An Afternoon at Cafe VG

    The company of my favorite notebooks, colorful pens and a cup of coffee never fails to zap me into another world especially when I am in a cafe as nice as this. I was on my way home from Waseda University when I chanced upon this coffee shop, Cafe VG. I do not usually take this route to the station, but since I went to the Takata Library, I had to take this street.

     I found this random cafe while walking from Waseda University to Takadanobaba Station. It is a hidden gem, in a literal sense, because the cafe is along the road, but cannot be easily spotted. Would you believe it, this beautiful cafe is hidden behind a tall wooden fence! The only evidence of its existence is a small signboard on the side of the road that bears its name and its operating hours. On the side of the road is a large vacant lot (I can't remember if it's a parking space or just an empty spot waiting to be useful). On the side is a very narrow pathway that leads to the cafe behind the fence. As soon as you set foot on the stone path, you can sense how much the owner loves pets because it is designed with these little paw prints(the stones are so cute you wouldn't want to step on them).

     At the door of the cafe, a cute orange dog statue welcomes you with this "open" sign. From the window you can take a peek at the cute counter lined with bottles of wine (i think?). As I open the door, a loud bark greeted me from a very adorable, curly haired black and white dog (I don't know what breed it is though, sorry!). It has a bright yellow collar and a stylish dog shirt on.

     
Outside the cafe are some tables, which would have been a nice place to hangout at during summer, but maybe not in a cold winter day like this.

     The interior of the cafe is very lovely! The cafe looks like an old log cottage. All the furniture are made of wood. I am so much into wooden furniture, so I totally dig this place. The photos in this post fall short in showing how lovely it is (please see this link for a more video of the place). I also like the fact that each table is partnered with mismatched chairs.I found beauty in that variation.

     I also love the displays in the cafe. They put these intricate details that create such a vintage-like feel. I love those old postcards and vintage telephone. I was tempted to play with them the whole time I was there!

 

     The menu is also designed with some cute paw prints and dog photos. I ordered the VG Blend, which costs around Y500. It seems like an ordinary black coffee at first look, but it tastes different. There is a distinct flavor that stings your taste buds, which I honestly didn't like. For me, it tastes sour (or something close to that effect). I was only able to finish half of the cup. I would love to try the other kinds of coffee next time I visit, maybe I would love them better.  

     This is indeed an unexpected find as I walked along a route I don't usually take. I enjoyed hanging around the cafe for several hours especially when English dance hits (from J.Lo and Miley Cyrus) are playing in the background.  The owners of the shop (a couple, I think) are also very hospitable in attending to my needs. I guess, I will keep on coming back to this cafe, especially, when I have tons of books to read or papers to finish.