
Pokémon Cafe's new Mega Charizard curry plate is a work of art in more ways than one
The next major Pokémon video game release on the horizon, Pokémon Legends: Z-A , is bringing back the Mega Evolution gameplay mechanic, which was first seen in Z-A's predecessor, Pokémon X and Y . But while Z-A isn't coming out until October, Mega Evolution Pokémon will be showing up in just a few weeks' time at Japan's Pokémon Cafe.
The themed restaurants in Tokyo and Osaka will be adding a Mega Evolution Charizard Flamethrower Curry Plate to the menu, which is both a fiery meal and, in multiple ways, a work of art. The first artistic medium is the food itself, with Charizard sculpted out of seasoned rice and breathing a blast of curry, bringing to mind the Pokémon's Flamethrower attack. Each plate also comes with either a Charizardite X or Charizardite Y Mega Stone, which can be seen at the top right corner of the dish in these preview shots.
You will, of course, want to whip out your phone and take some photos of your food before you start eating, and while you've got it out, you'll also want to scan the code on the back of the Mega Charizard X and Mega Charizard Y card your server will bring you.
Once you've done that, swing your camera's lens back towards your plate of Charizard curry, and some cool AR effects will fire up, the cafe mysteriously promises.
For those looking for a more serene way to include Mega Evolution elements in their meal, the Pokémon Cafe chefs will also be whipping up a Mega Ampharos Sparkling Caramel Cream Cake.
The dessert is sort of like a Japanese purin/custard pudding in cake form, with layers of custard cream, sponge cake, caramel sauce, and whipped cream, plus a sparkly motif befitting the Light Pokémon.
Eight Mega Evolutions are also being added to the Pokémon Cafe's latte art roster, with both Mega Charizards and the Mega Ampharos joined by Mega versions of Kangaskhan, Ampharos, Gardevoir, Altaria, Lucario, and Absol.
All of these are available to grace caffe lattes, caffe mochas, and hot caramel drinks. What's especially cool is that while latte art is random at most themed cafes in Japan, the Pokémon Cafe lets you pick which Mega Evolution you want.
▼ The Mega Evolutions also appear on coasters (one given at random for each drink order) and dual-layer stickers (one at random for every set of entree and dessert).
The lattes are priced at 935 yen (US$6.45), the Mega Ampharos cake at 2,640 yen, and the Charizard curry at 3,640 yen. They'll all be available starting June 14 at both the Tokyo and Osaka Pokémon Cafes, reservations for which can be made here.
Source, images: Pokémon Cafe
● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


SoraNews24
a day ago
- SoraNews24
EarthBound shop and art exhibition open in Tokyo for fans of Nintendo's quirkily charming classic
Oh mama! The Mother Shop is now open. Upon its opening in 2019, the sixth floor of the Parco department store in Tokyo's Shibuya neighborhood quickly established itself as a must-visit destination for video game fans, since from Day 1 it had dedicated Nintendo, Capcom, and Pokémon stores. This month, though, Shibuya Parco has made an addition for gamers with more particularly refined tastes, as it now has an EarthBound shop too. OK, so technically it's called the Mother Shop, using the Japanese-market title for the franchise which was renamed EarthBound for its overseas releases. But just like a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, the characters and creatures from Mother / EarthBound are as quirkily unforgettable regardless of what appears on the title screen. ▼ The Mother Shop (right photo) on its grand opening last Friday #MOTHERのかたち 開幕です!発売当時、攻略本などに載っていたキャラクターの粘土フィギュアが、 #ほぼ日曜日 にずらりとならびます。6階では #MOTHERのおみせ もオープン!ぜひどちらもたのしんでくださいね。この夏、渋谷パルコでおまちしています!(きこ) ※本日の入場予約は定員に達しています — ほぼ日曜日 / 渋谷PARCO8階 (@hobo_nichiyobi) July 25, 2025 Among the items on offer are acrylic character/monster keychains, with a whopping 31 different designs! For online shoppers, the only way to get these is to order the entire bundle, at an intimidating price of 23,970 yen (US$165), through the Mother online store. The new Shibuya physical shop, though, also lets you make individual blind-buy purchases for a much more manageable 770 yen a pop. ▼ The bases can be removed for easier looping of keys or use as decorative bag straps… ▼ …or left attached for use as standees. Other cool new items include T-shirts of the cast and the game's iconic 'SMAAAASH!!' critical hit indicator… …and even an ice cube, or ice character, tray. But probably the most appealing of all are the figures of EarthBound's core cast, Ness, Paula, Jeff, Poo, and Mr. Saturn. If these renditions of the characters look especially familiar, that's because they were produced by 3-D scanning the clay figures used for photographs in the game's instruction manual/player's guide. The PVC figures range in height from 8 centimeters (3.1 inches) for Mr. Saturn to 11.2 centimeters for Poo. They're only being offered as a set of all five for 19,800 yen, with a limited quantity to be produced to order, and delivery slated for early October. ▼ There's pixel art on the box tops too! The Mother Store isn't being billed as a popup shop, as it'll be around for longer than the scant few days that term often implies, but it's not a permanent addition to Shibuya Parco. It'll be open until September 8, as its residency is running alongside that of a paid Mother art exhibit on the building's 8th floor, The Shape of Mother, where the original clay versions of the core cast figures will be among the displays. Thankfully, the items shown above can also be ordered online here, but the Mother Shop looks to be a great place for fans to gather while they've got the chance… #MOTHERのかたち オープンです。 