PC 1

Even though it doesn’t boast the kind of attendance numbers that Tokyo Disneyland gets, Hello Kitty actually has her own theme park in Japan. Located in Tokyo’s northwestern Tama New Town district, Sanrio Puroland is dedicated to the beloved feline and her Sanrio brethren.

Puroland has the rides and shows you’d expect from an amusement park that was created to help fans spend the day with their favorite fictional characters. This being Japan, though, you also need special munchies to draw people to a destination, which Puroland has with its lineup of cute, colorful Sanrio foods.

While browsing the Puroland website, we came across a section titled “100 Cute Things at Puroland,” and if you’re a lover of cartoon animals, girlish design, or pastel colors in general, the park is a feast for the eyes. What really grabbed our attention, though, was a feast for the stomach, in the form of the Kuromi black curry, inspired by the character of the same name.

“It’s so cute you’ll have trouble bringing yourself to eat it!” the website claimed, which was a challenge we were happy to accept. After all, we recently cooked and ate our own Pikachu burgers, so we knew that adorable characters and deliciously fortifying meals aren’t mutually exclusive.

We visited Puroland on a Saturday and found that most of the other guests were mothers with their daughters. All-male groups were, obviously, extremely scarce, but we were a little surprised at how few couples we saw.

The food court is located close to the entrance, so after buying a ticket and heading inside, we made our way down the spiral staircase and looked over our dining options.

PC 10

Since the curry was what had brought us here, we decided to try it first. We put in our order, and after a short wait, Kuromi herself was staring up at us from our plate.

PC 2

As the primary antagonist of the My Melody series, Kuromi’s got a bit of a snarky edge to her smile, which like her eyes is made out of dried seaweed. Further marking her as the villain is the skull on her cap, which instead of bone is actually a bit of ham, as is her nose. Standing in for the tips of her cap’s horn-like points are a pair of pickled scallions.

PC 3

We’ve got to admit, it took us a moment to work up the nerve to eat it, since it’s hard to stick food in your mouth and chew at the same time as you’re gasping “So cute!” Still, we not only soldiered on and devoured Kuromi, but decided to continue our meal with more members of the Sanrio pantheon.

Next up was the Kitty Burger Kawaii Plate.

PC 4

No, “kawaii” doesn’t mean “a whole bunch of corn,” although a cup of the vegetable is included as part of the package. Kawaii of course means “cute,” and the platter delivers on that promise with star-cut tater tots and a drawing of Kitty-chan seared into the bun.

PC 6

Finally, for dessert we opted for the My Melody strawberry pancakes. Fruity and sweet, they’re in keeping with the personality of the kind-hearted character, and as a nod to the magical heroine’s rabbit heritage, even comes with two bunny ear-shaped slices of roll cake.

PC 5

Completely full, we wandered off to check out the rest of Puroland. As an added bonus, the whole park is indoors, which is a big plus during Japan’s ultra-humid summers. So if you’re a fan of Kitty-chan, hate sweating, or just in the mood for a meal with a side of cuteness, a visit to Puroland might be in order.

PC 11

Park information
Sanrio Puroland / サンリオピューロランド
Address: Toyko-to, Tama-shi, Ochiai 1-31
東京都多摩市落合１−３１
Website

Photos: RocketNews24
[ Read in Japanese ]