Within Shibuya ward, known as the hub of youth culture, the Harajuku area is where the most cutting-edge brands and items popular among young people gather. This area extends from Harajuku station to around Omotesando station and is a trendsetter.
It's also the birthplace of the Japanese word "kawaii" that has gained worldwide attention, and there are many unique shops. As one of Japan's premier shopping areas, it's bustling with people seeking popular and trendy products and stores.
While the area around Harajuku station is filled with unique "kawaii" shops, the area around Omotesando station has a more sophisticated atmosphere with many shops that adults can enjoy.
I will introduce a unique and popular cafe in the Harajuku area.
Cafe Scene in Harajuku
Harajuku is not just about fashion; it's also known for delicious and cute sweets. It's often called a fierce battleground for sweets.
Many shops and commercial facilities are unique to Harajuku, making it popular as a tourist destination. Because it's a place where many people gather, there are naturally many cafes.
In Harajuku, where unique shops abound, the cafes are also unique! Besides standard sweets like crepes and pancakes, there are Instagram-worthy sweets and shops with the latest trendy sweets, never running out of topics to talk about.
The Pom Pom Purin cafe introduced in this article is one such cute and trendy sweets shop.
What is Pom Pom Purin Cafe?
Located just a 3-minute walk from JR Harajuku station, Pom Pom Purin cafe is a cute cafe themed after "Pom Pom Purin", a popular character from Sanrio Company, famous for character goods like Hello Kitty.
"Pom Pom Purin" is a golden retriever boy, with his trademark being a brown beret. He's easy-going, his favorite phrase is "going out", and his least favorite is "house-sitting". His favorite foods are milk and the pudding his mom makes.
With a wide fan base from children to adults, one reason for his popularity is that "his smile is healing". This cafe where you can enjoy Pom Pom Purin's world is a very popular spot in Harajuku.
Highlights of Pom Pom Purin Cafe
Immerse Yourself in the Character's World! Cute Interior
Source: Official Website
One of the highlights of Pom Pom Purin cafe is its cute interior. With yellow as the theme color of Pom Pom Purin and brown from his beret as an accent color, you can immerse yourself in the character's world as soon as you enter.
To begin with, Pom Pom Purin cafe is designed with the setting that Purin-kun prepared a party venue to invite all his friends. He thought hard about the decorations to make all his friends happy.
The chairs with characteristic curves on the backrest have Purin's beret color, dark brown, at the base. You can also enjoy Pom Pom Purin illustrations on the roll-up sunshades. Enjoy the Pom Pom Purin world with unique furniture, interiors, illustrations, and stuffed toys.
Take Photos with a Large Pom Pom Purin
Source: Official Website
What stands out most in the shop is the large Pom Pom Purin in the center. The table seats are arranged to surround Purin-kun. It seems like he's welcoming customers as they enter.
It can get crowded as it's a photo spot, but be sure to take a picture standing next to Purin-kun as a memento of your visit.
There's also a paid service where you can take a Polaroid photo with Purin-kun, which is then placed in a frame for you.
By the way, greeting customers along with Purin-kun is his friend Mafin-kun. He's an opportunistic and gluttonous hamster.
Around them are Purin-kun and his friends merged with sweets, unique to the cafe. As attention has been paid to the details, try to find things that you can only see here.
Cute and Delicious Menu Items Abound
The enjoyment at Pom Pom Purin cafe isn't limited to the interior and photo spots. There's also an abundance of cute and delicious menu items modeled after Pom Pom Purin.
The food menu includes lunch plates and omurice, and you can even order a picnic basket. There are not only menu items for individuals but also pair menus and limited quantity menus.
The dessert menu includes cute decorated donuts, and a tea party set is also popular.
Drinks include cafe-original items like custard pudding latte and fluffy cream hot latte that let you enjoy the taste of pudding.
Drinks start from 770 yen, and food items from 1,600 yen, making them relatively reasonable. However, note that it's a one-drink-required cafe, so when ordering food, you need to order a drink as well.
Recommended Food Menu at Pom Pom Purin Cafe
Lunch Plate
Source: Official Website
From here, we'll introduce recommended food menu items from Pom Pom Purin cafe in detail.
First up is the lunch plate. It's an assortment of menu items that children love, and it's also very satisfying for adults.
On the plate, you'll find rice shaped like Purin-kun's face with a hamburger hat, an omelet sprinkled with star-shaped cheese. Next to the potato salad, there's a star-shaped hash brown.
The cup contains dessert: kiwi & yogurt topped with Mafin-kun's chocolate.
It's a lunch plate so cute that you might feel reluctant to eat it, even down to the flag standing in the potato salad.
Omelette rice
Source: Official Website
The food menu items are all so cute that it's hard to choose. For those who like omelets or omelette rice, we recommend Pom Pom Purin's Souffle Omurice.
