The concept of a maid cafe is nothing out of the ordinary in Japan, but it certainly has the rest of the world scratching their heads.
What started out as a simple idea with waitresses dressed up in maid outfits serving customers in a typical cafe environment has grown into a full-blown concert-style atmosphere. Of course, maid cafes differ in how they lay out their establishments. In other words, they range from “chilled” maid cafes to more “wild” maid cafes.
My maid cafe experience at Maidreamin
Located in the heart of Akihabara, Maidreamin is one of the most popular maid cafe chains in Japan. Offering more than just a cup of coffee, you can quench your hunger with a delicious meal.
Perhaps what sets Maidreamin apart from other maid cafes is how far they are willing to go to entertain the customers. Upon entering what I thought would be a “cafe,” I was met with what could only be described as a concert.
A disco-like experience
With loud music blasting, lights flashing, and maids performing on stage, it really gave me a disco vibe. The menu items included omurice and onigiri sets with cute smiley faces made from ketchup or seasoning.
The maids were all kind, friendly, and welcoming to my friends and me. We were encouraged to make heart shapes with our hands and wear furry ears on our heads. Different but fun is how I would describe our experience at Maidreamin.
Great memories!
It was a struggle to convince my friends to try out a maid cafe, but even I could tell they had fun in the end. All-in-all, it can be a tough barrier to cross at first, but it’s worth doing at least once I reckon.
After singing along as the maids put on an awesome concert and once we had finished our melon sodas, it was time to wrap things up with a group photo. In classic maid cafe fashion, we did the “moe moe” pose and smiled for the camera.
Keep in mind that photos are not permitted unless you pay for one of the allocated photo packages. In my opinion, the photos are affordable and worth it for the memories!
Of course, if you are planning to visit Japan, you’ll need a way to get around the country as efficiently and affordably as possible. Japan Rail provides an abundance of travel passes to suit your travel needs. So whether you are traveling individually or as a group, the JR Pass is every traveler’s go-to for getting around and making the most of your time in Japan!
