When visiting Tokyo, you will have all sorts of food options from ramen shops and Michelin star restaurants. That’s not to mention the many theme cafes in Tokyo, such as with animals and others with french maids. While theme cafes aren’t for every visitor, these entertaining eateries are immensely popular and worth a closer look. Besides, where else in the world, can you find so many restaurants featuring most every pop culture character imaginable? Aside from the many animal cafes, that are sometimes controversial, here are other themed cafes for you to consider.
Theme Cafes to Visit in Tokyo
Alice in Fantasy Book
1 Chome−6−2 T-wing B2F
160-0021 Tokyo, Shinjuku City, Japan
www.dd-holdings.jp/shops/alice/ehonsinjyuku#
You shouldn’t have a hard time guessing what type of theme café this is. Alice in Fantasy Book is based upon the classic 19th century children’s novel by Lewis Carroll. In fact, it seems as if you have gone down a rabbit hole and landed into Alice’s wonderland. Featuring artwork, furnishings and a menu inspired by events that take place in “Alice in Wonderland”. For example, the menu features themed dishes like White Rabbit’s carbonara and a Cheshire cat pasta. Of course, you can also have your very own Mad Hatter Tea Party with an assortment of sweets and teas, in addition to other drink selections. There are three Alice cafes in Tokyo, including the Fantasy Book location just minutes from Shinjuku station.
Directions From Shinjuku Station
Since Shinjuku station is the world’s busiest, it’s helpful to know which exit to take for Alice in Fantasy Land. In this case, you should head towards the South Entrance, which actually looks like a north entrance on Google Maps. Upon exiting the station, Alice in Fantasy Land is about a 3-4 minute walk. Of course, you should also use Google Maps or other GPS app on your smartphone to help you find your way. However, the time it takes to get top this theme café depends upon real-world conditions of your route.
At Home Café
1 Chome−11−4 3F～7F
Chiyoda City, Sotokanda
Tokyo 101-0021, Japan
www.cafe-athome.com
It may not be for every visitor, the cosplay-themed maid cafes are very popular in Tokyo. In fact, there are hundreds of maid cafes, with many in the Akihabara district. In essence, you’ll have waitresses dressed as French maids and a menu full of creative dishes and drinks. While you can decide which location to visit, the pink colored At Home Café is one of the best reviewed. Like other maid cafes, At Home charges an entry fee and in this case it’s ¥780 or $5.15. However, there are lower rates for those 60 years and over as well as discounts for students from college to junior high school. Please know that in general, you are not allowed to take photos of maids nor make any physical contact. On the other hand, At Home does offer menu options that allow you to have your photo taken with a maid.
Directions from Akihabara Station
From Akihabara station, it’s 280 meters or .2 miles to At Home Café’s main store. Just head west after leaving the station. Please note that the main section of the cafe is on the fifth floor.
Final Fantasy Eorzea Café
1-chōme−1−10 Chiyoda City, Sotokanda,
101-0021 Tokyo, Japan
www.pasela.co.jp/eorzea
Based upon the Japanese-made Final Fantasy anthology series is its own Tokyo theme café. However, a visit depends upon your interest in the Final Fantasy franchise, which includes video games, books and movies. If you’re a fan of this role playing game, particularly Final Fantasy XIV, you’re bound to look what this café has to offer. In other words, the interior is beautifully designed with artwork inspired by the video game. What’s more, the food items get many great reviews, with comments on its inventiveness and quality.
Directions to Final Fantasy Eorzea Theme Café
Just like other theme cafes in this list of recommendations, the Final Fantasy café is a very short walk from a subway station. In this case, it’s about a five minute walk from Akihabara station. After leaving the station, you would head southwest towards Mansei Bridge. The café is located inside of Pasela Resorts AKIBA entertainment building.
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Harry Potter Café
1F Akasaka Biz Tower, 5-3-1 Akasaka, Minato-ku
107-6301 Tokyo, Japan
www.hpcafe.jp
Not to be mistaken for the Harry Potter Studio Tour Tokyo, is its own namesake café in Akasaka. Featuring an exterior and interior design by the Harry Potter films, the café also offers many Instagram-friendly items. This includes a Platform 9 ¾ beans, Hogwarts cheese toast and Gryffindor pork and onion. In addition, the Harry Potter Café offers a tasting menu for ¥5,940 or $39.17. Among the non-alcoholic drinks to order are the Herbivicus and Stupify. However, you won’t be able to order butter beer here, which is available at the Harry Potter Studio Tour Tokyo.