みんながうろ覚えで描いた「ゲップー」たち。みなさん、よく特徴を捉えられていてすごいです! 「うろ覚えで描いてみよう大会」は、お題がかわっていくので、何度きてもおたのしみいただけますよ〜。本日も、お待ちしております。(さく) — ほぼ日曜日 / 渋谷PARCO8階 (@hobo_nichiyobi) July 29, 2025 …especially with its art wall which visitors are invited to contribute to by trying to draw the series' characters from memory. Related: Shibuya Parco official website Source: PR Times, Hobonichi Top image: PR Times Insert images: Hobonichi (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6), PR Times ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!


SoraNews24
a day ago
- SoraNews24
Immerse yourself in all things Heisei era at the Neo Heisei Retro exhibition now open in Shibuya
'I didn't choose the Heisei retro life–the Heisei retro life chose me.' While modern Japan primarily uses the Gregorian calendar for most things, a complementary system of Japanese era names known nengo is also in use. These era names correspond to the reign of each emperor, with each year within an era receiving its own number as well. For instance, 2025 can also be referred to as Reiwa 7, as it's the seventh year since Emperor Naruhito ascended to the throne on May 1, 2019. The three most recent Japanese eras are the Reiwa era (2019-present), the Heisei era (1989-2019), and the Showa era (1926-1989). A concept called 'Showa retro' has been around for a while, referring to an appreciation for the nostalgic artifacts, music, lifestyles, and other cultural embodiments of the Showa era. In more recent years, however, the term 'Heisei retro' has also begun popping up for a similar appreciation of all things Heisei. ▼ As a millennial whose formative years were spent in the Heisei era, I was equal parts delighted and shocked to start seeing displays like this collection of Heisei-era music hits popping up in stores (are the things I like really old enough to be considered 'retro' now??). © SoraNews24 For anyone who's feeling like taking a little stroll down the Heisei-era lane, there's no better place to visit than the special Neo Heisei Retro Exhibition currently running from July 24 to August 31 at the Seibu Shibuya Store in Tokyo's Shibuya district, a fitting location as the mecca of youth culture and trends back in the Heisei day. The exhibition is the brainchild of one Mero Yamashita, a Heisei-era enthusiast and self-appointed guardian of all things Heisei. ▼ Mero Yamashita was born in 1981 and spent his formative years in the onset of the Heisei era. View this post on Instagram A post shared by NEO平成レトロ展 (@neoheisei_retro) The exhibition's opening day was attended by official ambassadors and musical unit Chi⭐︎Q. The duo, composed of Ippei Kyuma and Mamoru Daichi, debuted as 'psychic idols' on April 1, 1989, the official first day of the Heisei era. They enjoyed a ribbon-cutting ceremony and playing around with some of the 300 Heisei-era items on display. Diving more into the contents of the event, the exhibition is comprised of nine different sections centered on common themes. The walls are also decorated with 'neo Heisei retro' designs–illustrations meant to evoke the feeling of Heisei from a modern Reiwa lens–which are befitting of the exhibition's main slogan: 'Towards a 'Heisei' that's nostalgic but new somewhere in your memories.' For instance, there are areas dedicated to digital cameras and the garakei mobile flip-phones that were unique to Japan at the time. You can even hold one of the phones in your hand and see if your muscle memory takes over. Other featured gadgets include pagers, music players, and transparent goods that were all the rage back then. The entertainment section is sure to be a big hit by bringing you right back to the hottest gaming systems, CDs, and toys (like Tamagotchi!) of the time. There's even a section devoted to Heisei fashion trends such as kogyaru style and more. Contemporary fashion magazines are also on display. Finally, some of the more interactive elements of the exhibition include a quiz area to test your knowledge on whether something is from the Heisei era or the Showa era, as well as a community journal where you can share your favorite Heisei memories with others. Of course, in true Japanese exhibition fashion, there's also event-exclusive merchandise for purchase, including goods like stickers with common Heisei-era slang and buzzwords. Tickets for the Neo Heisei Retro Exhibition cost 1,800 yen (US$12.12) for general admission and can be purchased at Lawson Ticket or TBS Tickets in advance. On weekends and other days expected to have high traffic, tickets may be valid on a timed-entry system at the start of every hour. For more on how some brands such as Sanrio has also leaned into the Heisei era, check out this piece as well. Exhibition information Neo Heisei Retro Exhibition / NEO平成レトロ展 Address: Tokyo-to, Shibuya-ku, Udagawa-cho 21-1, Seibu Shibuya Store, A Building, 2nd floor event space 東京都渋谷区宇田川町 21-1 西武渋谷店 A館2F イベントスペース Duration: July 24-August 31, 2025 Open: 10 a.m.-8 p.m. (last entry at 7:30 p.m.) Website Source: Shibuya Keizai Shimbun Images: SoraNews24, PR Times ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!


