Aomori】Hirosaki's 5 recommended cafes and coffee shops
Hirosaki and Aomori cities are home to many unique and stylish cafes and coffee shops located in historic buildings. Here are five recommended cafes, including a long-established store that has been loved by locals for many years, a specialty coffee shop, and a mom-friendly café for those with small children.
1Meikyoku & Coffee Sunflower
A famous restaurant in Hirosaki that has been loved for 60 years.
This coffee shop was established in 1959. The interior of the store is delicately decorated with windows, lamps, staircase railings, etc., and each nostalgic interior shows off a good sense of style.
The signature item here is the meat pie. It takes about 15 minutes to order a meat pie because each one is handmade in the store. The combination of the pastry crust, which crumbles gently, and the filling, which is filled with the flavor of meat, is exquisite and has been loved for more than 25 years since its launch.
For sweets, freshly baked apple pie, tofu cheesecake, and sweet treats made with handmade agar and shiratama (white rice balls) are also popular.
Artistic café where you can enjoy classics and paintings
Since its establishment, the store has always played classical music, so many Guest/customers visit for the purpose of listening to music, and there used to be seats on the second floor equipped with headphones. Even today, a children's song club is held once a month, and anyone is welcome to join if they apply in advance.
Also, as a member of the "Gallery Network" that connects art exhibition spots in Hirosaki City, there are many paintings hanging in the store. There are also shelves lined with vessels and antiques collected by the owner, and the retro space, which retains almost the atmosphere of the 1950s, is very appealing.
- Masterpieces & Coffee Sunflower
-
2 Sakamoto-cho, Hirosaki-shi, Aomori MAP
Take Dote-machi Circulation Bus from Hirosaki Bus Terminal, get off at Nakadote-machi Bus Stop, and walk 2 minutes.
10:30-18:30
Thursdays
0172-35-4051
None
2Kotori Café
Handmade muffins tasted in a historic building
This cute café is located inside the Momoshi Town Exhibition Hall, which is housed in a Meiji-era building. In honor of its name, the store is decorated with many bird objects, including a pigeon whistle, a local Tsugaru toy.
The most popular item is the muffins, which are handmade in the store every day. Two or three types are always available, but the variety changes depending on the season and the day, so you will find a new flavor every time you visit. The Sweets Plate, which includes a muffin with handmade fruit jam and ice cream, is a dish that allows you to enjoy a warm muffin and cold ice cream at the same time. It also goes well with hot apple juice with cinnamon.
A cozy and relaxing hideaway
The Hyakushi-cho Exhibition Hall was built in 1880 in a storehouse structure. The building was originally used as a kimono shop and later as a bank, and the area where the café is located was once used as a warehouse and storeroom. The rustic interior blends well with the historical structure of the building, with its ceiling beams and latticework of wooden walls, making it a relaxing place to sit and unwind.
Light meals such as pasta and keema curry can be enjoyed at lunchtime, and for sweets, parfaits with plenty of fruit are recommended. The homemade ginger ale is also popular.
- Kotori Cafe
-
- 3-2 Momoishi-cho, Hirosaki-shi, Aomori-ken MAP
- Take Dote-machi Loop Bus from Hirosaki Bus Terminal, get off at Shimo-dote-machi Bus Stop, and walk shortly.
- 11:00-19:00(L.O.18:30)
- 1st and 3rd Monday of the month (or the following day if the Monday is a national holiday)
- 0172-88-8504
- Please contact the store
3Kodai Cafe Narita Senzo Coffee Shop
On-campus café loved by students and residents alike
The Western-style building on Hirosaki University's Bunkyo Campus was reopened as a café in 2016. Since then, it has been used by students, tourists, and locals alike as a place to relax. Because it is run by the Hirosaki Coffee School, a coffee specialty store, it has a reputation as a place where you can enjoy authentic coffee.
The signature product is an original blend of mild coffee, but café lattes and caramel lattes with beautiful latte art are also popular among women. The shop offers student discounts on all menu items for Hirosaki University students in the hope that many students will become coffee fans.