As the name "Souffle" suggests, the egg is not the typical runny omelet but has a fluffy texture you can enjoy. The sight of Purin-kun sleeping in demi-glace sauce is so cute that you might hesitate to take the first bite.
A point not to be missed is the shiitake mushroom placed as Purin-kun's beret. Ingredients are cleverly used to express the character's features in various places.
Picnic Basket
Source: Official Website
Newly introduced in April 2024 is the "Let's Go Out with Pom Pom Purin♪ Picnic Basket".
This is a pair set menu that allows you to enjoy a picnic mood inside the shop, regardless of the weather.
It contains two each of hamburgers, fries, salad, and soup. The hamburgers feature heart-shaped picks and are filled with a large patty, cheese, tomato, and vegetables, offering a satisfying meal. The fries are star-shaped and come with Pom Pom Purin.
Unfortunately, it's not available for takeout, but sharing from one basket might make it taste even better.
Recommended Dessert Menu at Pom Pom Purin Cafe
Donuts
Source: Official Website
Pom Pom Purin cafe expresses Pom Pom Purin's world in its dessert menu as well.
As of June 2024, the sweets menu includes Pom Pom Purin donuts, mango parfait, and a tea party set. Here, we'll introduce the donuts in detail.
The donut plate is perfect for when you're a bit hungry. A fluffy donut covered in chocolate is topped with a small pudding. It also comes with caramel sauce, so you can add it to your taste.
You can also choose strawberry flavor for the donut. Among Pom Pom Purin's sweets menu, this has less whipped cream, so it's a good choice for those who like sweets but aren't fond of whipped cream.
Tea Set
Source: Official Website
The most luxurious sweets menu at Pom Pom Purin cafe is this tea party set. Like an afternoon tea set, you can enjoy an assortment of cakes and snacks on a two-tiered plate.
The contents change with the season, but typically include several small cakes, a small parfait, waffles, canelés, quiche, and more. You'll find Pom Pom Purin-shaped sweets and flags, with attention to detail in even the smallest areas.
As it's limited in quantity, you might not be able to get it depending on timing. Be sure to order it when you want to have a fun party at Pom Pom Purin cafe.
Recommended Drink Menu at Pom Pom Purin Cafe
Custard Pudding Latte
Source: Official Website
There are several drinks with ingenious menus as well. For those who want to enjoy Purin-kun's chocolate in a drink, we recommend Purin-kun's Custard Pudding Latte.
As the name suggests, the Custard Pudding Latte is like a pudding-flavored milkshake, praised as "tasting like pudding made into a drink" or "drinkable pudding". The Purin-kun on top is made of white chocolate and is quite substantial.
Other drinks with Purin-kun on top include Mango Lassi, and drinks with Mafin-kun on top include Cafe Mocha. Cafe Mocha is a menu item where you can enjoy both bitterness and sweetness.
Chocolate Latte
Source: Official X
Another recommended sweet drink at Pom Pom Purin cafe is the "Choose Your Drink + Choose Your Cookie" menu.
This menu allows you to choose one drink - either a Colorful Cream Soda if you want it cold, or a Fluffy Cream Hot Latte if you want it hot - and then choose one cookie from 8-10 designs to accompany your drink.
Chocolate Latte is one of the three hot drink options and is popular among those who want to enjoy rich chocolate. Other options include Strawberry Latte and Matcha Latte.
Enjoying this on a cold winter day along with Purin-kun's character will make you feel happy.
Recommended Ways to Enjoy Pom Pom Purin Cafe
As Pom Pom Purin cafe is only in Harajuku, it's often crowded. Especially during long holidays and weekends, you might need to wait as they issue numbered tickets.
When numbered tickets are issued, you can sign up to be notified of your turn progress via SNS or mobile phone, which is convenient.
By the way, they don't accept reservations in advance, so on holidays, it's better to arrive early considering the waiting time.
Note that the first floor of the cafe building is "Sanrio CUTE CUBE HARAJUKU", a Sanrio character goods shop, so you can enjoy shopping while waiting for your turn.
However, Pom Pom Purin goods are also sold in the cafe, so it might be better to purchase after using the cafe.
Access
Pom Pom Purin cafe is a 4-minute walk from JR Harajuku station. Exit from the Takeshita Exit, go straight down Takeshita street, cross the road, and it's on the 3rd floor of the building.
The first floor of the building is a Sanrio shop selling character goods like Pom Pom Purin, so you can use it as a landmark.
Information
- Address: CUTE CUBE HARAJUKU 3F, 1-7-1 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
- Closed: None
- Phone: 050-3703-9712
- Business Hours: 11:00 - 19:00 (Weekdays), 10:00 - 19:00 (Weekends & Holidays)
- Official Website: https://pompompurincafe.com/menu