On November 30th, Max Brenner, a chocolate bar chain with over 40 locations in five countries, including the United States, Israel, and Australia, will open its first Japanese location at Omotesando Hills. Inside, the store features a large chocolate machine, stylish lighting fixtures of various shapes, and bottled spices. According to store manager Rieko Kita, "We've created an interior space reminiscent of a 'Chocolate Factory' laboratory." The walls are printed with the store's original chocolate bonbon designs, and the sofas, chairs, and ceiling pipes are all chocolate-colored. The sweet aroma fills the air, making this a space that chocolate lovers will love. The "Chocolate Chunk Pizza" (whole size 1,800 yen, half size 950 yen, 1/6 size 350 yen), a favorite in New York, features melted chocolate on a fluffy pizza crust, topped with a generous amount of toasted marshmallows. When you put it in your mouth, the marshmallows string up like cheese. The "Banana Hazelnut Crepe" (1,400 yen) is a crepe filled with warm chocolate paste, nuts, and bananas.
The shop's recommended drink, "Hot Chocolate (Dark)" (500-550 yen), has just the right amount of subtle bitterness. The pizza and crepes are very sweet, so the bitterness of the dark chocolate balances it out. Perhaps it's this careful balance of sweet and bitter chocolate that makes it possible to finish an entire chocolate-filled menu without getting bored.
Other dishes on offer include "Classic European Fondue" (1,800 yen), in which strawberries, brownies, and toasted marshmallows are dipped in hot chocolate. The shop also sells a variety of chocolate gift items, including the original cocoa bean-shaped "Hug Mug" (900 yen), the "Alice Cup" (1,300 yen), which looks like the smiling Cheshire Cat from "Alice in Wonderland" when viewed from above, and chocolates packed in colorful tins.
Max Brenner was founded in Israel in 1996. Even now, seven years after its opening, the New York Union Square store is so popular that there is still a three-hour wait. Last month, executive chef Katzie Guy-Hamilton visited Japan and said, "I want people to enjoy our chocolate with a free-spirited imagination that brings them back to their childhood."
A second store is scheduled to open in Tokyo Skytree Town on December 20th.
