The pop-up café closed in January but the pop icon scratches her way back when the Hello Kitty Grand Café Sanrio opens on Friday, Sept. 14 at the Irvine Spectrum Center.
It’s the first and only permanent café in the U.S. that offers two different experiences. A fast casual café with seating for 12 will be the place to order coffee and sweets such as espresso and blended drinks, mini doughnuts ($6) and Sanrio character mini cakes ($15) from a grab-and-go menu. Hello Kitty merchandise will be available for purchase. Then there’s the Bow Room, a separate private space available only by reservation Wednesday through Sunday. By day it’s a tearoom, by night it’s a cocktail bar.
Afternoon Tea Service in the Bow Room is $55 per person for traditional offerings such as fresh fruit; scones with butter, jam and honey; cucumber, egg salad, smoked salmon and other sandwiches; as well as special sweets that include the Hello Kitty Mini Cake, raspberry macarons and Chocolate Chocolate Cake. Black, green, oolong, Birthday Blend and other fancy teas will be brewed along with caffeine-free selections.
Cocktail service for those 21 and over, begins at 5 p.m. The menu includes kitschy and catchy cocktails such as You Had Me at Hello (Cachaca, aperol, lemon, sherry and pineapple, $21); Matcha Matcha (Japanese whiskey, yogurt, matcha, yuzu, $15); Dear Daniel (Mezcal, pineapple, lime, spirulina, salted coconut whip, $16); and 1974 ( choice of an Old Fashioned or Classic Negroni served with a signature Hello Kitty ice cube, $14).
Of course Hello Kitty wines will be poured along with a list of sparkling and still wines offered by the glass and the bottle.
“We look forward to debuting the latest evolution of Hello Kitty Café as a new destination in Southern California,” said Craig Takiguchi, COO of Sanrio, Inc.
“We’re very excited to welcome the first brick-and-mortar Hello Kitty Café in the U.S. at Irvine Spectrum Center,” said Katie Dixon, Director of Marketing at Irvine Spectrum Center.
Hello Kitty Grand Café Sanrio
Find it: 860 Irvine Center Drive, near the Giant Wheel Court in the Irvine Spectrum Center, sanrio.com/pages/hellokittycafe-grand
Cafe hours: 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m.-10:30 p.m. Saturday; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday.
Bow Room’s reservation hours: Afternoon Tea Service 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday-Friday; 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Cocktails 5 p.m.-9 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Sunday; 5 p.m.-11 p.m. Friday, Saturday.
