We get classy and cute on a trip to Tohoku to try Kuromi’s take on afternoon tea.

No Sanrio character is clearer about their goals than Kuromi, who regularly references her World Kuromification Plan. You can’t Kuromify the whole world all at once, though, so this summer Kuromi is turning her attention to the city of Sendai, in Japan’s northeastern Tohoku region, where she’s taken control of the Westin hotel’s afternoon tea service.

Up on the 29th floor of the Westin Sendai you’ll find the restaurant Symphony, a high-class establishment offering elegant dining and beautiful sweeping views of the city. Since mid-July, they’ve also been offering a Kuromi Afternoon Tea Party set.

▼ Kuromi has gotten dressed up for this collaboration, adding extra pearls and ribbons to her outfit for the new illustrations.

And since no one is going to ask for the Kuromi Afternoon Tea Party without being a very big fan of the character, the set is thoroughly oriented towards Kuromi’s artwork and image colors.

Though we were technically working as we made our visit, we couldn’t help letting out a squeal of joy at how cute everything looked as the servers placed the tea stand on our table, and our ears told us that several other customers whose orders matched ours were having the exact same reaction, with periodic joyful gasps at how “Kawaii!” (“Cute!”) the array is.

Before moving on to the tiered trays, though, we began with what’s technically designated the “savory plate” of the set, which contains:

● Brochette with locally raised Shinrindori chicken and pearl onions
● Chilled sweet potato potage soup
● Sendai zunda mochi and strawberry cream sandwich
● Petit kuroge wagyu beef and purple cabbage burgers
● Watermelon and mixed berries nata de coco punch

You will notice that there are a surprising number of sweet flavors present on the “savory” plate. You will also notice, though, that “We got more desserts than we thought we were going to!” isn’t something we see as negative here at SoraNews24.

Starting with the legitimately savory items, though, the petit burgers, despite their modest size, were filled with wagyu umami deliciousness, and the crisp purple cabbage made for a nice contrast with the tender beef. The pearl onion presence in the brochette skewers was also a nice bit of fan service, since rakyo, Japanese-style pearl onion pickles, are one of Kuromi’s favorite foods.

Also outstanding was the zunda mochi, which should be expected, since it is Sendai’s representative confectionary. Zunda is a sweetened edamame paste, similar to anko but with less pronounced sweetness and a slightly stronger bean baseline, plus a certain haziness to the flavor. Sendai has all sorts of zunda mochi sweets, but this was our first time to try it as a topping for a sandwich filled with layers of strawberry cream. We were honestly amazed by how well the combination worked, and with none of the ingredients being super-sweet, it made for a sophisticated and satisfying taste.

Having finished off the savory plate, it was now time to move on to our tray of officially designated desserts, a tower of:

● Kuromi marshmallows
● Blueberry and passionfruit parfaits
● Pineapple and sweet potato tarts
● Coconut and raspberry macarons
● Mango crunch heart bars
● Banana and black sesame baked cheesecake
● Whole-grain chocolate scones

At first glance, we assumed the crunch heart bar was going to be a chocolate-coated ice cream bar, but it turned out to be filled with amazing mango cream instead! And while the heart bar gets the cutest shape, the frosting ribbon on the cheesecake put a smile on our face, and its banana and black sesame flavors helped tie the mix of rich and sweet notes together quite nicely.

Pineapple and sweet potato is another bold combination, mixing a tart tropical taste with something much earthier, but again, the Kuromi Afternoon Tea Party knows what it’s doing, and the whole-grain flour makes the scone itself flavorful and fragrant too. The parfait was fruitily refreshing, and the chocolates shaped like the tips of Kuromi’s hood gave us something to bite into whenever we started craving a little extra kick of sweetness.

And of course, there’s no ignoring Kuromi herself, whose soft and squeezable marshmallow form makes her all the more adorable here, with a little added luxury as she arrives lounging inside a bitter chocolate biscuit.

As for drinks, this being an afternoon tea set, there’s a lineup of 12 different teas to choose from, or you can also opt for coffee, cappuccino, or other bean-based caffeinated beverages.

As fun as character-themed dining can be, there’s often a bit of a bittersweet feeling when it’s over, since you can only admire the cuteness before you’ve eaten it. So it’s quite thoughtful of the Kuromi Afternoon Tea Party to include a Kuromi hand mirror and stickers that are yours to take home with you.

▼ There are three mirror designs, given randomly…

▼ …while the sticker design changes monthly (July, August, and September shown left to right).

Now, while the set is called the Kuromi Afternoon Tea Party, its availability isn’t limited to the afternoon. Though we had ours during the weekday afternoon time block of 2-5 p.m. (when prices are 5,500 yen [US$37] for adults), there’s also the Kuromi Evening Tea Party from 5:30-9 p.m. that adds access to a buffet with extra dishes such as Sendai roast beef for 8,500 yen. Weekends and holidays are afternoon-only, with a price of 7,500 yen that includes the buffet.

The Kuromi Afternoon Tea Party will be offered through September 26, and reservations can be made online here.

Related: Kuromi Afternoon Tea Party, The Westin Sendai
Photos ©SoraNews24
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