Isetan Shinjuku is holding a "Japanese Summer Welcome: Summer Solstice Morning Tea" fair on both the Main Building and Men's Building, starting June 11th. The fair offers suggestions for enjoying a comfortable summer morning. The food section on the basement floor promotes "asacha," the custom of drinking tea in the cooler hours of summer mornings, and "how to spend a summer morning" through food. In response to the recent "morning activity boom" and the growing emphasis on breakfast, the fair introduces beverages that can easily be enjoyed as breakfast substitutes and side dishes to brighten up your dinner table. The beverage section features "Navasara Chai Chat Masala" (Sri Lankan, 10 Pitre tea bags, 1,000 yen), which combines refreshing spices with uva tea, characterized by its refreshing astringency, and "Navasara Chai Summer Herbs" (Indian, 10 Pitre tea bags, 1,200 yen), a blend of black tea, lemongrass, and other herbs with sencha. Also on sale are "Migaki Strawberry Mousseux" (3,500 yen), a purely domestic sparkling wine made with 100% Migaki strawberries grown by strawberry artisans in Yamamoto Town, Miyagi Prefecture, which has recovered from the Great East Japan Earthquake, and amazake, a highly nutritious drink that was once consumed as an energy drink.
The prepared food section will be selling the "Tomato Pickles & Brioche Brunch Set" (900 yen), which includes tomato bisque soup from Hediard, brioche, and semi-dried tomatoes. Each item can be enjoyed on its own, or the brioche can be dipped in soup with mascarpone cheese. Also on sale is "Summer Aquarion" (800 yen), a summer version of the shop's classic seafood and avocado Aquarion, with a three-layered cup for a refreshing taste. The cup is topped with basil mayonnaise sauce at the bottom and ham and black olives in aspic jelly made from broth boiled with meat or fish. The top is decorated with melon, blueberries, and cherry tomatoes, creating a visually appealing treat. The shop also offers a unique breakfast style, "Dashi Chazuke," in which brown rice granola is poured over cold dashi broth. As the habit of eating rice among Japanese people is declining, Kikutaya Rice Store explored ways to eat rice that suit modern people, and developed a Japanese-style granola, "Brown Rice Granola" (900 yen). A representative commented, "Meals are not just about ingesting nutrients; they stimulate the five senses and are an important time for being active throughout the day. Through this event, we hope to propose ways to enjoy your mornings."
