There are a lot of interesting places to visit in Japan, and the themed cafes in Tokyo certainly are high on the list of strange, bazaar, and unusual things to see in the city.
During my visit to Tokyo, I aimed to visit as many themed cafes as I could within the short week that I spent in the city. I ended up visiting a total of five cafes and restaurants including a maid cafe, an owl cafe, and a restaurant full of robots!
Fukuro no Mise Owl Cafe, Tsukishima
Visiting an owl cafe was truly one of the most interesting things that I have ever done in my entire life.
For one hour, I was given the opportunity to play with a variety of owls at Fukuro No Mise that ranged from small and fluffy to large and curious. The one thing that I really enjoyed about my owl experience was being able to place the small creatures on my head and my wrist. I especially loved petting their soft cloud-like feathers!
Pom Pom Purin Cafe, Harajuku
Pom Pom Purin is one of the cutest themed cafes in Tokyo.
Named after a yellow golden retriever named Purin, Pom Pom Purin serves up various puppy shaped desserts and small meal sets. Although I was not familiar with the character prior to visiting Japan, I learned that he is one of the most popular characters in the Sanrio collection (which is the maker of Hello Kitty and Melody).
Alice in a Labyrinth Cafe, Ginza
When you step into the Alice in a Labyrinth themed cafe in the neighborhood of Ginza, you will automatically be transported into a fantasy land.
Upon entering you will be greeted by young ladies dressed in Alice in Wonderland costumes that prance around from table to table as patrons ring bells to get their attention. A lot of thought and dedication went into this cafe and the staff gets completely involved in the fantasy world.
Robot Restaurant, Shinjuku
I have already dedicated an entire post to Tokyo’s Robot Restaurant, and although it is technically not a cafe, I definitely feel as if it should be on this list of unique themed places to eat in the city.
Guests of the Robot Restaurant are provided with an hour and a half of pure entertainment. In addition to massive robots, the Robot Restaurant also has high energy girls dancing around to pop songs and an enthusiastic cast of glow in the dark men popping and locking to tunes by Michael Jackson.
Updated August 2018
I barely dented the surface of all of the themed cafes that Tokyo has to offer. Check out the sites below for other themed cafe ideas in the city and don’t forget to read about my experience at a maid cafe in Akihabara!
- 5 Strange Themed Cafes in Tokyo (Travels in Translation)
- Inside Tokyo’s Cutest Theme Restaurants and Shops (Huffington Post)
- The Lockup Prison-Themed Restaurant (How I Became Texan)
Interesting list especially the Fukuro no Mise Owl Cafe. They looks so cute and friendly, hard to imagine since in my country owls are killed since they are associated with bad omen.
They were pretty friendly as long as you handled them correctly Rachel 😀 Which country are you living in now?
Jealous you got to go to the owl cafe! I’m hoping to do that next time around. Themed cafes will never stop amusing me, I just want to visit all of them. 🙂
Thanks for sharing my themed cafe article!
Hi Beth! You’re welcome, and I have gained a new appreciation for them 😀 I definitely want to visit more around the world!
It’s been ages since I have last been to Japan. The themed cafes weren’t popular, yet. Japan is a very interesting place and I would love to go back again. I would definitely visit their themed cafes.
I loved the themed cafes that I visited during my trip and I hope to see more the next time around! 😀
That would be so neat. I love the culture of it all and a themed cafe makes it fun to see what they can come up with. I am a lover of themes even on my own website and when I do designs lol.
Yes! Themes are a lot of fun and Japan sure has some unique ones 😀
I have never visited Tokyo but I have a friend who lives there. I’d love to go and see her and visit some of these fun themed places. I love places with character, I need to forward her this link to see if she’s visited any of them 🙂
You definitely should go see her, Tokyo is such an amazing place 😀
These restaurants look so cool!! I think my sound would flip if we went a Robot Restaurant! I hope one day to be able to travel to Asia it looks like it would be amazing to visit and so much fun too!
Haha the Robot Restaurant was extremely unique and I am sure your son would love it. You definitely should visit Asia if you get a chance, you won’t regret it for a minute 😀
HOW MUCH FUN! We traveled in Tokyo, but we never visited any restaurants like this! I would love to go there again and treat my self to this adventure!
It was a lot of fun going to these places. When you go back to Tokyo, you should definitely check out at least one of the many cafes around the city 😀
We booked a trip to Japan but decided to cancel about 2 years ago. I would love to visit! Maybe when my kids are a bit older
Oh man 🙁 I really do hope you get to go back and experience Japan Rika, it is such a wonderful country. Bring the kiddos to the cafes too, they will have a blast!
I have never been to Toyko Japan but I love all things owls. I mean LOVE. I would love to go to Fukkuro no Mise Owl Cafe in Tsukishima and if I ever make it to Japan this is on my travel wishlist that is for sure! Thanks so much for sharing your review.
Holding an owl certainly was a hoot! I am sure that when you make it to Japan you will really enjoy holding an owl!
I would love to go to the Alice In Wonderland themed cafe. It is one of my favorite stories and the cafe seems very nice.
The Alice in Wonderland Cafe was a very unique experience indeed. I personally want to see the others when I get back to Japan.
Wow! I would love to visit every one of these. Lately I’m so into themed cafes since we will be visiting Taipei soon and there’s also a lot of themed cafes there in the city. It’s a must to bring a camera to capture everything memorable. I’m sure it’s worth a shot!
I loved them too! I went to the Modern Toilet when I visited Taipei and that was VERY interesting. Have a great trip 😀