The 3rd IKEBUKURO Bread Festival, featuring approximately 500 types of bread from around 75 famous bread shops, will be held from November 14th to 20th at the Tobu Department Store Ikebukuro Main Branch's 8th floor event space.

Bigot's Shop ~Merci Bigot~ "Pain de Rodev" (432 yen including tax)
This is the third time the event has been held, showcasing the finest bread shops selected by bread enthusiast Chikako Katayama. The previous event sold approximately 160,000 loaves of bread over seven days. This year, 21 stores will be participating for the first time, with a lineup of approximately 500 types of bread from around 75 stores, including the classic "shokupan," the Christmas-themed "stollen," local breads from around Japan, notable breads from Hokkaido, and a limited-quantity sales corner.

The first-time store in Ginza, "Bigot's Shop - Merci Bigot," is the shop of Bigot, who came to Japan 50 years ago and popularized French bread. They will be introducing "Pain de Rodève" (432 yen including tax), a light and chewy French bread that recreates the specialty of Rodève village. "Maeda Coffee," a long-established Kyoto coffee shop founded in 1971, will be demonstrating and selling "Baked & Boiled Egg Sandwich" (756 yen per pack including tax), a sandwich with both fluffy baked and boiled eggs. "TOKYO MARRIOTT Curry Bread" (401 yen including tax) will be available from the "Tokyo Marriott Hotel" in Shinagawa. The dough, which contains tapioca flour, has a chewy texture and goes perfectly with the medium-spicy curry flavor.

Bread Collection (From left: Bredor, Ore no Bakery & Cafe, nukumuku, MIYABI, Kanaya Hotel Bakery, Premium Bread Specialty Shop Azuki)

The ever-popular bread is now available at six more stores than last time. Hayama's Bredor has released its "French Fermented Butter Bread" (1 loaf, 651 yen including tax), which is characterized by a fine, silky texture and an outstanding, mellow aroma of fermented butter. Another not-to-be-missed item is the "AZUKI Bread" (1.5 loaves, 1,201 yen including tax) from "Azuki, a high-end bread specialty store" in Futakotamagawa, which is opening its first store there. The bread has a gentle sweetness of red beans and a chewy texture that leaves an impression. Other unique breads on offer include "Ginza Shokupan - Kaori" (2 loaves, 1,001 yen including tax), a slightly sweet milk loaf made with naturally pasture-raised milk from Iwate Prefecture by "Ore no Bakery & Cafe" in Ginza; "Mochimochi Shokupan" (1 loaf, 411 yen including tax), a moist and chewy bread from "nukumuku" in Sangenjaya, which will be on sale from 11am each day; "Danish Shokupan MIYABI" (medium size, 864 yen including tax), a popular product that has also been presented to the Imperial Family by "MIYABI" in Tokyo; "NIKKO Blueberry" (972 yen per loaf, 972 yen including tax), a marbled dough made with Nikko blueberries from "Kanaya Hotel Bakery" in Nikko; and "nichinichi Shokupan" (454 yen per loaf, 454 yen including tax), a fluffy and moist loaf of bread with the aroma of Calpis fermented butter from "nichinichi" in Shin-Yurigaoka.

Boulangerie Pomme "Stollen" (551 yen each, tax included)
To coincide with this run before Christmas, we will also be featuring "Stollen," a traditional German pastry that has become a secret hit among bread lovers. "SAWAMURA" in Hiroo, which will be opening for the first time only on November 14th, will be selling "Stollen" (2,787 yen each, tax included) which has a moist and mellow flavor made from homemade sourdough fermented dough. Tokyo Marriott Hotel will be serving its "Original Stollen" (2,501 yen each, tax included), a sophisticated treat made with Maker's Mark bourbon and three types of spices, while Hokkaido's Boulangerie Pomme will be serving its "Stollen" (551 yen each, tax included), a masterpiece baked with plenty of dried fruits and nuts soaked in liquor.

Koppen.com's "Suehiroan's Coarse Bean Paste & Whipped Cream" (361 yen each, tax included)
Six stores will be participating from Hokkaido, a popular area, with three stores conducting live sales. Koppen Dot, a koppepan specialty store from Kikonai Town, Hokkaido, which is participating for the first time, will be selling "Suehiroan's Tsubuan & Whipped Cream" (361 yen each, tax included), a perfect combination of slightly sweet, fluffy bread and Suehiroan's tsubuan (bean paste from Suehiroan). Ebetsu City's Il Mattone Arles will be demonstrating and selling "Jaga Cheese" (351 yen each, tax included), a masterpiece made of potato dough wrapped around diced bacon and Hokkaido cream cheese. Other Hokkaido flavors to enjoy at the venue include "Fresh Butter Bretzel" (368 yen each, tax included) from Sapporo's La Panaderia, a plain pretzel filled with fermented butter, which becomes even more delicious when heated.

Kifukudo "Anpan (Chubby Bean Paste/Smooth Bean Paste)" (216 yen each, tax included)

In the limited-quantity sales corner, products from 26 carefully selected bakeries in Katayama are gathered together, and breads that are sure to draw long lines from all over the country are on sale for a limited time and in limited quantities.

On sale from 11:00 a.m. on November 14th, 17th, and 18th only, Sugamo "Kifukudo"'s "Anpan (Chubby Bean Paste/Smooth Bean Paste)" (216 yen each, tax included) are used in a bean paste made with the perfect ratio of Hokkaido's finest red beans, rock sugar, and white sugar, and are renowned for their rich, deep flavor. On sale from 11:00 AM each day from November 14th to 20th will be "Tokachi" (1/4 loaf, 681 yen including tax), a masterpiece made from organic wheat from Tokachi, fermented for a long time with homemade yeast to concentrate the flavor, and baked fragrantly in a wood-fired oven by "Fudokasui."

In addition, "High-quality bread made with carefully selected water" (1 loaf, 864 yen including tax) from Ginza "Ginza Nishikawa" will be on sale from 3:00 PM each day from November 14th to 19th, and "Raisin Bread" (1/2 loaf, 258 yen including tax) from Tottori "Tarmary" will be on sale from 11:00 AM each day only on November 17th, 19th, and 20th.

Tarmally
The "Local Breads from Around Japan," which sold approximately 50,000 units last time, will be available again this time in an upgraded version. There will also be a talk show with bread enthusiast Katayama Chikako, who has traveled around Japan and eaten more than 10,000 loaves of bread in total, and will select the breads for the event. From 1pm on November 17th, there will be a talk show with Tarmally owner chef Watanabe Itaru, and from 1pm on the 18th, there will be a talk show titled "Bread Tasting Comparison."