Directions to the Harry Potter Café Tokyo
The Harry Potter Café is located on the first floor of the Akasaka Biz Tower in Akasaka. It is a very short walk from Akasaka subway station on the Chiyoda C line.
Ninja Experience Café
1-22-14 Jinnan, Shibuya
150-0001 Tokyo, Japan
www.ninja-cafe.com
To find the inner ninja warrior in you, visit the Ninja Experience Café. As you can imagine, this theme café is for all things related to ninjas, with widespread interest to modern popular media. Unlike many Tokyo theme cafes, the Ninja Experience Café allows you to dress and act as a ninja. Prices start at ¥4900 or $32.31 for a costume rental, ninja training and a drink. On the higher end, it’s ¥10,000 or $65.95, which also includes a ninja tour and entrée. Another option you might like is to walk around the neighborhood for an hour in a ninja costume for ¥1100 or $7.25.
Directions to the Ninja Experience Café
This particular Ninja Experience Café is located in the lively Harajuku neighborhood of Shibuya City. The closest subway station is Harajuku and it’s about a five minute walk along the famous Takeshita Street. A second location is in Akasuka, Tokyo, along with locations in Osaka and Kyoto.
Peanuts Café
3 Chome-1-4 Tsuruma, Machida
Tokyo 194-0004, Japan
www.peanutscafe.jp
If you’re a fan of Charlie Brown, Snoopy and other Peanuts characters, take a closer look at this café. Located inside the Snoopy Museum, Peanuts Café has a menu inspired by characters created by Charles Schulz. For example, you can order dishes like Snoopy’s “Rarf Rarf” pancake or Peppermint Patty sandwich. In addition, you can also purchase Snoopy-themed plates and mugs, as well as other items from the retail store. Now in a new location, the Snoopy Museum is the sister property of the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, California.
Directions from Minami-Machida Grandberry Park Station
From the Minaimi-Machida Grandberry Park station, it’s about a 5 minute walk to the Snoopy Museum. Chances are there will be other visitors so you can simply follow everyone to the museum. The Tokyo subway route that serves this station is the Hanzomon line.
Related: Family Friendly Attractions in Tokyo
Peter Rabbit Garden Café
1 Chome−25−20, Myu, 1F Meguro City, Jiyugaoka
152-0035 Tokyo, Japan
www.peterrabbit-japan.com
Unlike animal cafes, you won’t see a live rabbit in this themed café. Instead, you’ll find a cozy spot inspired by the character created by British author Beatrix Potter. In other words, you’ll find a storybook-like garden setting with plenty of Peter Rabbit artwork. But what really makes it worthwhile is its reputation for serving affordably delicious entrees. For instance, there are dishes like Peter Rabbit’s cottage pie and Jemima Duck’s omurice (omelet with rice). In addition are other options like Peter Rabbit’s Afternoon Tea and Peter’s House French toast. There are other Peter Rabbit shops in Japan, including in Yokohama and Kyoto.
Pokémon Cafe
2-4-1 Nihombashi, Chuo-Ku+
103-8285 Tokyo, Japan
www.pokemoncenter-online.com/cafe
Aside from maids and those with animals, Pokémon Cafe ranks amongst the most visited theme cafes in Tokyo. After all, the Pokémon game, trading cards and its characters are popular worldwide with millions of fans. With this in mind, this café may be high on your places to visit, particularly for its creative dishes. As a matter of fact, every menu item features Pokémon characters, including Snorlax, Pikachu and Bulbarsaur. In addition to food and drinks, you can also purchase Pokémon plates, toys and other collectible gifts.
How to Get There
The Pokémon Cafe is located next to Pokémon Center inside Nihombashi Takayama shopping center’s east building. The shopping center is just a five minute walk from Nihombashi subway station.
