Photo source: Jakob Layman/Sanrio
[F]orever 7 years old, Japanese cartoon character Hello Kitty has been a global phenomenon for over 40 years. Now, the famous school girl with her iconic bow and feline traits has her own café in Irvine, California. The Hello Kitty Grand Café is the first-ever permanent food service operation in the US offering Hello Kitty food and drink exclusively. Guests will have two options to dine at the café: the front counter grab-and-go setting, or the “Bow Room,” which serves reservation-only afternoon tea and cocktail service.
The café offers a special birthday blend tea with raspberries and hibiscus, as well as an assortment of black, green, oolong, and herbal teas. Tea is served with Hello Kitty-shaped sugar cubes, and the food menu includes Hello Kitty mini cakes, macarons, savory tea sandwiches, scones, and assorted pastries. Of course, the cocktail program gets a branded twist as well, with drink names such as the You Had Me at Hello and the 1974 (the year Hello Kitty was invented born), which comes with a Hello Kitty-shaped ice cube. Reservations are now open on the company’s website.
