A Hello Kitty & Friends pop-up cafe experience has opened in Fitzrovia, serving menus themed on the characters.
The pop-up — by Japanese company Sanrio, which owns Hello Kitty — coincides with the 45th anniversary of the cartoon feline and has a winter wonderland theme. Because Hello Kitty is exactly what was missing from Christmas in London.
Other Sanrio characters feature in the cafe — located inside Tombo Café Fitzrovia — the first time they have been brought together in Europe. Golden retriever Pom Pom Purin, penguin Badtz-Maru and poached egg character Gudetama receive a nod, despite being much less well known here in the UK than Hello Kitty.
Special set brunch menus pay tribute to the characters, including the Hello Kitty Continental Set (£14.95 — features Hello Kitty strawberry doughnut, plus Sanrio yogurt granola and berry compote and Matcha chocolate drizzled croissant with raspberry crystals) and the Gudetama Western Brunch Set
(£14.95 — a Gudetama fried egg, bacon blanket, baked beans, Japanese slaw, toast and a Sanrio forest fruit yogurt pot).
Ramen, udon, curry and poke set menus are also available, as are character milkshakes, and merchandise including posters, mugs, postcards and tea are available to buy at the pop-up.
Tombo x Sanrio is at Tombo Japanese Café & Matcha Bar Fitzroia, 4 Windmill Street, W1T 2HZ. It's due to be open for around three months.
