Photo: PR Times
lifestyle

Famous maid cafe will open its biggest flagship in Akihabara

20 Comments
By grape Japan

Infinia Co Ltd インフィニア株式会社 has announced that they will open a new branch of theあっとほぉーむカフェat-home cafe in Akihabara, February 2022! at-home café (previously known as @home cafe) is currently one of the most famous and popular maid cafe chains in Japan. As some of our readers may recall, we have had several opportunities to introduce them before, including a complete on-site report.

According to their press release, this new flagship store will be the biggest store in their 17-year history and their ninth cafe.

The location will be the fifth floor of the AKIBAカルチャーズZONE Akiba karuchazu zon building. The building is already a popular sightseeing spot, but it will become an even more fun place to visit because the fifth floor will be your new “home.”

What does it look like?

1_athomecafe.jpg

This is the image of the new reception. The main concept here is 萌え moe, just like their other branches.

For those who aren't familiar with it, moe is very difficult to translate but it's the special feeling you get when you meet cute maids and see adorable anime characters, animals, and more. If I had to put it into words, in this context, it's the fuzzy feeling you get when you see these unbelievably cute Akihabara maids.

The venue is split into area A and area B with each area being further divided into two subsections. From just this information, you can easily imagine how spacious it is.

2_athomecafe.jpg

Area A-1 will be like the image above. As you can see, there is a stage with a vivid red curtain. The stage will have a big LED display.

If you haven’t been to at-home cafe, you might think “Why do they need a stage? This is a cafe, right?”

Surprisingly enough, at-home cafe maids can not only do cafe staff work, but they can also perform like idols! They sing and dance, and this is one of the reasons why at-home cafe is very popular, and a good place to make an unforgettable Japan trip memory.

I’ve been to at-home cafe several times and every time their performances are great and cute! I really want you to see their stage performances too.

3_athomecafe.jpg

This is Area A-2. There are so many seats and the pink tables are very cute.

4_athomecafe.jpg

This is Area B-1. Just like A-1, there is a stage for maid performances.

5_athomecafe.jpg

This is Area B-2. This section is very colorful and there are maid pictures on the wall.

6_athomecafe.jpg

Currently, there is a souvenir shop on the second floor of their main cafe, but it will be relocated to this new flagship cafe like the picture above.

Message from CEO Koki Fukazawa

The restaurants/cafe industry is facing a tough time because of COVID-19 and we, at-home cafe, are not an exception. Prior to the pandemic, the number of tourists from overseas and Japan was more than 10,000 per month, but now that number has fallen to less than 2,000. The impact was huge and the business situation was very severe. At times, we even felt that could no longer continue our business.

However, thanks to the warm support from our fans, the situation has been improving gradually. On weekends and holidays, especially, many ご主人様 Goshujinsama (masters)・お嬢様 Ojousama (mistresses) come to at-home café and they need to wait a while to enter.

Considering this situation, in order to welcome our guests in a more spacious café with many seats, we have decided to open a new branch in Akihabara as our new home base.

We are putting our efforts and our entertainment know-how to make this flagship store a place where everyone can experience an out-of-the ordinary world with maids and also hope it will become the ultimate landmark in Akihabara.

*They call their guests masters and mistresses.

Information

Shop name: あっとほぉーむカフェ AKIBAカルチャーズZONE店 | at-home café AKIBA Cultures ZONE branch

Opening: February 2022

Address: 5th floor AKIBA Cultures Zone, 1-7-6, Sotokanda, Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo

Operating hours: Weekdays 11:00-22:00 Weekends & Holidays 10:00-22:00

Official website

Official Twitter account

Official YouTube channel

Note: The opening date and operating hours may be changed.

Read more stories from grape Japan.

-- Fashioning Japan’s ancient mizuhiki artform into modern accessories using the AROMA Cord

-- Japanese illustrator leaves his creative stamp and a good dose of UFO humor on an envelope

-- Avatar clothing brand YOYOGI MORI announces new brand YUE, first VRC exhibition

© grape Japan

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

20 Comments
Login to comment

And they wonder why women still get treated like second class citizens/objects in japan...

6 ( +14 / -8 )

I honestly wish I could go for one single day without being reminded that women are seen as decorations and objects for the male gaze instead of full human beings.

Many foreigners have said much the same to me about being foreign in Japan.

