Go to kissaten, Japanese coffee shops!

I'm always wondering why my foreign students (I'm a Japanese teacher) loves Starbucks Coffee so much. They hang out there very often, which is not bad at all, but Starbucks is everywhere in the world. As many of them will leave Japan in a couple of years, I'd like to say to them: "You are living abroad. Take advantage of this precious opportunity. Do something new or different!" 

I'm not saying they should learn karate or climb Mt. Fuji, which may be too tough, but they can have coffee at some Japanese kissaten (coffee shops) instead of the Seattle-style cafe once in a while, right?

My recommendation is Komeda's Coffee  (コメダ珈琲店, pronounced Komeda Kohi-ten), a Nagoya-based coffee chain with nearly 500 franchise stores around the country, mainly in the suburbs where they can secure a big parking space. All the stores feature comfortable high-back sofa seats and "interesting" Nagoya-style menu items.

Look at the photo below, for example. This is "misokatsu sand (=sandwich)" that I had the other day at Komeda's. Misokatsu, or a tonkatsu (deap-fried breaded pork) with miso-based sweet sauce, is one of the typical Nagoyan local dishes. The misokatsu, shredded cabbage and fluffy bread surprisingly go well.

But the most popular food at Komeda's is not misokatsu but  "shiro-noir," a warm brioche bread with cold soft serve ice cream on the top. I don't know why it is called Shiro-noir. Shiro means white in Japanese and noir is black in French. It does not mean anything. Strange name, but definitely  worth tasting. The warm bread melts the cream very quickly like the photo below, but this hot-cold combination is interesting and addictive.  

 

Oh, I have to say this: Komeda's Coffee is one of the best places to have breakfast. If you happen to find one of the chain shops before 11 a.m. and you are hungry, don't hesitate to go in and ask for "Morning sevice." Why? Because, like many other kissaten (Japanese-style coffee shops) in Nagoya, Komeda would offer you a slice of toast and a boiled egg for free if you order a drink. If you want, you can have a mini salad if you pay 200 yen extra.

To check the menu, please click here. It is all written in Japanese, but photos would help you to understand what it is like.

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From here I'm writing in Japanese for someone learning Japanese!

わたしの生徒さんたちは、みんなスターバックスが大好き。どうしてかな。スターバックスも悪くないけど、世界中どこでもあるよね。

生徒： せいと　students
悪い：　わるい　bad
世界中：　せかいじゅう　all over the world
どこでも：　anywhere

せっかく日本にいるのだから、何か新しいことをしてほしいな。シアトルスタイルのカフェに行くんじゃなくて、日本の喫茶店に行くとか。

新しい：　あたらしい　new
喫茶店：　きっさてん　coffee shops

私のおすすめは、コメダ珈琲店。名古屋に本店があって全国に約５００もフランチャイズ店があります。背の高い座り心地がいいソファと名古屋独特のメニューが特徴です。

おすすめ：　recommendation
珈琲：　コーヒー　
名古屋：　なごや　name of the city
全国：　ぜんこく　the whole country
約：　やく　about
背が高い：　せがたかい　tall
座り心地がいい：　すわりごこち　be comfortable to sit on
独特：　どくとく　peculiar
特徴： とくちょう　features, characteristics

下の写真は私がこの前食べた「みそカツサンド」です。みそカツというのは、甘い味噌のたれをつけて食べる名古屋のとんかつです。みそカツと、千切りのキャベツと柔らかいパンがよく合うんですよ。

写真：しゃしん　photo
この前：　このまえ　the other day
甘い：　あまい　sweet
味噌：　みそ　soy bean paste
たれ：　sauce
千切りの：　せんぎりの　shredded
柔らかい：　やわらかい　soft

でも一番人気のメニューは「みそカツサンド」じゃなくて、「シロノアール」なんです。シロノアールというのは温かいブリオッシュに冷たいソフトクリームを乗せたものです。温かいものと冷たいものの組み合わせがおもしろくて、くせになります。

人気：にんき　popular
温かい：　あたたかい　warm
冷たい：つめたい　cold
乗せる：　のせる　to put
組み合わせ：　くみあわせ　combination
くせになる：　addictive

そうそう、コメダはモーニング・サービスがとてもお得なんですよ。１１時前なら、飲み物を注文すると無料でトーストとゆで卵がついてきます。２００円でミニサラダも頼めます。

そうそう：　by the way
お得：　おとく　bargain
注文する：　ちゅうもんする　　to order
無料：　むりょう　free of charge
ゆで卵：　ゆでたまご　a boiled egg
頼む：　たのむ　to ask