When I am not drinking it, one of my favorite ways to enjoy matcha is as ice cream. I don't even need a hot day to enjoy it. I'm game for the creamy green stuff any day of the year.
We headed to Asakusa early today. We wanted to see the floating lanterns like we did last year. It was hot, as is typical these days (35°C/95°F).
Before nightfall, we visited shrines, wandered through shops, and played at a couple parks. My son was super excited to go to Hanakawado Park. After playing, we were hot and in need of a pick me up. My husband had heard of a matcha gelato shop that serves the strongest matcha gelato in town - Suzukien. It wasn't ice cream, but we also love gelato. My son is a huge fan of matcha, so we all three were eager to walk the couple blocks to partake in the very green cold treat.
From the outside of the shop, it looked like there wasn't a line. That surprised me. But once inside, the crowd revealed itself. The employees were incredibly organized. As we joined the queue, we were handed a menu that had photos of the gelatos, as well as Japanese and English labels.
There are seven options of matcha gelato, varying in intensity. I decided to get the Matcha Gelato Premium No. 7. My son and husband chose different flavors, since we all knew we would share with each other. The little man chose strawberry, while the big man chose Japanese black tea. My husband also chose to get a matcha soda.
We decided to stay in the crowded shop to enjoy our treats because if we took them outside, it would have ended in a big melted mess. We ducked into a corner and were able to enjoy and share with some comfortable elbow room.
The matcha gelato was really intense. I really enjoyed it, but one scoop was more than enough. It was nice to have bites of other flavors while savoring the premium matcha.
The other flavors were also fantastic. I was surprised that the strawberry was so incredible. The Japanese black tea was right on point. It was not as strong as the other flavors, but held its own and we loved it. The soda was very surprising. I am not a big soda drinker and I would drink this frequently. It is so well balanced and delicious!
We are so glad we went to Suzukien. We will definitely be going back whenever we take our friends to Asakusa. We know it will be a big hit with everyone we take there.
After our fabulous gelato experience, we headed over to enjoy the lanterns. Unfortunately the winds were too strong in the wrong direction and the lanterns were not flowing down river. Instead, they just clustered around the launch ramp and were not viewable by anyone that was not right there. We were disappointed, but at least we had bellies full of gelato to make us feel better.
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