My experience at Vancouver’s new Hello Kitty Cafe
The famous pop culture icon arrived in downtown Vancouver with sweets and merchandise
Vancouver's new Hello Kitty Cafe is open from noon to 9:00 pm Sundays through Thursdays and until 10:00 pm Fridays and Saturdays. (Brylian Marin)
Hello Kitty has said “Hello” to Vancouver by making itself at home and providing locals with a fun experience.
Last month, the first Hello Kitty Cafe in Canada made its way to Robson Street in Vancouver, with the only other locations in California.
At the cafe, people can try drinks, like coffee and bubble tea, alongside treats such as cake and ice cream, which are all Hello Kitty-themed. The cafe itself pops with colours and decorations themed around the famous pop culture icon.
After travelling to and around downtown Vancouver, I finally arrived at the new cafe. No matter which type of transportation you take, whether it’s on foot or by vehicle, travelling to the cafe can and will not be a small journey to undertake, not to mention I got lost trying to find it.
When I finally entered the cafe, the place felt like something Hello Kitty designed herself. There were even a few places where people could take photos. The cafe was going through a slow period when I chose to visit, so I had all the time in the world to check it out.
Going up to order — thanks to almost no other people in line — I chose to try out the vanilla ice-cream cup with brown sugar pearls. I wasn’t sure I’d tried ice cream like this before, but as someone who likes sweet food, I knew I wanted to get a taste of it.
The cafe has two floors and contains an area where people can buy Hello Kitty merchandise. Luckily, I don’t buy merch often, so I didn’t need to torture my wallet.
As I looked for a spot to sit and eat on the second floor, I observed the themed decorations and designs on the floor. Whoever participated in crafting the cafe made sure to make it feel like a place Hello Kitty would live in. I also noticed a sign saying people can stay inside for 30 minutes at most, so I’m lucky I came when it was slow.
On to the actual food, the ice cream with brown sugar pearls is one of the tastiest sweets I’ve had. The pearls mixed with ice cream left a taste I wanted to keep around for as long as I could. The portion size is more on the smaller side, but for $7, I found it was reasonable.
Overall, I fully recommend those interested check out the cafe, but preferably during the weekday afternoon times, if possible, to avoid busy lines.
I for one will make an effort to go back to the cafe in the future to try out some more of their food options such as the bubble milk tea, iced strawberry lemonade, and chocolate cookie cream cake seeing how they did a delicious job with the brown sugar pearls and ice cream.
