A Guide to Booking a Reservation at the Pokemon Cafe in Japan (A Complete Review)
Wondering how to get a reservation to Pokemon Cafe and what to expect when you are there? This blog shows you everything you need to know about dining at Pokemon Cafe in Japan.
If you are a fan of Pokemon then a bucket list item would be to have a meal with Pikachu at the Pokemon Cafe in Japan. But it is no easy feat to dine there given there are limited spaces and all the spots are snatched up within seconds.
It took me a few tries to finally get a Pokemon Cafe reservation in Tokyo that actually worked with my very limited schedule during my winter trip to Japan. So in this post, I will show you the various ways you can get a reservation at the Pokemon Cafe and what to expect when you get there!
Where is Pokemon Cafe in Japan
There are two official Pokemon Cafes in Japan, one in Nihonbashi (near Tokyo Station) in Tokyo and another in Shinsaibashi in Osaka. Both of these restaurants are extremely popular and require a reservation to visit.
I went to the one in Tokyo and it is inside the Pokemon Center. Since I haven’t been to the one in Osaka, I don’t know where it is exactly but I assume it would be inside a Pokemon Center as well.
The Pokemon Cafe is actually a really large space (I had imagined it to be smaller given the limited reservation spots), and decorated with different Pokemon throughout the space.
How to get a Reservation at Pokemon Cafe (Multiple Methods)
There are multiple ways you can get a reservation at Pokemon Cafe, some are easier than others and some are free whereas other ways cost money.
Booking a Pokemon Cafe Reservation 31 days in advance
The number 1 option for anyone that wants to eat at a Pokemon Cafe is to book directly on their website and select the time slot you want.
The reservation opens up 31 days in advance at 6pm Japan time for up to a party of 6.
So assuming you are outside of Japan, you will need to calculate the date and time correctly. For example, when I tried to book the reservation, I had to get up before 4am in order to book it since the time difference is 14 hours. If you have a party of 7, you will need to split up that party to book a table for 3 and another table for 4 separately.
When it comes to the actual booking, you will need to pull up an accurate clock, such as this one where it shows you the second. You will need to go to the reservation page a couple of minutes before 6pm Japan time, select the number of people and click on the date you want (even if it’s unavailable), and click on “next step” right at 6pm (not 2 seconds later).
If you are able to get to the next page, you will then select the actual time slot, input your information including email address. If you are too slow, someone else may take that time slot so be sure to be quick.
However, for the most part, you probably will end up seeing the page below as too many people are trying to make that same reservation. You will then need to keep refreshing until the page loads, don’t give up! It took me 5-6 minutes for that page to load but I was still able to grab a time slot (although not the one I preferred).
When you are on the Pokemon Cafe calendar page, I highly suggest that you do not let your browser translate the page from Japanese to English because it messes up the calendar.
I noticed that when you translate the page to English, the calendar is messed up. On the screenshot below, It says the third is unreleased, but in fact it should be the 31st. Because of this issue, I missed booking the reservation for the correct date (I wanted the 23rd and got 26th instead).
I read on Reddit that even if you don’t get the initial reservation, wait till 6:20pm and 6:40pm and 7pm Japan time to see if more reservations pop up! I didn’t try this myself but apparently it worked for some people.
Booking a Pokemon Cafe Reservation Using a Third Party
Given how hard it is to get a reservation directly from the website, some people prefer to pay someone to do it for them instead.
I haven’t tried this service myself but I did see people saying it worked well. There are several different services and the one I saw was VIP Pokemon Cafe booking on Facebook.
In general these services cost about $20-25 for a successful booking and you have to give them several time slots/ dates about 35 days in advance to maximize your chance of a successful booking.
I did read that Pokemon Cafe does not approve of third party bookings and reselling reservations are illegal. So using a third party may not be the best option going forward.
Grabbing a Last Minute Pokemon Cafe Reservation
An easier way (if you are flexible) is to get a last minute Pokemon Cafe reservation cancellation. People cancel all the time and the reservations generally become available at 10pm Japan time the day before and this is how I got my Pokemon Cafe reservation in Tokyo (in fact I got mine a few days before and not the night before). You should always check during the day as well and not only check at 10pm to maximize your chances.
I had previously gotten up early to book 31 days in advance but because of the calendar mishap, I ended up booking a reservation for the wrong date. I knew that there’s generally a possibility to get a last minute one so I refreshed everyday around 10pm Japan time for days I knew I could go.
Luckily a couple of different time slots did pop up for the dates that worked for me. I think it helped that I was one person so it was easier to get a seat. This is actually how I got the Kirby Cafe reservation in Tokyo as well.
Once the reservation goes through, you will receive an Email confirmation with your reservation details. There is also a link in the email in case you want to change or cancel your reservation.
Go In Person and Hope for the Best
A last resort method to get a Pokemon Cafe reservation is just to go early that day and see if there are last minute cancellations or if people don’t show up.
I personally would not do this as I jam pack my day and do not like uncertainties but this does work for some people.
Food & Drinks at Pokemon Cafe
Pokemon Cafe has a limited number of food options and they also have a “special” that changes throughout the year. As you can expect from theme cafes in Japan, all the food served is Pokemon themed.
