Ginza Maison Henri Charpentier (Tokyo, JAPAN) ★★★☆☆

Little nugget wanted more than just a bowl of soba noodles this afternoon and I figured it was almost time for some sweet treats.....

Walking past Ginza Maison Henri Charpentier was purely a coincidence but it was one that all three of us highly welcomed.



Little nugget loves historic architectures so once he saw this building from the 1930s, he immediately told us to go in for a look. I had to tell him up front that it's not a museum or anything like that.

Ginza Maison Henri Charpentier is the flagship location of Henri Charpentier in Tokyo. Hailed from Ashiya, Kobe Prefecture, the brand has been around since 1969 and is a household name for French pastries across the country. 

This flagship combines a boutique and tea salon all under the same roof. Once this guy saw the menu from the tea salon, he decided to sit down and wait for a vacant table.

And he never stopped peeking into the salon and see when a table could be available cuz he's obviously still very hungry!

We were finally seated at the counter table following a short wait. 

Our server came over and handed me this tablet to showcase what's available on today's menu. There were of course the French pastries from the boutique along with some made-to-order desserts prepared at table side including their signature crêpes Suzette. The flaming chocolate sphere, however, has been taken off the menu.

I finally got my caffeine fix. It's never easy to find a proper cup of black tea in Tokyo (much easier for coffee). Perhaps I have been looking at all the wrong places!

White peach mousse cake – Little nugget is a huge fan of Japanese white peach so not surprisingly, he picked the white peach mousse cake.

Muskmelon shortcake – Mom had the shortcake with in-season muskmelon. Not bad she said.

Crepe roll cake with white peach – I had the seasonal white peach cake with layers of crepes rolled up as the base.

Let them eat cake!  🎂🎂

Little guy's white peach mousse cake was largely delicate mousse flavored with white peach, matched with peach compote and decorated with ladyfinger biscuits, flavored with guess what, peach as well. 

My crepe roll cake seemed to come with two types of Japanese peaches, Shimizu white peach from Okayama with the milky white color and Hakuhou peach with the pale pink flesh. The crepes rolled up as base provided an interesting texture along with the cream and peach compote on the bottom to go with slices of juicy peaches on top.

After spending some relaxing time at the tea salon, it was time to go. Little one went downstairs to check out the restroom and came back very impressed. He asked me to go down and take a look myself, and I did!

Check this out. The little man's room hidden behind the shelves!

Ginza Maison Henri Charpentier is a great place to spend a lazy afternoon in Ginza. They may not have the best French pastries around but their relaxing vibe could be just what any tourist's looking for. Some quiet time to ease their mind. 

Food Rating: 5.5/10

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: 1/F Yonei Building, 2-8-20 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0061, Japan

Closest Metro Station: Ginza

Tel: +81 3-3562-2721

Website: www.henri-charpentier.com/shop/ginza-maison/

Opening Hours: 11:00am - 7:00pm daily