Respekt

Today I had a language exchange meeting in Shibuya. The two of us like cafes so on occasion we abandon Starbucks and find a new place to check out. Today we headed towards the Harajuku direction and went in to Respekt.

Respekt is located near Streamer and Glorious Cafe Chain. So naturally is attracts the same kind of rather young and hip crowd - the musician and hipster looking crowd, not the young kids with host and hostess hair that hang out at the other end of the station. The place is pretty nice, but I have a really bad cold right now, so that fact that there's no barrier between the smoking and non-smoking sections was not earning this place any points. It's a really smoky place. Many of the cool cafes are, I know, but it's definitely a negative point for me. Especially right now.

So, due to my cold, I decided to skip the coffee and go with tea - Rooibos Mint Tea, to be exact. My friend ordered coffee and we split a Tirimasu cake. The tea was really good. On top of that, there was about 2 cups or so per pot and the hot liquid was very soothing on my throat, so I ended up ordering a second one. The tirimasu was also quite good, but we couldn't help but laugh because the tiny portion came in a massive dish. Who are you trying to fool with that?

So, I did get some time to look around during restroom breaks and such. There's a counter at the window with computers that I guess can be used for a fee. There's lots of tables and chairs as well as sofa seating. All in all a comfy place with some nice features. If it wasn't for the smokiness, I would have really liked it. It seems like a good place to study or relax.


Order: Tirimasu and Coffee Set (¥850) and two orders of Rooibos Mint Tea (¥650ea)
Review: Chill but way too smoky for someone with a bad cold

Website: http://www.cafecompany.co.jp/brands/sus/respekt/index.html
Access: Shibuya Station (About 1 or 2 minutes from Exit 13)
Address: 1-11-1 (2F), Shibuya, Shibuya Ward, Tokyo 150-0002

Roman Records Cafe (日本語）

Original English Post

今日、私と友達は休みだったのでデラックスカフェ巡りをすることに決めた。東横線の駅でふらついて、２、3カフェに立ち寄るつもりだった。最初に自由が丘駅でおりて、カフェではなかったけれど、どこかでランチとドーナツを食べた。行きたいカフェは満席だったんだ。その時はちょうどランチタイムだったので、びっくりしなかった。

それから、学芸大学駅に行って、少しほっつき歩いて、Roman Records Cafe を見つけた。素敵だし、看板にワッフルがあると書いてあったので、入った。このカフェについて、複雑な心境になった。理由を説明するね。最初に私は入って、店員さんはあいさつして、「4時に閉める。大丈夫？」と言っていた「今は何時ですか。」「3時20分。」「大丈夫です。」これまで悪くなかった。文句はメニューを5分ももらわなかったということだ。それで、もらってから、1分しか決まらなくてはならなかった。私たちは急かされていると感じだった。始めのよくない顧客サービスのせいだ。確かにその人は定時に出たがっていた。私は彼だったら、同じようにするね。それにしても、客だったので、第一印相はビミョウだ。

とにかく、注文してから、待ちながら、カフェを見回した。このカフェはけっこうかっこいいと認めざるを得ない。狭いけれど、椅子は大きくて心地よい。隅にDJの機材みたいなものがあった。たぶんここの主な魅力は音楽集だけれど、食べ物も美味しそうだと思っている。言ったように、このカフェは狭いけれど、狭すぎない。明るくもないけれど、暗くもない。かなり男らしい雰囲気がある。たぶん、ピーク時に煙たくなるかもしれない。煙たいところが好きではないのに、Roman Records Cafeこそ適していると思う。

コーヒーが来でから、Roman Records Cafe について、印像がよくなってきた。コーヒーは早く来たし(5分後) 見た目の点で悪いことがなかったし。私は普通にカフェラテを頼んで、友達はココナツラテにした。私のはハートデザインのラテアートがあって、友達のはココナツパウダーが上面にふりかけてあった。味の点で、本当によかった。カフェラテはコーヒーとミルクのバランスで、クリーミーな深い味があった。私はココナツがあまり好きではないので判断しにくかった。友達は嬉しそうに飲んだけれど。

