Walking into the Pokémon Café in Tokyo felt a bit special. After all, we had to book four weeks in advance to even get a spot for dinner. There was squealing. There was pointing at the merch. There was an immediate, very serious debate about which Pokémon we loved the most. This wasn’t just dinner. This was a bucket list experience!
We visited the Pokémon Café in Tokyo, fully aware that this place comes with big hype, a strict booking system and prices that aren’t exactly friendly on the wallet. But when you’re making the most of Tokyo, this experience sits firmly in the “we’ll regret it if we don’t” category. So we booked before we even left Australia, showed up and leaned into it.
What followed was part themed dining experience, part sensory overload, and part painful on the ears. The food? Incredibly cute. The experience? Peak Pokémon. The value? That depends on whether you’re judging it as a meal or as a bucket-list Tokyo moment. Here’s what the Pokémon Café is really like for families and whether it’s actually worth fitting into your Japan itinerary.
Where is the Pokémon Cafe in Tokyo
The Pokémon Cafe in Tokyo is located on the 5th floor of the Nihombashi Takashimaya S.C. East Building, at 2-11-2 Nihombashi, Chuo-ku. The closest station is Nihombashi Station, with direct access from the B2 Exit on the Tokyo Metro Ginza and Tozai Lines or a four-minute walk from the Asakusa Line. It’s also a five-minute walk from the JR Tokyo Station Yaesu North Exit.
If you’re staying at MONday Apart Premium Nihonbashi as we did, it’s a mostly flat 1.2km (20 minutes) walk from your apartment.
Booking the Pokémon Cafe: What families need to know
You must book the Pokémon Cafe in advance and you must book for a specific time. Bookings for both Tokyo and Osaka can be made here:
You can book up to 31 days in advance with reservations opening daily at 6:00 pm (Japan Standard Time) on the official website. Slots disappear almost instantly, so be prepared to refresh, book quickly and take whatever time slot you can get. We booked before we even left Australia to secure a spot.
When you click the reservation page, you’ll need to scroll down to the English Version. The reservation pages are in both Japanese and English, so take your time to read everything, as it’s a little confusing at times and they are quite strict. You can’t make multiple reservations for different days/times with the same email address and you’ll be sent an authentication code to confirm your email address. You also can’t change the number of people attending once you’ve reserved your spot.
The Pokémon Cafe, Tokyo, asks that you arrive 10 minutes before your booking time, and you get a 90-minute slot to order, eat and enjoy the Pokémon show. This 90-minute window starts at the time of your booking, so if you arrive late, you get less time to order and eat. They are quite strict and you will need to provide proof of reservation when you arrive. Also, if you are more than 10 minutes late and have not notified the cafe, your reservation will be automatically cancelled.
The experience: What it’s actually like inside
The staff are welcoming and provide full table service, in that your waiter or waitress will come and take your order, and your food will be delivered to your table.
The decor is cute and very on theme, and like most Japanese restaurants, it’s very clean. The menu is in both Japanese and English and there are chopsticks and forks/knives available.
Pikachu visits in each dining session and once he does arrive, it gets annoyingly loud as they launch into the Japanese version of ‘’If you’re happy and you know it”. It could best be described as ‘’a little screechy’’. Definitely aimed at younger kids! Despite this, there were plenty of Japanese couples with no kids on dates and double dates when we visited, which I thought was quite nice, as it made me feel better about being an adult Pokémon fan.
Here’s a sneak peek at Pikachu and our food:
The food and drinks
Although the menu is extremely limited, the food is presented in an incredibly cute way. There is a burger and soup kid’s plate for under 12s, but we ordered four regular plates consisting of:
- Pikachu and Bulbasaur Curry Plate
- Pikachu and Charmander Curry Plate
- Pikachu and Squirtle Curry Plate
- Snorlax Tummy Filling Nap
All were ridiculously cute, and if I weren’t so hungry, I would have felt a bit bad eating them. The kids ate hardly any, so I really should have ordered just one plate for them and had them share. As a result, we didn’t get dessert at the Pokémon cafe.
