The Noraneko Gundan exhibition, which saw great success in 2021, is now open in Osaka until January 31, 2022! The popular character is making the rounds to celebrate Noriko Kudo’s 20th anniversary as a children’s author. In addition to over 250 illustrations and videos on display from the Noraneko Gundan picture books, guests can enjoy a photo spot and other activities.

Osaka Exclusive Merchandise

IC Card Case with Octopus: ¥1,430 (Tax Included)

Cookie & Tin with Octopus: ¥1,400 (Tax Included)

Clear Folder with Octopus: ¥418 (Tax Included)

Sticker with Octopus: ¥385 (Tax Included)

Acrylic Keychain (Noraneko & Octopus / Mami & Octopus): ¥660 each (Tax Included)

Noraneko, Mami, and Octopus Acrylic Stand: ¥1,430 (Tax Included)

Baby Wipes & Can (Noraneko & Octopus / Mami and Octopus): ¥550 each (Tax Included)

New Products at Osaka Venue

Moisture Absorbing Coaster: ¥880 each (Tax Included)

Pin: ¥440 each (Tax Included)

Special Purchase Bonus for guests spending over ¥3,000 (Tax Included)

The first 100 guests to arrive each day will receive a special clear folder.

The exhibition will also include over 350 pieces of merchandise, including limited-edition goods for the Osaka exhibition, books, plush toys, figures, and more.

©工藤ノリコ／白泉社

Japan-based chocolate specialty store Minimal is now offering a limited-edition set of gateau chocolates with fresh strawberries from Mei Strawberries in Kagawa Prefecture. These are available for preorder and are perfect for Valentine’s Day!

These sweets were a huge hit last year, selling out immediately. The rare variety of strawberries used is only found in 1 percent of Japanese strawberry farms, and these are blended with milk cream and specialty chocolate. 

The strawberry jam found on the top of each chocolate piece is made from these rare Nyohou strawberries.  Originally a small-grained variety, the Nyohou varietals send from Mei Strawberries in Kagawa Prefecture are larger with a beautiful dark-red color. Fragrant, juicy, and sweet, they also have a slight acidity that provide a more complex flavor.

To maximize the natural strawberry flavor, the chocolate is made from Madagascar cocoa beans with a more berry-like flavor. Only slightly roasted, the graininess is intact, leaving a more powerful and rich flavor. A milky sweet cream has also been added to the center to provide a better balance.

This is the second year that the company has worked with these strawberries from Mei, and after making a number of prototypes, Minimal has found the best possible way to express these unique flavors in harmony. 

Anniversaire Cafe Minatomirai Yokohama, a popular location for anniversary celebrations, is holding a limited-time Strawberry Garden fair for a limited time, from January 7 until February 6, 2022. Guests can enjoy a collection of strawberry sweets and pink drinks to start the new year in style.

Limited-Time Dessert Menu *Limited Quantities

Strawberry Plate: ¥1,870 (Tax Included)

Strawberry Caramel Pain Perdu: ¥1,870 (Tax Included)

Strawberry Mont Blanc: ¥1,980 (Tax Included)

Limited-Time Drink Menu

Strawberry Tiramisu Latte, Hot (Left)/Iced (Right): ¥1,100 (Tax Included)

Sparkle Berry Soda (Center): ¥990 (Tax Included)

Limited-Time Afternoon Tea Plan *Limited Quantities/By Reservation Only

Strawberry Stand Afternoon Tea: ¥3,800 (Tax Included)

Strawberry Plate Afternoon Tea: ¥3,300 (Tax Included)

Limited-Time Sweets for Takeout *Limited Quantities

Petit Fleur (5 pieces): ¥1,300 (Tax Included)

The St. Regis Osaka Hotel is offering a special strawberry-themed afternoon tea set until May 2022. 

Strawberry Afternoon Tea ‘5th Avenue Collection’

Strawberry  Parfait ‘The New York Gallery’ 

Strawberry Afternoon Tea ‘5th Avenue Collection’ to GO!

The St. Regis New York Hotel was founded in 1904, and is located on 5th Avenue, one of the most famous shopping streets in the world. This new afternoon tea set features a gorgeous three-tiered array of colorful savory and sweet dishes inspired by the many fashion items that line the shop windows of the NYC street. 

