Whether it’s mascarpone, souffle or ricotta - Tokyo’s pancake cafés have certainly upped the worldwide pancake game with their ultra-fluffy pancake creations on offer at various establishments in town. So smooth and soft that they will jiggle back and forth when moving your plate, eating one of these fluffy guys will make you rethink the concept of pancakes entirely. Because we love them so much we have compiled a whole list of Tokyo’s best fluffy pancakes here, so do yourself a favor and dig in!  

￥950~
︎Various Locations - see our Fluffy Pancake Guide for more info

Founded in 1930, Takemura is one of those places people don’t just stumble upon, but that is famous enough that it itself has become a destination worth traveling to. Located in a quiet neighborhood near Akihabara and Kanda which still preserves some of the charm of old Tokyo, get yourself a spot in Takemura’s small tatami room and dig straight into the café’s famous age-manju which are accompanied by free-flow green tea. The deep-fried dumplings which are filled with red bean paste are served hot and crispy straight from the kitchen, and are just so delicious that you might find yourself craving more than just one serving.

￥500 for set of two (including tea)
︎Takemura
︎Google Maps
︎Website

Image by カフェモカ男 via Tabelog

A visit to Japan wouldn’t be complete without a scoop of green tea ice cream. If you really want to step up your matcha game, head to Suzukien in Asakusa and indulge in their palette of matcha gelatos ranging from no. 1 (delicate green tea flavor) to no. 7 (the world’s strongest green tea ice cream). Beware however, that the no. 7 flavor is extremely strong and bitter, so matcha beginners might want to try one of the lower levels first (we recommend no.1 - no. 4).

Also on the menu: delicious black sesame, roasted green tea, Japanese black tea and brown rice tea gelatos which pair excellently with any of the matcha flavors.

￥370~ Single Cup Ice Cream
￥560~ Single Cup No. 7 Matcha Ice Cream
︎Suzukien Asakusa
︎Google Maps
︎Website

A traditional Japanese sweet, Okoshi is made by drying steamed rice and shaping it into cube-shaped rice puffs. This particular version, which contains a wonderful hint of ginger and pumpkin seeds, is sold at the shop of our favorite Ginza tea house HIGASHIYA and its satellite shop HIGASHIYA man and comes in a beautiful metal box reminiscent of pre-war Japanese packaging. If you are at HIGASHIYA’s main location in Ginza, be sure to also indulge in the many delicious, seasonal wagashi (traditional sweets) served at the café, which come paired with an outstanding selection of Japanese teas.

￥1,512 for one box
︎Higashiya Ginza
︎Google Maps (Higashiya)
︎Google Maps (Higashiya man)
︎Website

Image courtesy of Higashiya

Want to escape the humid summer heat or just craving for a refreshing dessert? Luckily Japan has yet another genius seasonal food that helps to keep your body temperature down: kakigori.
From traditional matcha and red beans, to mango-coconut, or kuromitsu-kinako, follow our guide to where to get Tokyo’s most refreshing and instagrammable shaved ice here. 

￥650~
︎Various Locations - see our Kakigori guide for more info

Image via Palace Hotel Tokyo

Unless you’ve been logged off social media on a lonely island somewhere, you’ll know that Korean pop culture has long started its takeover of not just music and fashion, but also instagrammable food. While photogenicity is not necessarily our main criteria, at Bam Bi you will get both delicious desserts and a beautiful presentation. Our favorite is the café’s take on siad-injeolmi, a traditional Korean dessert made from glutenous rice, topped with soybean powder, roasted nuts and brown sugar syrup. Viennese-inspired coffee is another popular choice at Bam Bi, but expect to wait in line (especially on weekends) because this is one of Koreatown’s most popular dessert cafés.

￥980
︎Bam Bi Coffee
︎Google Maps
︎ Instagram

Located in a quiet side street in the fashionable district of Aoyama, the Tokyo flagship store of Taiwanese pineapple cake shop SunnyHills was designed by none other than Kengo Kuma, who created a masterpiece of Japanese architecture and craftsmanship and another standout piece in Tokyo’s avant-garde architectural landscape.

The buttery sweet cake is filled with jam-like pineapple paste, which can be sampled for free at the showroom of SunnyHills Minami-Aoyama (after making a purchase at the shop) where the friendly staff will guide you to the beautifully designed upper floors and serve you one of the shop’s famous pineapple cakes as well as some Taiwanese tea. 

￥1,500 for box of 5 cakes
︎SunnyHills at Minami-Aoyama
︎Google Maps
︎Website

Image courtesy of SunnyHills

Famous for its long lines that sometimes stretch around the whole building, Ringo sells only one item, and oh do they do it well. Its crunchy, buttery apple-custard pie is freshly made in-house and will give you a new perspective of how good an apple pie (or rather an apple pocket) can be. We recommend eating the pies after putting them in the oven for a few minutes to get that extra crunchiness and warm apple-custard filling that will flood your apartment with a glorious, buttery smell.

￥399
︎Ringo Apple Pie Ikebukuro or Tokyo Midtown Hibiya
︎Website (Japanese only)

Image courtesy of Ringo Apple Pie

Located a couple of streets off of the main shopping street leading to Sensoji Temple, Naruto Taiyaki is perhaps the area’s most popular stop to grab a hot and crispy fish-shaped waffle. With flavors such as red-bean, custard, sweet potato or matcha (flavors depending on season), Naruto’s creamy taiyaki waffle are the perfect snack for a walk through old Tokyo.

￥154-187
︎Naruto Taiyaki
︎Google Maps
︎Website