The food wasn’t really anything to write home about taste-wise (especially compared to the other amazing foods you can get in Japan), but it was certainly decent. I was really happy with how healthy it was for the kids with serves of protein, rice and vegetables. The novelty here is in how the food is presented.
We also ordered hot chocolate for the kids in a deal where you keep the mug as a souvenir. Other people were ordering soda floats and royal milk tea, and they looked amazing, with dollops of ice cream topped with a Pokémon character. Definitely the kind of drink you take a photo of before you start demolishing it!
Price check: Is the Pokémon Cafe expensive?
Sort of. The pricing is in line with what you would pay for a meal in a restaurant in Australia. At ¥2,420 (JPY), it’s around $24 (AUD). So it’s not as wallet-friendly as other Japanese restaurants, but it’s not over-the-top either. And really, anything loaded with this much pop culture is going to command a higher price.
The drinks vary in price and are all reasonable, but we overspent in this department. Although we only got soft drinks for the adults, the hot chocolate and souvenir mug cost ¥2,695 each. However, it was nice to take a little something from the Pokémon Cafe home with us.
Merchandise: Is it a sneaky extra cost?
No. You don’t have to buy any merchandise you don’t want to, but to get to your table and also to leave, you have to walk past a wall of merchandise. Some merch is exclusive, and you can only buy it if you’ve booked a table, with a maximum of three items able to be purchased. Other merch you get as part of a drinks deal, where you keep the mug/cup. There is also merchandise you can simply walk in and buy without eating at the Pokémon cafe, such as plates, cutlery and plush toys.
Is the Pokémon Cafe good for kids of all ages?
The Pikachu show is aimed at younger kids, with Pikachu launching into the Japanese version of ‘’If you’re happy and you know it’’ and encouraging the entire restaurant to clap and sing along. At ages 9 and 12, my kids didn’t enjoy this part at all, and to be honest, neither did I. It was loud and kind of annoying. In saying that, there were plenty of adults and older teens/twenty-somethings eating here with no young children that seemed to be enjoying the Pikachu show… so maybe it was just me.
Although it’s aimed at younger kids, tweens, teens, and adults can still enjoy the Pokémon Cafe for its food presentation and the fact that everything is Pokémon-themed.
What we loved and what could be better
- We all LOVED the themed food and drinks presentation
- Parents LOVED that the meals were quite healthy (protein, rice and vegetables)
- We all LOVED the merch on offer
- The Pikachu show was a little too loud on the ears. We DIDN’T LOVE this part of it.
Is the Pokémon Cafe worth it for families?
If you’ve got your heart set on the Pokémon Cafe experience, then yes, it’s definitely worth it. The Pokémon Cafe is not just a meal, it’s a “Japan-only” experience. If I had a do-over, I would probably have dinner elsewhere (since the kids didn’t eat much) and just come here for dessert and drinks. Both of my kids agreed that although they didn’t like it as much as they thought they would, because it was a bit “babyish”, they were still happy to have experienced it.
However, if you’re not really into Pokémon and don’t care either way, I would suggest it might not be worth your time and money. Potentially save your dollars for a dining experience that you might enjoy more.
FAQs: Pokémon Cafe Tokyo
Yes, and the slots book out very fast. The Pokémon Cafe accepts reservations at 6:00 pm (Japan Standard Time) 31 days before your desired reservation date, so you need to plan your visit and be prepared to hit refresh a few times when attempting to make a reservation.
You get 90 minutes from the time of your reservation (not what time you arrive) and the last call for orders is 30 minutes before the end of your stay.
Yes, infant chairs are available, the meals are very kid-friendly, and the Pikachu show is designed for younger kids.
Yes, the food is pretty decent, but the variety is limited. It looks amazing!
Meals range from ¥1,540 (JPY) to ¥2,640. Drinks range from ¥925 to ¥3,465, and the more expensive ones usually include a mug or cup to take home as a souvenir.
Yes, there were a number of adults visiting without kids when we were there, ranging from couples on dates to groups visiting from overseas.
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