fruit. 

While it’s hard to cut into something so cute, the sweet and sour taste is the perfect way to enjoy this meow-gical holiday!

The ZelkovA Cake Boutique at the wedding venue THE STRINGS Omotesando is offering a Cherry Blossom & Strawberry Afternoon Tea set to-go from March 3 until April 26! How would you like to experience an authentic afternoon tea experience from the comfort of your own home?

Mini Afternoon Tea Set

The original take-out box can be displayed on a table in a standard three-tier afternoon tea format. Each set contains a number of spring-inspired sweets including a tasty Mont Blanc with strawberries and a tiramisu made with sponge cake soaked in strawberry extract and layered with cherry blossom mascarpone cream. The savory menu also includes pink strawberry sandwiches with shrimp and cabbage.

Two kinds of tea from the luxury Singapore tea brand TWG will be included in the set, and a mini afternoon tea set with seven types of sweets will also be available for purchase.

To celebrate the arrival of spring, Q-pot Cafe is introducing a cherry blossom-themed menu for a limited time!

Cherry Blossom Romantic Dress Cake  Plate with Drink: ¥2,100 (Tax Included)

Enjoy this pink cherry blossom mousse and pure white whipped cream to celebrate the end of the gloomy winter season.

Rich pistachio mousse, strawberry pulp, fragrant almonds, and fluffy genoise come together in a scrumptious melt-in-your-mouth explosion of flavor.

Romantic Berry Blossom Tea: ¥850 (Tax Included) / Set Menu +¥200 (Tax Included)

A play on Q-pot Cafe’s popular Flower Garden tea, the Berry Blossom Tea has a rich cherry blossom aroma with raspberries and milk added. 

Romantic Berry Blossom Tea with Bottle: ¥1,296 (Tax Included)

Take-out drinks in patterned bottles are also available! By bringing the bottle with you, the Berry Blossom Tea will be discounted to ¥750 (tax included). 

Cafe Toastina, located inside the Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel in Chiba Prefecture, is now offering delicious and very photogenic strawberry sweets and baked goods until March 31, 2022! There are tons of different ways to enjoy the event: the Sheraton Sweets Box is filled with mini-sweets and is available to take with you, and the Friday Sweets Buffet will allow guests to enjoy as many treats as they can! A cute photo wall covered in strawberries will also serve as the perfect photo spot, so visit while you can.

Strawberry Champagne Mousse

Strawberry Mille-feuille

Strawberry Paris-Brest

Strawberry Milk France / Danish with Strawberry & Mascarpone Cream

Sheraton Sweets Box