The Puff List: Bakeshop - Jiyugaoka, Tokyo

Monday, August 15, 2011

Bakeshop - Jiyugaoka, Tokyo

Iced Coffee Relief
I imagined it was pool-sized. I dived in, did a doggy-paddle past a stray ice cube and then back-stroked to the straw. Back in the real world, a few sips of the Bakeshop iced latte were like slipping on a frozen raincoat. My temples stopped pulsing and the moving lips of my girlfriend started to make words I recognized. Be warned if you come to Tokyo in August, it's hot. Stroke-inducing, lung-collapsing hot.

After a few bites of the banana muffin I told myself "at least the coffee is excellent." Not bad, but designed for local tastes, I guessed. Overly dense and underly sweet.

No matter, I was here for this and it did not disappoint. Icy cold and very strong.

Bakeshop is on the 4th floor of a small building and the views are out of the ordinary. Tokyo has limited sight lines - it feels claustrophobic and it's because no matter which way you look, you see buildings and people. In Bakeshop, sitting next to the large windows, it was more of the same but at least I could peer out over the rooftops towards the imaginary horizon.

It's like a bright white refrigerator and I played the part of a happy, chilled cucumber sitting there. When it was time to go, I mentally wilted. The thought of going into the Tokyo oven again was enough to make a man cry. "Another iced latte please!!!"