Related: Top Attractions in Tokyo
Samurai Restaurant Time
1-chōme-7-7 Kabukichō, Shinjuku City
160-0021 Tokyo, Japan
www.giragiragirls.com
Despite its name, Samurai Restaurant Time is not your typical theme café. Instead, it’s a kitschy, Las Vegas-style stage show featuring pretty women that only occasionally resemble samurais. In more detail, it’s a wildly colorful stage act full of vivid colors, anime and other pop culture references. You can make reservations for a performance online for ¥9000 ($59.35), which includes admission and food or drinks. Please note that during other hours, it operates as Gira Gira Girls cabaret, with prices starting at ¥4000 ($26.38). This Kabukicho location was previously occupied by a popular robot theme café, with an equally dazzling show.
Directions to Samurai Restaurant Time
You can get to Samurai Restaurant Time in about five minutes from Shinjuku station. However, that depends on how fast you walk as it’s about 1.2km or .7 miles from point to point. Furthermore, you might find yourself distracted by all of the glitzy attractions you will see in this section of Shinjuku.
Samurai Entertainment Alternative
For a more traditional look on samurai culture, there is a much better option with Samurai Entertainment Show. In fact, this live stage act is presented on the grounds of the Kanda Myojin shrine and comes with food and drinks. On the other hand, this isn’t a theme café although it’s certainly more family friendly. Unfortunately, no dates are currently available for this samurai show but you can check back for updates.
Sanrio Café
1-28-, B1-F Higashiikebukuro Toshima
Sunshine City Alpa
170-6090 Tokyo, Japan
www.sanrio.co.jp/sanriocafe
One of the most popular characters from Japan’s “kawaii” or cute culture is Sanrio’s Hello Kitty. Therefore, it shouldn’t be surprising to learn that there is a Sanrio theme café in Tokyo. Located on the basement level of Alpa shopping mall, Sanrio Café offers dishes inspired by many of Sanrio’s characters. For instance, Hello Kitty pancakes and pork buns, Kuromi crepes and Pompompurin ice cream. Sanrio Café is about a five minute walk east of Ikebukuo station. A second and equally colorful Sanrio Characters Garden Cafe is in Tokyo’s Ueno neighborhood.
Shirohige’s Cream Puff Factory
5-3-1 Daita, Setagaya City
155-0033 Tokyo, Japan
www.instagram.com/shirohige_puff
If you’re a fan of Oscar-winning filmaker Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, you have a couple of café options in Tokyo. The first is Straw Hat Café at the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka, some six miles west of Tokyo. The second, and slightly closer to the city center is Shirohige’s Cream Puff Factory. This second café is a theme café meant for fans of Totoro, an animated character created by Studio Ghilbli. It’s also owned by the sister-in-law of Hayao Miyazaki, famed creator of films like “Spirited Away” and “The Boy and the Heron”. Inside the Cream Factory you will find all sorts of tasty cream puffs resembling Totoro.
Directions to the Cream Puff Factory
According to Google Maps, the Cream Puff Factory is a one minute walk from Setagaya-Daita station. However, in a real time situation, you might find it will take just slightly longer to get there. Still this subway station is about seven miles from city center, as opposed to over 14 miles for Ghibli Museum.
Vampire Café
6-7-6, Ginza, Chuo
104-0061 Tokyo, Japan
www.dd-holdings.jp/vampirecafe
One common problem with Tokyo theme cafes is that many will eventually close. Take for example that most of the listing of Tokyo concept cafes in a story by Atlas Obscura have closed. One of the few exceptions is Vampire Café, which has been around for over 20 years. Representative of its vampire theme, this café’s menu features items like “food for monsters” and coffin cakes. Of course, the interior has a vampire-like look, with red furniture and a few costumed skeletons. You can also book a reservation in advance, although not all of the information is up to date or translated from Japanese. Either way, prices appear to be affordable with a top price of ¥6000 ($39.56).
Location of the Vampire Theme Café
The Vampire Café is just a few minutes from Ginza subway station.
Related: How to Use the Tokyo Subway
About the Author
Randy Yagi is an award-winning freelance writer who served as the National Travel Writer for CBS from 2012-2019. More than 900 of his stories still appear in syndication across 23 CBS websites, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco. During his peak years with CBS, Randy had a reported digital audience reach of 489 million and 5.5 million monthly visitors. Additionally, his stories have appeared in the Daily Meal, CBS News, CBS Radio, Engadget, NBC.com, NJ.com and Radio.com. He earned a Media Fellowship from Stanford University.
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