Some of the food options are pretty stable, such as the Pikachu and friends curry plate, the Snorlax plate, and the Kids Hamburger plate. Essentially these are just regular meal size plates, either on Pokemon character plates/ bowls or they make some of the food on the plate look like a Pokemon.
There are a few dessert items too, such as the Pikachu Souffle Pancake, an ice cream parfait and a Pokemon Dessert bowl inside a Pokeball. In addition, Pokemon cafe drinks consist of ice cream floats (with different colors and characters), milk tea, smoothies and tea party sets.
When you order specific drinks on the iPad they give you, there is an option to pay extra to keep the Pokemon themed glass or mug.
When I went in the winter, there was a special Eevee’s Japanese mixed rice plate & milk tea set. It was essentially brown rice with different vegetables, which reminded me of Nepali Thali.
What I ate at the Pokemon Cafe and How I would Rate them
Since I went alone, I couldn’t try as much food as I wanted to, but I did manage to get 3 things to try.
Pikachu and Charmander’s Curry Plate ★★★★☆
I actually really liked this plate! The presentation was creative and the hamburger steak and avocado potato salad were quite soft and flavorful. The only thing I wished they had was more meat or veggies in the actual curry sauce (the picture online looks like there are chunks of things in the curry sauce but in reality there’s not).
Pokemon Cafe’s Chocolate Parfait ★★★☆☆
This chocolate parfait was ok, not the best or the worst. There was less ice cream than I had expected and I felt like I was mostly eating the cereals. I also wish there were more actual chocolate or chocolate fudge in this Parfait.
Gengar’s Smoothie ★★☆☆☆
Unfortunately I did not like this smoothie, as it was too sweet and too artificial for my taste. If you like sweet drinks then you probably would like this better than I did. I think I only drank 1/3 of the glass.
One thing I did notice about Japan is that all the drinks at these types of cafes can be quite sugary. So it took me a long time to decide what drinks to order since I could imagine all of them would be very sweet. Again, this is more of a personal preference and I’m sure some people love the drinks.
Overall I thought the food at Pokemon Cafe was decent, better than what I had expected at a theme cafe like this. Food at the Pokemon Cafe is definitely better than food at Kirby Cafe. If you go in with a moderate expectation, you will be pleasantly surprised.
After you are done with your food, a waitress would come over with a spinning wheel asking you to spin and get a prize. I ended up getting a plastic film thing (pictured below).
Performances at the Pokemon Cafe
Although you can’t interact with any of the characters, there is the famous Pikachu dance throughout the day and each party should be able to see the show at least once during their allocated 90 minute reservation slot.
When I visited around 7pm, about 5 minutes after I sat down, Pikachu came out to dance! During the performance all food services are stopped since you don’t want to accidentally bump into Pikachu with your curry.
Pikachu would mostly stand in the front of the cafe and dance but would also occasionally walk around the different aisles if there is space. There is a very energetic female host that would sing with Pikachu and everything is in Japanese (so I had no idea what she was saying). The show lasted between 10-15 minutes and it was quite cute.
Unfortunately you can’t interact with or take photos with Pikachu at the Pokemon Cafe. There were no other characters that came out when I visited but I read years ago there were other characters that came out.
Merchandises to buy at the Pokemon Cafe
There are specific things that you can only buy at the Pokemon Cafe (or when you make the reservation). You will not be able to purchase these items anywhere else, even in the Pokemon Center.
When you make your reservation online successfully, you will be asked if you want to add specific items (like coasters). When you are at the cafe, as mentioned earlier, you can purchase mugs and glasses based on what drinks you order. These will require that you have a reservation.
There are a number of merchandise that you can buy from the cafe even if you don’t have a reservation (at least according to the official website). These include plates, Pikachu Plush, mug, utensils, keychains, etc. You will need to purchase these in person as you can’t buy them online from the website.
Is Pokemon Cafe Worth it?
If you are a big Pokemon fan, then you absolutely would love Pokemon cafe. Food is not bad and the atmosphere is great. The dancing Pikachu is unique and something you will not see anywhere else in the world.
If you are not a big Pokemon fan, I don’t think it’s worth the hassle of getting up at ungodly hours and going through the stress of trying to get a reservation. There is better food to try in Tokyo and you won’t be missing much.
Pokemon Cafe Alternatives
If you really can’t get a reservation at the Pokemon Cafe, don’t despair, you have alternatives.
The most popular non-official Pokemon cafe is Pokemon Sweets Cafe in Ikebukuro at Sunshine City in Tokyo. It’s a bit out of the way from the Center of Tokyo but worth the trip if you really want to get Pokemon themed desserts.
It is a take out only cafe that has Pikachu themed drinks, desserts and merchandise. You don’t need a reservation to go.
Although not a Pokemon, another alternative is Kirby Cafe near Tokyo Skytree. Reservation is also hard to get but you get Kirby themed food and drinks here (but food is not great, way worse than Pokemon Cafe food).
Lastly, if all else fails, you can always go to one of those 3D latte art cafes in Tokyo, specifically Cafe Reissue in Harajuku and Hatcoffee in Asakusa to get a 3D Pokemon themed latte. I got a Snorlax one from Cafe Reissue (and a Totoro one from Hatcoffee). You can show them any photos of any Pokemon and they can probably make a 3D latte art for you.