The Strawberry Heel Panna Cotta shows a woman’s leg peeking out from the dessert clad in a fancy high heel, while the Berry Opera is made to look like a designer bag. Many of the available dishes are made using seasonal strawberries sourced from around Japan.

The French Bistro Ruedor on the first floor is also offering ‘The New York Gallery,’ a strawberry parfait set of three inspired by the art of New York City. This set also comes with an assorted plate of six savory and sweet items.

The WOW Strawberry, with its pop-art motif, will surprise guests with its massive strawberries and variety of different textures from mousse to jelly. The LOVE Strawberry mixes juicy, sweet, and sour strawberries with pistachio mousse and was inspired by Banksy’s ‘Balloon and Girl’ painting. The Banana & Chocolate parfait pulls from the colorful wall art seen all around the famous city streets.

For those wanting something less sweet, hamburgers, hot dogs, and bagels, all popular on the streets of Manhattan, will be served alongside these strawberry delights. For those wary about the current pandemic conditions, the Fifth Avenue Collection can also be taken home!

The Shiseido Parlour Ginza Salon de Cafe in Tokyo will hold the ‘Special Strawberry Day 2022’ event for two days only, on January 14 and 15, 2022. Guests will be able to enjoy a Strawberry Parfait prepared using carefully selected varieties of strawberries from all over Japan. Two varieties of the dessert will be available for the first time in 2022, with twelve varieties available in total–some varieties will only be available on a specific date.

Strawberry Parfait

Special Strawberry Parfait with ‘Angel Strawberries’ from Saga Prefecture: ¥2,600 (Tax Included)

Special Strawberry Parfait with ‘Marihime Strawberries’ from Wakayama Prefecture: ¥2,600 (Tax Included) *Only available on January 15

Premium Strawberry Parfait with Strawberries from Saga Prefecture: ¥3,600 (Tax Included)

Premium Strawberry Parfait with ‘Mino Musume Strawberries’ from Gifu Prefecture: ¥3,600 (Tax Included)

Royal Strawberry Parfait with ‘Kotoka Strawberries’ from Nara Prefecture: ¥5,000 (Tax Included)

Cocotte de Fraise Sales Period: January 14 – January 15

FUKUCHA Teahouse, a Fukujen cafe in Kyoto, will start a limited-time Strawberries and Uji Tea Fair on January 8, 2022. Last year’s Matcha fair was incredibly popular, and certain items will also be available again in 2022. The new menu includes a strawberry version of the popular Herbal Tea Pairing Set, making it even more fun and elegant! Guests can enjoy flavorful Uji green tea along with a number of tasty strawberry treats. 

Mont Fraise: ¥1,150

Mont Fraise means ‘mountain of strawberries’ in French. This dessert is made with thin white chocolate and sponge cake soaked in matcha syrup with matcha cream and strawberries covering every inch. It is also served with a green tea chocolate sauce. 

Strawberry Pairing Set: ¥1650

The strawberry version of the popular Herbal Tea Pairing Set on the regular FUKUCHA menu.
・Ginger Blend Genmaicha and Strawberry Cheese Tart
・Hibiscus Blend Hojicha and Strawberry Chocolate Bonbons
・Cinnamon Blend Twig Tea with Strawberry Cream
・Peppermint Blend Twig Tea with Large Strawberry

Marscapone Strawberries: ¥1450

Using 10 strawberries, this parfait is designed to look like a herbarium. Putting a spoon into the light mascarpone cream will reveal the bright green color of the matcha chocolate sauce.

Bandai Candy has begun selling the second round of Demon Slayer-themed tarts! This time, the family-sized treats will feature the taste of two varieties of cheesecake, and will be available at select AEON, AEON Style, MaxValu, and Daiei locations throughout Japan.

Each tart features characters from the popular Demon Slayer anime series with smiles on their faces. With a two-layered structure, customers can enjoy the flavor of baked cheesecake and gelatin cheesecake. Characters included are Tanjiro, Nezuko, Zenitsu, Giyu, Inosuke, Kyojuro, Shinobu, and Kanao.

(C)吾峠呼世晴／集英社・アニプレックス・ufotable

For seven days only from January to April 2022, the Aoyama St. Grace Cathedral wedding hall will open its doors to those wanting their fill of Alice in Wonderland-inspired sweets! ‘Alice’s Tea Party’ will be an afternoon tea experience you’ll never forget, and reservations are required.