I don't waste my time getting stressed about it myself.

5 ( +9 / -4 )

You’ll always lose if you try to fight millions of years of DNA conditioning. Have you ever thought that without that “male gaze” you probably would not be here?

Yes, it always amazes me that some people don't see that 1) it's exactly the same in every day life, where women put on make-up every day to look attractive/as beautiful as possible, where it's attractive people (women, men and children) who are used in advertisements etc, etc, 2) act as if this only happens in Japan because of course no other country in the world has any pornography or strip clubs (male or female).

Quite apart from the idea that somehow appreciating someone's beauty is apparently wrong???

3 ( +5 / -2 )

I honestly wish I could go for one single day without being reminded that women are seen as decorations and objects for the male gaze instead of full human beings.

well you could freeze yourself and hopefully wake up in some fantasy Star Trek land. But if memory serves, all of these so called woke Star Trek tv shows always had female actress for the male gaze.

You’ll always lose if you try to fight millions of years of DNA conditioning. Have you ever thought that without that “male gaze” you probably would not be here?

2 ( +6 / -4 )

It seems everyone here knows nothing about maid cafes and is just making their own biased opinions. Maid cafes are like girl bars; regular customers go there just to talk to girls, except here, the target customers are of the otaku variety, and touching is strictly prohibited. The moe/kawaii schtick is targeted toward tourists who visit once, take a polaroid, and probably never come back.

2 ( +6 / -4 )

If you make it they will come!

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Oh joy. Oh ecstasy. Another Maid Cafe. Just what we all need. yay...

0 ( +8 / -8 )

MarkToday  12:55 pm JST

..................................... take a polaroid, and probably never come back

A Polaroid? Haven't seen one of these, even on a tourist, for a very long time.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

StrangerlandToday  12:02 pm JST

I honestly wish I could go for one single day without being reminded that women are seen as decorations and objects for the male gaze instead of full human beings.

Many foreigners have said much the same to me about being foreign in Japan.

I don't waste my time getting stressed about it myself.

A most astute observation.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Commenters need to be a little more sensitive to Japanese culture with regard to gender roles. Japanese society has its own way of doing things.

There are also maid bars, sometimes called costume taverns. If you are over the age of Japanese majority, they provide an alternative cosplay service with more alcohol and (generally) less pink. Think of them as izakayas run by idols.

Cosplay services like this allow people to forget how awful life is. As it is now much worse than it was, and is unlikely to improve for many, these places offer a useful alternative to loneliness, depression and suicide. The worse reality becomes, the more we will value fantasy and escapism.

However, they may not need to expand. The borders are unlikely to reopen to foreign tourists. Businesses need to contract to a sakoku model (and not just in Japan).

0 ( +3 / -3 )

A Polaroid? Haven't seen one of these, even on a tourist, for a very long time.

The Instax cameras have become very popular these days..

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Good, congratulations!

Glad to see Covid didn't kill it.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

they = オタクたち

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

So on the 6th of December, there was an article bemoaning the fact that 33% of Japanese companies have no female executives

And today we are celebrating a large maid cafe opening in Akihabara.

When Japan stops treating women like playthings and baubles to look at, rather than individuals

You do realize the only connection between these two things is that they both happened in Japan, right? The people who run the companies with no execs are not the same people hiring the maids at the cafes.

I'm not sure who this "Japan" is that you think should stop doing these things. The only entity that can be considered "Japan" is maybe the government, and it's not clear how they would stop 'treating women like playthings and baubles to look at' - should the legislate against private businesses like maid cafes? Or should they legislate that boards have a minimum number of females on the board? Or should the legislate that women are only allowed to wear clothes that don't show their bodies off, and no makeup/hairdos? Or...?

-2 ( +6 / -8 )

I have to give this maid-cafe a try. Well, at least once.

-2 ( +3 / -5 )

All of that sight of pink, makes me feel queazy,

-2 ( +3 / -5 )

I’ve never been to such a nice one, but I can of course feel with all senses that it is at least a 1000 times better there than waiting and standing in line for my over sweetened and similar expensive coffee at any StaBu or other café.

-4 ( +2 / -6 )

I honestly wish I could go for one single day without being reminded that women are seen as decorations and objects for the male gaze instead of full human beings.

Shame, JT. This is not news.

-5 ( +8 / -13 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites