Cat Food

Japan has so many character cafés.  There are lists to be found online if one is so inclined.  With my son out of school for spring holiday, I decided to take him to one as a special treat.  We have enjoyed going to other character cafés, like Shaun the Sheep and the Hungry Caterpillar (twice).   It is something we enjoy doing together and jumped at having the opportunity to try another fun restaurant.

A short train ride away is a Hello Kitty restaurant in Shinjuku.  Since it was so close, we decided to go. 

Egg & Spuma is a breakfast and lunch spot in the restaurant floor of Shinjuku Est.  The Hello Kitty meals are a temporary menu, only available until the end of March. 

There wasn't a line at the restaurant and we were seated immediately.  It took me a moment, but I realized there was not a single man or child in the restaurant.  Most of the seats were filled, but all with women and one or two infants.

We ordered our meals from the small menu.  My son picked the hamburger and I chose a strange combination of tuna, egg salad, and soufflé pancakes.

The menu had forewarned us that my soufflé pancakes take 15-20 minutes to cook.  We sat and chatted and played "I spy" using the Hello Kitty decoration on the table.  After a while, they brought my lunch and curry for my son.  I notified the waitress that it wasn't what we ordered.  She didn't say anything and just took the plate away.

After another 10 minutes, my son's food finally arrived. 

Although I thought my food was a strange combination, it was very tasty.  It was almost like a deconstructed sandwich, with very fluffy pancakes instead of bread.  We expected a very basic burger for my son, but that was not the case.  In order to affix the Hello Kitty edible seal to the burger bun, they smeared the top of the burger with mayonnaise, making it impossible to pick up.  The bun was very, very soft and the burger was closer to meatloaf texture versus hamburger texture.  It was pretty odd.  I ended up cutting up the burger so my son could eat it with a fork because it was just too much mess.

After lunch, we shared a parfait, with a fun Hello Kitty made of almond jelly on top.  It was nicely made.  There were layers of whipped cream, sorbet, strawberries in gelatin, cake, and another gelatin that I'm just not sure what it was.  It was blue and sweet, but not over the top.  Frankly, my son ate most of it, so I didn't get a good taste!  Typically, he's all about sharing at the beginning, but as we get closer to the end, he is more reluctant to let anyone else have a bite. 

It was an interesting experience.  The theme was there.  The food was unique, nothing I'd go back for.  The service was not good at all.  But, there was still that joy of eating character food.  I have told so many people about out other character dining experiences, but I don't think I'll recommend anyone to go rushing out to eat here before the end of the special menu.  It just wasn't that special.