The limited-time-only afternoon tea will feature a variety of adorable sweets that look like they popped out of a picture book, from Berry and Pistachio Bunny Ears Mousse to the Queen’s Chandelier Butter Sandwich Cookies decorated like playing cards. Each sweet makes use of seasonal ingredients like strawberries, perfect with chocolate dips, petite tarts, and macaroons.

The Strings Hotel Yagoto NAGOYA in Aichi Prefecture is holding the ‘Strawberry Neverland – Tinkerbell in Love Sweets Buffet’ at it’s sweets restaurant SCALA Terrace from January 15 until March 31, 2022. These limited-time desserts will use seasonal strawberries and pistachios.

Inspired by Peter Pan, the space will feature cute and refreshing sweets that will make guests think of the adorable fairy Tinkerbell. The ‘Tinkerbell in Love – Raspberry Lime Mousse’ is covered in the character’s fairy dust, and is highly recommended by the restaurants chef patissier. A total of 16 desserts will be available, with some featuring edible flowers and other fantasy-inspired decorations. Those wanting something a little heavier can enjoy slow-cooked Indian Curry and Farfalle Cream Pasta. The space will also feature plenty of photo spots, so be sure to take some pictures with the person you love!

To commemorate the start of Attack on Titan The Final Season Part 2 on January 9, 2022, some powerful new wall art filled with storyboards and other imagery from the series has appeared in Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya train stations for a limited time!

These incredible images will only be available to see until January 9, so if you’re near any of these stations, be sure to check them out! Starting on January 4, a countdown video of ‘favorite scenes’ as chosen by six popular creators will be posted to the official anime Twitter account (@anime_shingeki).

Storyboards featured in this wall art comes from episodes 76 to 80 of the anime series. The largest board is 22.5 meters in length.

©諫山創・講談社／「進撃の巨人」The Final Season製作委員会

Creative company NAKED has teamed up with students from Osaka University of Arts and Kintetsu Real Estate for a new projection mapping show at the Abeno Harukas Observatory, Harukas 300. The work is available now through February 27, 2022. 

The artwork is found on the 58th floor ‘Twin Tower,’ and serves as a hands-on presentation to foster students’ creativity. The theme for the project is ‘Towards the Future, a Journey of Hope,’ and it is intended to send a ray of hope from one of Japan’s tallest buildings to the whole country. Hope is sorely needed after two long years of the pandemic.

Those participating in this years class, which started in 2021, learned about the impact creativity can have on the world, as they also created plans, concepts, and storyboards for a projection mapping project. Now, their work has come to fruition.

In the hopes that more people will be able to see the new artwork, the projection mapping piece will be left up during another event being held at Harukas 300 focusing on the theme of ‘connection.’ Hopefully, this art will positively impact those who have had a difficult time over the past few years. 

Tokyo Gift Palette, located near the Yaesu North Gate at Tokyo Station, offers a wide selection of unique souvenirs. From December 26, 2021 until January 11, 2022, the location will be holding the Exciting New Year’s Fair, with the Strawberry Sweets Fair coming soon after from January 5 until January 25, 2022. 

Konigs-Krone Luxury ‘Strawberry Parfait’

Patisserie Ginza Sembikiya ‘Strawberry Omelet’

Strawberry Shop by FRANCAIS ‘Strawberry Parfait’

*Only available at Tokyo Gift Palette
Tokyo Kaikan ‘Reward Parfait ~Strawberry & Chestnut~

Strawberry Shop by FRANCAIS ‘Fresh Strawberry Milk Cake’

Oosumi Tamaya ‘Strawberry Daifuku’

Oosumi Tamaya ‘Chinese New Year Daifuku’

Tokyo Kaikan ‘Chocolate & Orange Tart’ 

Paq & Mog Terrace ‘Calbee and Tokyo Banana Bonito & Kelp Umami Dashi Potato Chips

The New Year’s Fair will feature cute cakes and sweets inspired by the Chinese Zodiac, along with traditional Japanese goods. The Strawberry Sweets Fair will see a number of popular goodies on sale, including desserts that won top prizes in the ‘Favorite Fruit Survey’ conducted by Tokyo Gift Palette on Instagram in June 2021.