Matcha Café Maiko is the place to keep up with the current matcha craze, whether you are a tried and true matchaholic, or just trying out Japanese green tea desserts for the first time. Located in Japantown in San Francisco, California, Matcha Café Maiko only recently opened at the end of March 2018, but it already has a cult following of fans. The care and dedication put into the preparation of each dessert is a testament to the heavenly final products, leading to customers more than willing to wait in line for more.
Maiko Special
The Maiko Special is a signature item on the menu, and preparation for it goes beyond piling the delicious components of the dessert into a cup. The day before, the matcha chiffon cake is baked in-house and chilled in the fridge, allowing the flavors to be further enhanced and developed. In the morning, the mochi balls are carefully hand rolled one by one, before being boiled to a plump and chewy perfection. Almost all the ingredients that Matcha Café Maiko uses are sourced and imported from Japan, from the matcha powder and mochi flour, to even the chestnut that sits perfectly balanced on top of the Maiko Special.
The flavor and texture combination of the components of the Maiko Special are purposeful and well-thought-out to bring out the best in this dessert. Each layer of the Maiko Special adds another dimension from the crunch of the corn flakes, the airy and moist matcha chiffon cake, all the way to the plump mochi balls on top. The elements not only add to the sweet, but highlight and showcase the delicious soft serve.
Soft Serve
Matcha Café Maiko’s soft serve is another customer favorite, especially when you realize it's served in a waffle cone that is handmade every morning. The freshly made waffle cone is still slightly soft on top, yet when you reach the bottom, it’s crispy and satisfyingly crunchy. The subtle sweetness complements the soft serve ice cream.
The Shogun is a new item on the menu, featuring gold topped on matcha soft serve. Although the gold may be glittering and shining, the real star is the soft serve itself. The matcha flavor is authentic and distinct—evidenced by the specks of matcha powder—yet delicate and not overpowering. The texture of the soft serve is light and creamy with an almost whipped-like consistency—it’s like eating smooth clouds.
Floats
Floats are another popular menu item, featuring a variety of combination of flavors. One of the owner’s favorite items is the Hojicha Latte Float. Slightly less sweet than matcha, the roasted mellow tones of the hojicha heighten the sophistication and elegance of this drink. The refined flavor of the hojicha is a completely different experience, which is why it is a perfect complement to the matcha and vanilla swirl soft serve.
Shaved Ice
Shaved ice is new on the menu at San Francisco’s Matcha Café Maiko, and it certainly should be on your list to try. While the ice may look coarse, the moment you take a bite, it effortlessly melts away in your mouth. The dessert is doused in a matcha syrup that is subtle in sweetness, and further enhances the smoothness of the ice.
The shaved ice comes with soft serve of your choice, as well as all the fixings of azuki beans, mochi balls, and chestnut.
Kokuto Jelly
The Kokuto Jelly is an item that may be easily overlooked compared to the other delicious offerings at Matcha Café Maiko, but it is a must try. Kokuto is a type of brown sugar in Japan, and has a complex sweetness profile that adds depth to the flavors of this dessert.
The Kokuto Matcha Kuromitsu Kinako Cream is the ultimate gathering of ingredients to celebrate traditional Japanese flavors. The cream on top is light and fluffy and is doused in a sweet and addicting kuromitsu kinako syrup. The best surprise is when you take the first sip—the kokuto jelly is so soft and velvety, it shoots up your straw and melds to become the impeccable partner to the matcha latte.
Matcha Café Maiko is not just a place with delicious treats to satisfy sweet tooths. With a growing popularity with matcha, this shop hopes to share the Japanese flavors to an even wider audience so that more people can enjoy it. Matcha is flourishing and Matcha Café Maiko clearly has some delightful matcha desserts to cater to a wide variety of tastes. What’s more important is the love and care put into each of its products, from the ingredients to the presentation, that an experience here is one to put in the books.