In Singapore, children are introduced to Singa The Lion – a popular social mascot for promoting kindness nationwide. Did you know that in Japan, there is also a popular social character named MR FRIENDLY who promotes amicable relationship, love, peace and happiness among children and young adults? Conceptualized by renowned design company, Super Planning Co Ltd in 1988 (they also design and produce the popular Rootote bags in Japan), MR FRIENDLY’s popularity soared over the years and made frequent appearances at children social exhibitions. Now, he owns a personal line of merchandise, a picture book, 3D animation productions and a cafe in Daikanyama, Tokyo.
Let’s visit MR FRIENDLY Cafe in Daikanyama today!
It is easy to access MR FRIENDLY Cafe, which is located just a 3-5 minutes leisure walk from Daikanyama Station on the Tokyu Toyoko line. (Fyi, Daikanyama is quiet neighbourhood near Shibuya with many quaint shops and cafes. I’ll introduce more cafes in Daikanyama soon. 🙂 )
- Go to the North Exit (which is not manned by staff) and walk along the footbridge (the red route on the map).
- At the end of the foot bridge, continue straight to the road junction.
- Turn right onto the slope.
- Walk straight and you will see Rootote Gallery.
- MR FRIENDLY Cafe is located on the second block.
Image source: http://www.mrfriendly.jp/main/02_shop/index.html
There you are! The white bricked design with colourful signages and a cute wall painting that stood out in the surroundings. It’s quite easy to identify MR FRIENDLY with his signature slanted eyebrowns yah? Don’t you think he resembles Winnie the Pooh, with a gentle and caring look?
The cafe is relatively small but presents a bright and cozy ambiance. It exudes a sense of warmness, with contrasting interior designing and texture: denim bench cushion / wooden bench and table / mixture of industrial and wooden chairs. The seating capacity is around 18 persons and it was full with friends and couples when I visited. The main highlight of the cafe is their huge feature wall of words, which promote positivism, encouragement and community interaction. It’s nice to be surrounded by such great vibes!
MR FRIENDLY Cafe is generally a sweet desserts cafe that specialized in hot cakes, pancakes, ice-cream, parfait and healthy organic beverages. A perfect venue for light snacking, tea breaks and catching up with friends and loved ones. Their specialty is the unique plating of mini pancakes with personalized name or message! How creative!
It wasn’t long before I found my new cafe companion! A huge MR FRIENDLY softtoy! Love the gentle look of my new friend who looks understanding and accepting. His wide smile is so contagious – I can’t help smiling along when I look at him! 🙂 Indeed, the perfect mascot to promote friendliness, love, peace and happiness! Keep a lookout for this friendly giant when you visit the cafe.
Ta-da! My order! Seeing the many bite-sized MR FRIENDLY pancakes and my name on the plate perks me up instantly! It’s such a joy to see simple yet unique customization. A great idea to surprise and show appreciation to loved ones. By the way, did you notice that the food presentation is exactly as drawn on the menu?
After a delightful meal, it’s time to explore the cafe. You will be pleasantly surprised by the wide range of MR FRIENDLY’s colourful merchandises, appealing to children and young adults. There are mugs, stationery, T-shirts, bags, cookies, sweets, postcards etc as seen from the video.
A shot of the exterior building. The exterior wall painting is especially popular with cafe patrons so be prepared to queue up for a photoshoot!
Bye MR FRIENDLY! Thank you for your warm hospitality and for reminding us to be happy! 🙂
MR FRIENDLY Cafe
Address: Japan, Tokyo, Shibuya, Ebisunishi, 2 Chome−186, SPビル1F
Telephone: +81 3 3780 0986
Operating hours: 11am to 8pm
Website: http://www.mrfriendly.jp/index.html
JR Vacation says:
- It is a sweet dessert cafe. Do not expect full meal to be served! Great for teabreak and light snacks. The bite-sized pancakes are surprisingly filling.
- Do order their personalised plating pancakes! Lovely presentation, which creates lasting impression of my visit.
!steemitworldmap 35.649770 lat 139.705233 long MR FRIENDLY Cafe, Tokyo, JAPAN. D3SCR
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