では、結果は また学芸大学のあたりにいたら、4時から6時半以外に、またRoman Records Cafeに行くつもりだということだ。今回時間がなくて、ムードはよくなかったので正当の経験がしたわけではない。それから、たぶんいいところなのに、判断を留保するね。

注文: カフェラテ (560円)；ココナツラテ (580円)
所見: たぶん いいところ

Website: http://romanrecordscafe.p1.bindsite.jp/
アクセス: 学芸大学駅 （徒歩1分）

(Translation checked by Hiroshi) 

Mr. Friendly Cafe

So the last stop on my friend's and my mega cafe adventure was Mr. Friendly Cafe in Daikanyama / Ebisu. This is another one of those places that I'd been dying to go to but just didn't have the chance to go out to. After we left Rosalie, we decided to walk towards Ebisu since I needed to take the Hibiya line to Roppongi that evening. Well, wouldn't you know it, Mr. Friendly Cafe just happened to be on the way! Lucky!

So, I found this in one of my many cafe magazines in the hotcake section. But the unique point here is that the hotcakes are miniature Mr. Friendlies. So cute! I was surprised to find that this is the only location because it's been around for a while and there's a ton of merchandise - cookies, mugs, T-shirts, figurines, bags, etc, etc.

Even though I had just had half a piece of cake, I couldn't pass up the chance to eat those tiny little men. So I order a seven-piece regular set with a coffee. Since I was eating in, I also got to choose a topping. I went with caramel, though I wish I had gone with whipped cream instead. All well, there's always next time. Wait - what? Next time? Yeah, if I'm ever in the area again, I'll be popping over here again. I want to try a sundae or something next time. But anyway, I'm getting ahead of myself. My friend ordered the mango yogurt smoothie drink and then we took out seats.

The seating area was small and inviting. Most of the light came in through the huge window which faced the road. The place wasn't really anywhere near the main road so, while it wasn't particularly interesting, it wasn't unpleasant either. And the light was quite nice. There was a rather large stuffed Mr Friendly in the corner of the bench seat that I promptly sat next to.

After a few minutes our drinks and mini hotcake men came out to us. After getting a few pictures, we dug in. (Since I'm such a nice friend, I of course let my friend have a few pieces.) The little Mr Friendly hotcakes were yummy on their own, but I'm a fan of pancakes in general so that doesn't say much. And the caramel dipping sauce wasn't terrible, but like I said, I wish I had made a different choice. My cafe latte was pretty good, and I learned later it was organic coffee, so I guess that's good. My friend's mango yogurt drink tasted an awful lot like a Mango lassie, which is of course not a bad thing either.

I definitely enjoyed coming here. It's a place that plan to come to again. I even bought some Mr Friendly cookies for another friend on the way out. (I'll be honest, I bought myself one mango cookie too.) Out of all the places we went today, Mr Friendly Cafe was definitely the top.

Order: Seven-piece hotcake set (¥263) and  Cafe Latte (¥420)
Review: They'll be seeing my face again.

Website: http://www.mrfriendly.jp/index.html
Access: Daikanyama Stations (a few minutes walk)
Address: 2-18-6 Ebisu Nishi, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo

Rosalie

So, after the iffy cafe in Gakugeidaigaku, my friend and I decided to move on to Daikanyama. This place is also well known for having oodles of cafes. While walking around we happened to notice a rooftop seating area. After climbing up the stairs, we realized it belonged to Rosalie, which as it turned out was a bit of a cafe. We peeked inside, but didn't sit down, because we wanted to sit outside.

The inside was really nice from what we could see. It was clearly designed for the young female crowd. That seemed to be all there was! It made no difference to me, but my friend was in hog heaven. Until I made him join me outside. If I had to say, I would say that the motif was rather Victorian, but I didn't get a real good look, so it's hard to say exactly.

As for the rooftop seating area, it was nice and simple. We sat at a table next to a hedge, so the two of us pale people could get some shade and protection from the sun. We couldn't really get the overhead view from our spot, but my guess is that the view below is just the street, so it's no big deal. But just being out in the sun was enough to make me quite happy.

So, since we had just had some coffee, we decided to go with something different at this place. My friend had a lychee and pineapple smoothie, and I had the citrus herb tea. We also split some strawberry shortcake. The cake was delicious and had fancy silver sprinkles so it definitely gets two thumbs up. The tea took me a few sips to get warmed up to it. The flavor was much more subtle than I expected, I guess. But by the end I was wishing I had more. I would drink that stuff all the time if I knew how to make it actually.

So I will say this place is nice and I would highly recommend it to a group of Japanese girls in their early to mid 20s. But if it wasn't for the outdoor area, I probably wouldn't have come here at all. Looking at the indoor crowd made me feel too foreign, too old, and too uncute. It was also a little pricey for my tastes. But like I said, if you fit that target market, I recommend it.

Order: Strawberry Shortcake (¥700) and Citrus Herb Tea (¥750)
Review: It's not really my scene.

Website: http://www.maisondereefur.com/#/home/cafe
Access: Daikanyama Station
Address: 2F, 24-7, Sarugakucho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Roman Records Cafe

One of my friends and I were both off today, so we decided to have a deluxe cafe adventure. We planned on wandering around some stations on the Toyoko line and stopping into a couple different places. The first station we got off at was Jiyugaoka. We ended up having lunch and a donut there, but not at any cafes. The one we had found that we wanted to stop in was full. We were around right at lunch time so it was as expected.

We then moved to Gakugeidaigaku station. We wandered around a bit before happening on Roman Records Cafe. It looked cool and the signboard said that had waffles, so we went in. I ended up with mixed feelings about this place. Let me tell you why. First off, when we went inside, the man who runs the place greeted us and said "We close at 4:00. Is that okay?" "What time is it now?" "3:20." We decided to stay in for a bit. So far, no big deal. The part that left a bit of a bad taste was that we weren't given a menu for about 5 minutes. Then once we got it, we got about 1 minute for both of us to look through it. So, both of us felt that we were being unnecessarily rushed due to initial bad service. Granted, I'm sure the guy just wanted to be able to get out on time, and I probably would have done the same. But still, as a customer I was not getting a good first impression.

So, after placing our order and waiting for it to come, I took a look at our surroundings. And I have to admit, it's a pretty cool place. It's rather small but the seats are large and comfy. There's a bit a DJ corner thing going on, and I think the music is the main appeal of this place, though the food looks like it might be amazing too. Like I said, it's rather small but not at all cramped. And while it's not dark per say, it does have a rather masculine feel to it. I suspect that during peak hours it's good and smoky too. As you may know, I'm not such a fan of smoky places, but I think it might kind of suit the ambiance of Roman Records Cafe.

I will say, that I started thinking more positively about this place when the coffees came out. They came out quick, maybe five minutes later. Maybe. And presentation-wise, I had no complaints. I ordered a regular cafe latte and my friend got the coconut one. Mine had a lovely heart in it and my friend's had coconut powder sprinkled on the top of his. Taste-wise, I also approved wholeheartedly. Mine was very rich and creamy. The coffee and milk was balanced quite nicely. The coconut latte was good, but since I'm not really a fan of coconut, it's hard to really make a judgement there.

So, the final conclusion is if I'm ever in the area again anytime other than between 4:00 and 6:30, I will go in again. I want to like the place and I feel like the circumstances just didn't allow for a proper experience. So, I'll reserve judgement for now. Though it's probably good.

Order: Cafe Latte (¥560) and Coconut Latte (¥580)
Review: Probably a great place to go.

Website: http://romanrecordscafe.p1.bindsite.jp/
Access: Gakugeidaigaku Station (about 1 minute or so on foot)
Address: Ito Building 102, Takaban 2-20-4, Meguro Ward, Tokyo

Patisserie Potager

Picture from Bento.com

So I've been eying this place for ages. I don't know that it actually qualifies as a cafe, but it's close enough for me. I found it on Bento.com's site on the cafe page, so it must count, right? Anyway, it's more of a sweets shop, but anyway...

