A pink explosion is about to take over Universal CityWalk as the Hello Kitty and Friends Cafe, a destination sure to drench all of our social media feeds this week, will officially debut tomorrow, September 6.
Though Irvine has a Hello Kitty cafe and Buena Park boasts a Gudetama one, the Universal outpost will mark the first permanent eatery in L.A. County based around a mascot from Sanrio, the Japanese company behind the iconic character.
A true ode to the famous fictional character, the cafe is filled with giant bows, all things pastel pink and plenty of photo-friendly opportunities—including the food. The Hello Kitty Mousse Dome, for example, is exactly what is sounds like: a dome-shaped cake with cinnamon mousse, apple pie filling and cinnamon streusel. There’s also a strawberry cake with whipped white chocolate ganache; a macaron set that includes raspberry, caramel, vanilla, pistachio and chocolate variations; and the must-have Hello Kitty cookie, a sugar treat topped with royal icing and rainbow sprinkles.
You’re going to want to wash all those carbs down with some of the menu beverages, including a Keroppi matcha late (a frozen latte topped with whipped cream and matcha powder); the My Melody Lemonade (strawberry lemonade, yellow sugar rim, garnished with strawberries and a lemon wheel); or, perhaps, the Hello Kitty strawberry green iced tea, boasting the sort of pink sugar rim that will make the strawberries and mint used to prepare the concoction even more delicious.
But there’s more: In addition to the cafe, Angelenos will also get to walk through the new adjacent Sanrio Smile Shop. The store is home to a new line of curated merchandise inspired by the various Japanese characters, plus a ton of photo ops that you’ll want to partake in.