Cafes of Japan: Hackberry

Since moving to Japan 5 months ago I have been seriously missing my cafe dwelling! Back in Toronto I loved spending an afternoon at a café reading, writing, working – cafes just have wonderful atmospheres, I feel so very comfortable there! (Some of my favourite Toronto cafes are: Bobbette & Belle, Himalayan Java House, Early Bird Espresso and Brew Bar, and the one I can always count on no matter where I am in the city, Second Cup!)

Even though Japan is incredible and has a lot to offer I still find myself missing cafes, so with the help of the Internet and by asking friends and co-workers for recommendations, I drew up a list of cool cafes to visit. I plan to go to them all, eventually! Hence my new series:

Cafes of Japan!

I want to start this series with one of the cafes that was at the top of my list, is located conveniently close to where I live, and also has seriously impressed me the couple times I have been and made me want to become a regular customer there!

Hackberry

While it took me a while to get there, I have now been 3 times and I can say with assertion that Hackberry is my new favourite place! The café is located in Imaicho, in a neighbourhood with old Japanese style houses, so the façade is very pretty and traditional, but once you step inside the café has a very warm and western feel with lots of lights, cozy, mismatched furniture, and so many books (in lots of different languages)!!

Another upside of Café Hackberry is that they have amazing cakes! Seriously, delicious, creative flavour pairings and absolutely gorgeous presentations! They also have a special cake set, which includes a piece of scrumptious cake and tea (plain, lemon or milk tea) or coffee. I’ve gotten that a few times, and never been disappointed! The cake on the left is a matcha black bean cake with cream cheese and shiroanko (sweet white bean paste) icing - it was very satisfying! A little crumbly, not too sweet and quite hearty for a cake! It was served with ice cream and whipped cream. The cake on the right is a seasonal specialty reflecting the fall flavours of Nara! It is a persimmon cake with persimmon sauce! It was scrumptious! Note the little pretzels in my whipped cream? They are supposed to look like antlers, a nod to the famous Nara deer!

Every time I have gone to Hackberry I’ve gone with someone else, it’s a great place to sit and hang out, the atmosphere is very conducive to chatting! It’s so cozy you could stay for hours and the staff never pressures you to leave. In fact, they are really kind and super friendly; though, as in many places in Japan wait staff need to be summoned by a button, so they don’t really linger.

Although I love introducing people to Hackberry and bringing them new business, I am also very eager to go on a solo-trip to Hackberry and either read one of the many intriguing books on their bookshelves, or bring along my kobo and do some of my own reading!

What are your impressions about Cafe Hackberry? Would you go visit it if you were in Japan? What about it is similar or different from cafes where you are from?