SoraNews24
3 days ago
- SoraNews24
What is Japan's new 'summer matcha' ice cream flavor from confectioner Morinaga?【Taste test】
More matcha from Mow Matcha. Japan has an array of seasonal sweets flavors, and summer is no exception. Some of these are connected to produce that's in season, like watermelon and peach, while others flavors are summer favorites because of their refreshing or cooling sensations, like mint chocolate and lemon. But we were puzzled when, on our most recent dessert run, we saw that one of our options was 'summer matcha.' Matcha has become such a staple flavor of the Japanese sweets scene that it's really a year-round thing, and the green tea harvest season starts in spring. Adding to the mystery is the fact that Morinaga, the makers of the Mow brand of ice cream, are selling both the limited-time Mow Uji Matcha Summer Scent Matcha at the same time as their always-on-sale regular Mow Uji Matcha flavor. ▼ Summer matcha on the left, year-round matcha on the right. And if you're wondering about the brand's name, 'Mow,' pronounced with a long O like in 'mow the lawn,' is the onomatopoeia in Japanese for the sound of a cow mooing. So yes, we were puzzled by the unexpected appearance of 'summer matcha,' but also curious. More than anything else, we were hungry, and one of the philosophical pillars that SoraNews24 is built on is that whenever the possibility to do so arises, one should always pursue the truth by eating double desserts, so that's what we set out to do. Popping the tops off of both cups, we could see that the Summer Scent Matcha's shade of green was a touch deeper than the regular version's. We figure that's a result of how while both flavors source their matcha from the Kyoto Prefecture town of Uji, the Summer Scent boasts that its matcha comes from specialized tea merchant Marukyu Koyamaen. Grabbing two spoons, so as not to mix their flavors, we then took a taste of each… …and… …couldn't immediately tell the difference. In and of itself, this wasn't such a huge problem, since it's hard to get upset about not being able to instantly differentiate between 'delicious' and 'delicious,' which were our first impressions of both Mow matcha flavors. Still, there has to be something that's supposed to set one apart from the other, right? As is so often the case in life, it turned out that the correct course of action was to keep eating ice cream. Making our way closer to the bottom of the cups, the sadness that we now had less ice cream than we did just a few moments before was counterbalanced by the newfound knowledge that Mow's Summer Scent and regular matcha flavors are, in fact, different. The regular version, pictured above, starts with a sharper hit of green tea bitterness, and the strong matcha notes continue down to its core. After a few bites, the bitterness never disappears from your palate until sometime after you've completely finished the cup, making for a mature, soothing flavor profile. Meanwhile, the Summer Scent Matcha, while still having a properly pronounced green tea taste, is gentler. It leads with more sweet and creamy flavors, for a lighter, more refreshing effect, which meshes with the idea of making a more 'summery' matcha flavor, which Morinaga says was its goal. We don't have any equipment with which to measure whether or not the Summer Scent Matcha is actually more fragrant than the regular Mow Matcha, but with the bitterness being less insistent and attention-grabbing, we did feel like we could notice a stronger tea aroma too. Price-wise, we paid 184 yen (US$1.30) for the limited-time Mow Summer Scent Matcha and 102 yen for the regular matcha, though we found the latter at a discounted price during a multi-market grocery shopping trip, so the price differential probably isn't usually that large. To really appreciate the differences between the Summer Scent and regular Mow matcha, it's probably easiest to eat them both in the same sitting, so we recommend either saving extra room for dessert or enlisting a friend to split the two cups half-and-half with…or maybe inviting three of your friends if you want to add the two different Häagen-Dazs Japan green tea ice creams to your bill of fare as well. Photos ©SoraNews24 ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! [ Read in Japanese ]