Relax in a beautiful Western-style building with a triangular roof
The quaint Western-style building was built in 1925 and was once used as a dormitory for foreign language teachers. 4 private rooms on the first and second floors, some with fireplaces, others with windows overlooking a large cherry tree, offer a different atmosphere.
Hirosaki University also has a "Coffee Study Group," a club that uses this café as a base for its activities, learning how to brew coffee and comparing different types of coffee. Another unique feature of the Learning Center's café is that tarte tatin made from "Beni no Yume," a red-fleshed apple developed by the Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, is available for a limited time only at the café.
- Kodai Cafe Narita Senzo Coffee Shop
-
- 1 Bunkyo-cho, Hirosaki-shi, Aomori-ken (in Foreign Teachers Hall, Hirosaki University Bunkyo Campus) MAP
- Take the "Oguriyama-Wolfmori Line" or "Gakuencho Line" bus from Hirosaki Station or Hirosaki Bus Terminal, get off at Hirosaki Daigaku-mae bus stop, and walk shortly.
- 10:00-18:00
- Mondays (open if Monday is a national holiday)
- 0172-55-5797
- Free of charge
4Bankamu
An old-fashioned coffee shop frequented by coffee lovers
This coffee shop has been located near Aomori City Hall for over 50 years. Each cup of coffee is carefully brewed using nerd drip, and is a blend of Mandarin, Colombian, Guatemalan, and Kilimanjaro, with a deep yet refreshing taste.
A wide selection of hot sandwiches and toasts are available, and lunchtime specials include a drink, salad, and yogurt jelly. The most popular is the Mexican sandwich. It is a hot sandwich with corned beef, onions, green peppers, salsa sauce, and cheese. The crispy bread, juicy filling, and spicy Tabasco make it an appetizing dish.
A place that makes you feel nostalgic even if you are visiting for the first time
Upon entering the restaurant, the first thing that catches the eye is the long counter. Soft light pours in through the window, creating a comfortable space. The simple chairs with cute leather seats, the glass door with the store name "Sato Coffee Shop" from the time of its establishment, and the retro sundries on the shelves all suggest the store's long history.
The owner of the store has kept the old style of the store as there are many regular customers, but this year, the store became a non-smoking shop because the owner wants customers to enjoy good coffee and food in the delicious air. The store has been reborn as a place where non-smokers can also spend a leisurely time.
- Aomori's largest and most famous restaurant
-
- 1-26-1 Chuo, Aomori-shi, Aomori MAP
- From Aomori Station, take a local bus bound for Prefectural Central Hospital, get off at Shiyakusho-mae, and walk 2 minutes.
- Mon-Fri 7:00-18:30 (L.O.18:00), Sat 7:30-14:00 (L.O.13:30)
- Sunday, Holidays
- 0172-722-3809
- None
5Café des Gitanes Furukawa
A coffee specialty store that focuses on the beans to the last detail
As soon as you open the door, the aroma of coffee envelops you. It is a cozy store, more like a coffee stand than a café, but you can enjoy home-roasted coffee and baked goods.
We recommend the original "Aomori Blend. It is a blend of four types of coffee: deep roasted Malawi, Mandarin, Peruvian, and Brazilian, and expresses the nature of Aomori and its four seasons. It is soft and easy to swallow, with an excellent balance of bitterness and sweetness. Many people take the beans as souvenirs. Also popular is the "Gitane Blend," a blend of four types of medium- to deep-roasted beans.
Superb coffee brewed with carefully selected beans
The store sells a variety of home-roasted coffee beans. Before and after roasting, the beans are thoroughly removed by hand to remove any defects. Since only carefully selected beans are available in the store, the store receives orders from coffee drinkers not only locally but also from all over the country.
It is fun to expand your knowledge by telling them your preferences for acidity, bitterness, etc., and having them tell you which beans they recommend, or by trying the coffee you are interested in. People who come to buy beans often sit at the counter and enjoy a cup of coffee and a chat with the store staff, showing the love of coffee among the people of Aomori.
- Café des Gitanes Ekimae Main Store
-
- 1-1-5 Furukawa, Aomori-shi, Aomori MAP
3 min. walk from Aomori Station- 10:00-18:00
- Monday
- 017-723-0175
- None
