Cafe Ichouya @ Nara

Higashimuki Shopping Street was an interesting covered stret near the Nara Park and adjacent to the Kitetsu Nara Station. There were roll of souvenir shops and restaurants where you could stroll around or take a rest after touring the tourist spots in Nara. That’s where we went for a nice piece of cake and a cup of coffee after chasing the deers around in Nara Park.

The cakes looked ok, and since we needed a break from walking, we went in and ordered cake, macarons, tea and coffee.

A Mont Blanc is a dessert of sweetened chestnut purée in the form of vermicelli, topped with whipped cream. It was created in nineteenth-century Paris. The name comes from Mont Blanc, as the dish resembles a snow-capped mountain. And in Japan during the seasons, there’s the special purple Mont Blanc that uses sweet potato instead of chestnut.

The chocolate cake looks simple but the flavour was nothing short of the ordinary. It was layered between a milk chocolate mousse and a dark chocolate mousse, very rich and creamy with every bite.

I had the strawberry shortcake, it was one of the best strawberry shortcake I have ever had. The softness and the flavor were amazing, the loaf was damp to the right measure and the strawberry gelatin topping was perfect.

The service here was really bad by Japanese standard. We ordered at the counter and then took our seats, but the cakes took forever to be served. Not to mention the coffees we ordered, they took a long time too. There were two ladies, one had to man the front of the shop and collect money, and the other rushing between the kitchen and the serving the tables. I could not see anyone else. They should have just do self-service, but no, since it’s a cafe, it has to be table service. Sigh.

Cafe Ichouya 銀杏や
24 Higashimuki Nakamachi, Nara 630-8125, Japan
Tel : +81 742-26-4966

Date Visited : Nov 2019