Hello, this is M, the concept-cafe writer!
This time's theme is the long-established maid cafe "Maidreamin"! You know, @home cafe last time was amazing too, but this time's Maidreamin is also amazing! What's amazing is the number of stores! In Akihabara alone, a whopping seven stores! @home cafe is about the same if you count one shop per floor within a building, but... Maidreamin, if anything, has more distinct individuality per store.
For example, the Akihabara Chuo-dori Store I'm covering this time is on the second floor of a building, but there's also a Maidreamin on the third floor of the same building, and that one has a different name, the Denkigaiguchi Ekimae Store. If you look at the interiors on the website, you can tell that various spots differ here and there. Can you see it? https://maidreamin.com/shop
So this time, first up is the Chuo-dori Store on the second floor. There are two ways to get there, by elevator and by stairs, but if you go by stairs, you actually end up entering through the back entrance. I went up the stairs and opened the door, so I thought, "Huh?! Did I make a mistake?" and closed the door once. Then a maid popped out and asked, "Are you... a Master?" so I was able to go in. As I waited inside the shop, customers kept coming one after another through the back entrance (the stairs). Is there some unwritten rule that regulars come in through the back?
So from here, a quick introduction to Maidreamin's system. You order by scanning a QR code and ordering from there. Maybe as a reaction to holding back on sweets while dieting, I was drawn to the parfait... and ordered the Soothing Panda Parfait!
While I waited, a group of foreign customers came in, and amazingly the maid handled them in English. The English I speak comes out as kanji, but no, just being able to speak in English is amazing!
One other thing that caught my attention was something on the table that looked like foreign currency. I took a photo of it, but... there was no explanation of what it's for... And just as I was wondering, the Panda Parfait arrived! I immediately took a bite...! Huh? Aren't I forgetting something? Gah! I forgot to take a photo! (I'd already eaten a bite...)
I'm not very used to eating parfaits, so I can't compare it to others, but personally it was super delicious! The matcha-flavored cream was especially tasty, and at 950 yen for this volume I thought it was on the cheap side.
Well now, where should I go next?