Maid Cafe: Maidreamin

Although it hasn't been officially decided, I want to write my senior year Japanese thesis on Maid Cafes in Japan.

For those of you who don't know what they are: Maid Cafes started in Akihabara, the electronic district of Tokyo also know for its anime, manga (Japanese comics), and video games. It originally catered towards male otaku (people obsessed with anime, manga, and video games) but has now widened its clientele. Waitresses dress as french maids and welcome you into the restaurant by saying "welcome home, master" or "welcome home, mistress". The original concept was to make customers feel like they were at home (a very luxurious home with your own personal staff). They have combined this concept with the popular kawaii (super cute) trend. Everything is cute including the maids outfits, voices, restaurant decor, and food. You aren't allowed to take pictures with the maids but can pay for a Polaroid with them which they put stickers on and decorate for you. Some Maid Cafes offer games you can play against the maids to try and win a prize.  During your time at the cafe, different maids will walk around and talk to you for a bit and some cafes even have performances.

Allison, the other exchange student from my home university, and I went to Akihabara to try and find Halloween costumes. We weren't planning on going to a Maid Cafe because they are typically expensive but when we ran into a maid advertising on the street we figured it would be a good time to try it out (I've actually been to a Maid Cafe before the last time I was in Japan). The maid was from the number one Maid Cafe in Japan called Maidreamin. She kindly escorted us to the restaurant which was about a 5 minutes walk from where she was advertising. Each cafe has a different theme and decor. The one we went to was called Heaven's Gate and we sat in the star section of the restaurant which had pillars with stars on top of them and star ceiling lights.

For lunch I ordered a Maid Cafe staple: Omelet Rice.  

Allison ordered fried pork.

When the maids bring you food their is a little chant you do with them to "put love into your food". At this place you make a heart with your hands and say moe, moe, kyun~~ which doesn't translate well into English. 

All the maids that came up to talk to Allison and I were both shocked and relieved when they found out we could speak some Japanese. We talked to them about Japanese fashion, about a new Maid Cafe opening in Los Angeles, and other various random things. Another great way to practice my Japanese. They were also fascinated with my grey eye color and were asking what color eyes my parents had. Their interpretation was mom (blue) + dad (brown) = mixed to grey.

Allison and I stayed long enough to watch two different performances. The lights in the restaurant go dark and the stage is lit up were one maid sings and dances. The other maids run around the cafe clapping, dancing, and selling glow sticks.  

Photo by: http://otakumode.com/sp/visit_japan/akihabara/a013d

During our two and a half hour stay at the maid cafe, Allison and I tried to decipher the clientele. There were groups of high school girls, couples on dates, foreigners experiencing the culture, a few groups of young japanese men (otaku) playing their video games while eating, and a large amount of older Japanese men eating by themselves. These men you could tell were regulars. They knew all the maids names, bought a bunch of glow sticks, bought many pictures with the maids, sang along to all the songs, and stayed for hours. Perhaps these maids are the modern day geisha? Men are paying beautiful women to talk with them and entertain them. 

One particular maid that we made friends with was named Chika. She was super peppy and was constantly running around the restaurant pretending she was a ninja, dancing to the music, or doing other weird things. She was absolutely hilarious and we loved talking with her.

Chika's profile picture on the website. http://maidreamin.com/en

After everything was over and we walked around Akihabara for a couple of hours, we ran into Chika on the streets who screamed our names and very excitedly ran up to us. We had a short conversation before we mentioned that we were on our way home. I know that's what she is paid to do but it made Allison and I feel so good about ourselves. Everyone at the maid cafe was so nice and we had a blast. Both of us definitely want to go back!