As I said, I've been wanting to go here for a while, but being as how it's in Nakameguro, I just couldn't make myself go all the way out there. But, then I found someone who lives in the area, so it suddenly became "no big deal". So my friend who resides in Nakameguro and I hit up Patisserie Potager. Yes!

Now, you may be wondering what exactly is so great about this place. It's just a sweets shop, right? Well, no, not exactly. The sweets here all contain some sort of vegetable. There's cakes with carrots, tomatoes, and spinach in them, among other things. My friend chose pumpkin tiramisu, and I went with avocado cheesecake. What? We also had some organic coffee to go along with it.

So, how was everything? The size of the cakes was a bit small, but being as how I was eating cheesecake, I wasn't complaining. My friend and I, of course, tried a bit of the other person's sweet. The pumpkin tiramisu was good, but I preferred my own. (I love tiramisu, but I love cheesecake more.) The coffee wasn't anything special, but it was rather cheap.

As for the price, I ended up being treated to everything, so I ended up not catching the price or getting a receipt. I will say that I'm pretty sure that everything included (2 desserts and 2 coffees) was no more than about 1500. But I could be wrong, of course.

The cafe itself was nice. They don't have any seats inside, but there's a cute seating area outside. And with the nice weather and the breeze, it was a comfortable place to spend a few hours. I would go here again to try the other sweets if I was in the area. But it seems like the area has lots of other interesting places to check out, so I'll do that first.

Order: Pumpkin Tiramisu, Avocado Cheesecake, Two Hot Coffees
Review: A cute and interesting place to visit on a nice day.

Website: http://www.potager.co.jp/
Access: Nakameguro Station (A few minutes walk)
Address: 2-44-9 Kamimeguro, Meguro, Tokyo, Japan

Rain on the Roof Cafe

Today was a fun day - any day that involves both karaoke and a new cafe is a great day. Throw good company and a cat into the mix - magical! Anyway, a language exchange partner of mine and I hung out in the Sangenjaya area. It was my first time out there so he was responsible for finding a good cafe. He chose Rain On the Roof Cafe.

Rain On The Roof Cafe is on the second floor of an older building. It was one of those renovated style cafes. The roof looked like an old Japanese house and the overall atmosphere was pretty homey. But in a masculine kind of way. The dimly lit room was scattered with not only  wooden chairs and tables but  also some oversized dark brown leather chairs and sofas. Naturally we went with the comfy looking leather chairs. We were planning on being there for a while and why not, right?

When we went in, we were greeted by the smell of Curry Rice. It smelled pretty delicious so I'm gonna guess their food is alright here. We both just went with coffees - iced coffee for him and a cappuccino for me. It was a really hot day, but I'm finding that iced coffee isn't really my cup of tea. So cappuccino it was. The waitress took our order but then came back to make sure I knew that cappuccinos were hot. "Um...of course I know that" is what I was thinking. "That's fine" is what I told her.

So, I don't know about the iced coffee but I was quite pleased with the cappuccino. The presentation was nice. The layer of cinnamon on top smelled amazing! And it tasted quite nice too. I had absolutely no complaints about it. And since it was hot, I was also drinking water. I will definitely give props to the staff for being so attentive and keeping my glass full.

So, what with the comfortable atmosphere, cold water, delicious coffee, and good company, I was quite pleased. I believe this place also serves as a small live house, and I would actually be quite interested in coming back and seeing a show here at some point. As long as I can sit in one of the arm chairs and drink another cappuccino, that is.

Order: Cappuccino (¥600)
Review: Nice cafe in a renovated space.

Website: http://renovationplanning.co.jp/roof/index.html
Access: Sangenjaya Station (about 5 or so minutes)

Address: 2-14-22 2F, Sangenjaya, Setagaya Ward, Tokyo 154-0024