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Hello Kitty may have a few too many jobs for any other gijinka cat to handle at once, but we have to say that the pastry chef hat is probably the one that looks best on her adorable head. Kitty no Sanpomichi (“Kitty’s Promenade”) is certainly proof of that!

If you’re sad about missing out on Kitty’s delightful pastries in the Kansai area last year, you’re in luck, if you happen to be Tokyo this week. The temporary pastry-selling stand is open for business in Yurakucho Marui right now. But you better hurry, because they close this Wednesday!

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One of the best things about living in a city, especially one like Tokyo, is being able to go out for a walk and bump into something totally unexpected but awesome. Case in point: yesterday, we were walking around Yurakucho and happened to swing by Yurakucho Marui. Upon entering the department store, we were greeted by the delightful scene above: Hello Kitty pastries!

▼ Is Kitty licking her finger…or flipping us the bird?

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We first saw Kitty no Sanpomichi last year, when the our favorite cat chef was making and selling a variety of baked goods adorned with her very own face. Normally we’d question the sanity of anyone who made cookies of their face and then encouraged others to eat them, but Kitty’s so cute, it’s hard to question anything she does!

▼ Especially when it look so delicious.

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The stand offers a variety of products from melon pan and cookies to ribbon scones, sweet bread balls, and cream-filled cake bread. There are also limited edition bags (pictured below) for anyone who buys the gift box, which costs 2,160 yen (about US$17.77).

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We weren’t really hungry enough to eat a whole box of Hello Kitty pastries, so we ended up just getting a package of the sweet bread balls and the cream-filled cake bread. It wasn’t exactly cheap — the combined price was 972 yen (just shy of $8) — but it won’t break the bank either.

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▼ Refraining from eating in order to take photos was the hardest thing I’ve done this week!

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The first thing we noticed about this year’s pastries is that the design seems considerably improved over last year’s. If nothing else, the cake bread is a lot more colorful and almost looks like it could start talking at any moment. So adorable! (And scrumptious looking.)

▼ I love you, Kitty, but I want you in my belly.

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The sweet bread balls come in two flavors — strawberry and plain — so we grabbed a package of the strawberry ones. If you ever want to get me a present of any kind of food, get me strawberry and I will love you for at least a day.

▼ The pastry chef hat is a perfect addition to the Kitty design.

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▼ Kitty-pocalypse!

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▼ We do have one nit-pick, though: Shouldn’t her nose be just a bit smaller?

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And here are some cross-section views of the pastries!

▼ The cream-filled cake bread

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▼ And the sweet bread ball

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My personal favorite ended up being the cake bread, if only because the cream/custard was perfectly sweet. Not overbearing, but just enough to compliment the sweetness of the cake bread. I was a bit disappointed the outer crust wasn’t actually frosting, but it was still a great dessert! Of course, the strawberry sweet bread ball was no slouch either. Like with most Japanese pastries, I would have been happy if it had been just a touch sweeter, but for most people, I suspect it will perfect!

Sadly, Kitty no Sanpomichi will be in Yurakucho Marui for only a short time — they’re set to run until May 27 (this Wednesday!), so if you want some Hello Kitty pastries, you better get down there soon!

Address: 東京都千代田区有楽町2-7-1 有楽町マルイ (Google Maps)
Telephone number: 03-3212-0101
Hours: 11:00 – 21:00 (10:30 – 20:30 on holidays)
Website: Yurakucho Marui

Reference: Yurakucho.Today
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