A konbini way to hanami.

Every time sakura season arrives in Japan we look forward to trying all the pink drinks that appear on the market, but this year there’s a surprising new contender for our hard-earned yen, and it comes from Japanese convenience chain Lawson.

Getting a taste of it isn’t as easy as popping out to your local branch, though, as it’s only available at locations with a MACHI cafe+ on the premises. These special branches can be found in Ibaraki, Tochigi, Saitama, Chiba, Tokyo, Kanagawa and Niigata prefectures, and in Tokyo there’s only seven MACHI cafe+ locations, making these pink drinks some of the rarest in Japan.

▼ The Sakura Latte costs 380 yen (US$2.57), and it became available on 27 February.

Staff who work at MACHI cafe+ branches are officially known as “Fantasistas“, with excellent knowledge and customer service skills to expertly prepare your drinks after you order them, just as a barista would at a regular cafe.

The Fantasistas clearly know their stuff, because when we ordered the Sakura Latte it looked just as good as the promotional images for it, with plump marshmallows happily soaking in the hot liquid, surrounded by a scattering of pink chocolate flakes.

The main body of the drink is a “Sakura Latte” made with cherry blossom and strawberry sauce, giving it a sweet yet refreshingly tart flavour. The deciding factor in the taste, though, is the chocolate topping, which contains both sakura leaves and blossoms.

The latte tastes predominantly of strawberry on its own, but when you mix the sakura chocolate flakes into the latte, the fruity taste transforms, melding into the background to allow the cherry blossom flavour to come to the fore. The fluffy and melty texture of the marshmallows add another depth of richness to the drink, creating an exquisite balance between sweet and sour notes that’s remarkably good value for money.

▼ Not only does the Sakura Latte look amazing, it tastes amazing too.

This is the perfect drink for cherry blossom viewing, but you may need to go hunting to find it. The good news is, we’ve listed all the Tokyo locations for you below, with the link beneath taking you to all the locations in Japan. It’s a drink that’s worth seeking out, so happy hunting…and happy hanami!

Tokyo Nihonbashi
Address: Tokyo-to, Chuo-ku, Nihonbashi 1-2-19
Hours: 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

Chuo Harumi 3-chome
Address:Tokyo-to, Chuo-ku, Harumi 3-3-3
Hours: 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

Natural Lawson Takanawadai Ekimae
Address: Tokyo-to, Minato-ku, Shirokanedai 2-26-10
Hours: 9:00 a.m.-9:00 p.m.

Higashi-Oku 5-chome
Address: Tokyo-to, Arakawa-ku, Higashi-Oku 5-38-7
Hours: 9:00 a.m.-9:00 p.m.

Kugahara 1-chome
Address: Tokyo-to, Ota-ku, Kugahara 1-12-11
Hours: 9:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

Shinjuku Gyoen Chuo
Address: Tokyo-to, Shinjuku-ku 1‐8‐5
Hours: 8:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m.

Mogusaen station front
Address: Tokyo-to, Hino-shi, Ochikawa 985-1
Hours: 9:00 a.m.-9:00 p.m.

Related: MACHI cafe+ locations
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