It seemed like such a good deal at the time that we had to wonder–is this highway robbery?!  

The illustrious Mr. Sato of SoraNews24 will finally turn 50 this year. While he can’t stuff himself with food in quite the same way that he used to in his 20s and 30s, the phrase “all-you-can-eat” still has a certain irresistible charm to his ears.

To that end, the Daimaru Tokyo department store next to Tokyo Station has a special deal that recently caught his eye. Inside, Délices Tarte & Café is offering a select buffet for all-you-can-eat tarts within a time period of 120 minutes. The deal costs 3,300 yen (US$25.70) for adults or 1,430 yen for children ages 5 through 12. This sounded like a great new gastronomic challenge to him.

He arrived a little after noon on a Thursday, and found the cafe to be not very crowded at all. Maybe there are usually more people on the weekends.

All of the tarts available for takeout beckoned passersby tantalizingly inside of the showcase. One slice is roughly 800 yen, so he’d get his money’s worth by eating about four pieces. That seemed like an easy victory within a time limit of two hours.

Once he sat down and requested the select buffet, he was also shown to the simple salad bar and drinks that are included in the deal.

At the far end of the table were the tarts. On this particular day there was about one slice of each kind ready for the taking. The staff would resupply any slices that were taken, so he wouldn’t have to worry about missing out on any. Even so, he wished they were displayed a bit more gorgeously for photographic purposes.

It’s OK to take up to three slices at once, so Mr. Sato decided to start with two.

First up was the Strawberry Tart, which retails on its own for 930 yen.

Second, the Caramel Banana Tart (850 yen) served as a nice contrast color-wise.

It had been some time since Mr. Sato had truly gone all-out with eating sweets. After just one bite, something in his head started firing in excitement at the sugar seeping into his bloodstream. He felt inexplicably happier, too.

If he were to be so bold, the only criticism he had was that the cream didn’t seem as fresh as it could have been–but it was still delicious.

Third up to try was the Fruits Tart (880 yen) with its gleaming fruity gems. The system in place was to keep using his current plate for new slices, so he was a bit disgruntled by the crumbs from the previous tarts that were still on his plate.

Minus the (literally) crumby plate, this slice was extremely aesthetically pleasing.

After the Fruits Tarte, Mr. Sato decided he was done with this challenge.

He still had plenty of time left on his clock, and just one more slice would have given him his full money’s worth, but he decided it wasn’t worth the upset stomach he’d likely have for the rest of the day. His insides weren’t what they used to be in the days of his youth, which was a bit upsetting for him to realize.

Come to think of it, it seems like he’s been having a lot of those kinds of moments recently…

Cafe information
Délices Tarte & Café / デリス 大丸東京店
Address: Tokyo-to, Chiyoda-ku, Marunouchi 1-9-1 Daimaru Tokyo, 6th floor
東京都千代田区丸の内 1-9-1 大丸東京店6F
Open: [Regular menu] 10 a.m.-8 p.m. (last order at 7:30 p.m.)
[Select buffet]: 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
Closed New Year’s Day
Website

Reference: Délices Tarte & Café
All images © SoraNews24
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