----- ADS-----
From LycoReco in Lycoris recoil toa got Que of Nan-Nan in Steins;Gate to Anteiku in Tokyo Ghoulplenty of anime feature cafés that really bring a cozy atmosphere amidst the otherwise intense and wacky situations the characters may have to deal with in their daily lives. But what about the anime that don’t just feature cafés, but are all about them? After all, cafés in Japan, like anime itself, tend to turn the mundane up a few notches to become something truly special.
Videos by ComicBook.com
But although cafés tend to be known for their peaceful, pleasant atmospheres that pair well with their cozy coffees and toasty treats, some of these picks may surprise you with how these characters run their restaurants. The range of genres and ambience these cafés provide is as diverse as coffee itself — from warm and comforting to caffeinated chaos. So if you’re in the mood for some anime ambience, grab a cozy cuppa and snuggle up for this list of a latté freshly brewed series!
Polar Bear Coffee
Panda’s favorite pastime is lazing about and relaxing. But with his mom unhappy that his pastime seems to take up much of his time, she pushes him to look for a part-time job. With Panda failing his interview after stumbling upon Shirokuma Cafe, he manages to land a job at the zoo as, well, a panda. Near the local zoo and owned by the polar bear Shirokuma who loves serving and chatting with customers, the café is a popular spot for both animals and humans alike to relax after a hard day’s work, including Panda. Along with friends like the sarcastic Penguin, bar owner Grizzly, and human waitress Sasako, Shirokuma Cafe has no shortage of misadventures.
This soft slice-of-life is perfect for those looking for a cute and comforting café anime. At Polar Bear Coffeethough life is as slow and relaxed as Panda himself, Shirokuma and his customers don’t fail to bring their silly musings to the table.
Polar Bear Coffee can be streamed on Crunchyroll.
Is The Order a Rabbit?
Kokoa Hoto, upon moving in with the Kafuu family to attend high school away from home, works at the family’s café, Rabbit House, in return for room and board. As a waitress, Kokoa befriends Chino Kafuu, the granddaughter of the cafe’s founder; Rabbit House’s talking rabbit mascot Tippy; part-time fellow waitress Rize Tedeza; rival café waitress Chiya Ujimatsu; and another waitress, Sharo Kirima, from a different café. Together, the girls work hard to learn how to serve coffee alongside each of the cafes’ adorable rabbit mascots.
Step aside, overrated cat cafés, rabbit cafés are all the rage! Everyone loves a café with a theme, especially when that theme involves adorable animals. And not only does Is The Order a Rabbit? deliver with cute fluffy bunnies, but also cute girls to take the cuteness to a moe level.
Is The Order a Rabbit? can be streamed on Crunchyroll.
BLEND-S
Although Maika Sakuranomiya tries her best to land a part-time job in order to afford to study abroad, her off-putting expressions keep getting her rejected, despite actually being rather shy and cheerful. When she happens upon Café Stile, Italian manager Dino immediately offers her a job upon taking a liking to her intimidating expressions. In fact, with this café’s schtick of each of the servers taking on their own distinct personas, Maika is given the characteristic of being sadistic. Although tentative at first, with her intimidating expressions paired with her clumsiness, Maika actually settles in to being a natural for playing the role of a sadistic personality. Along with fellow servers Kaho Hinata the tsundere and Mafuyu Hoshikawa as the younger sister type, Maika turns her shortcomings into advantages.
An interesting take on a themed café anime with an incredibly memorable and meme-able OP, BLEND-S is a cute café comedy about embracing one’s quirks and allowing them to be beneficial if given the chance, becoming something surprising, sweet, or, in Maika’s case, sadistic.
BLEND-S can be streamed on Crunchyroll.
Akiba Maid War
Nagomi Wahira has always admired the maids at the cafés in Akihabara and dreams of joining their ranks. Finally taking the first steps in doing so, she moves there and lands a job as a maid at café Ton Tokoton. It’s a typical first day on the job until she’s tasked with running an errand to a rival maid café with her serious thirty-five-year-old coworker, Ranko Mannen. When Nagomi unknowingly delivers a threatening letter declaring war between the rival cafés, all hell breaks loose.
In this series, these servers not only sign up to join the ranks of maids but also the ranks in battle. As far as working at a maid café, fighting knife-wielding rabbit maids in an all-out turf war was far from what Nagomi expected. It’s not exactly the soothing ambience customers are typically used to, but Akiba Maid War definitely puts its twist on the café theme.
Akiba Maid War can be streamed on Crunchyroll and HIDIVE where available.
[RELATED: Akiba Maid War to Open Cafe in Los Angeles]
Yotsuiro Biyori
Rokuhoudou, a modest traditional Japanese tea house nestled in a grove of bamboo, is run by Kyousui “Sui” Tougoku after inheriting the café from his grandfather. Sui, in charge of tea, manages Rokuhoudou with the help of Gregorio “Gure” Valentino who’s in charge of latte art, Tsubaki Nakao who specializes in desserts, and chef Tokitaka Nagae. Caring for their café and customers with utmost excellent hospitality, Rokuhoudou starts gaining popularity not just with its delicious, warm meals and drinks, but also with its warm, welcoming staff. As people begin to take notice and become curious of the pleasant-looking café, the newcomer customers begin turning into regulars.
Cozy, comforting, ambient, and relaxing, Yotsuiro Biyori features the epitome of what people tend to think of a restful café. But unlike the typical modern coffee shop aesthetic, Rokuhoudou instead greets its guests with a more traditional setting at a tea house.
Yotsuiro Biyori can be streamed on Crunchyroll.
Time of Eve
In a futuristic Japan where android housekeepers and assistants are normal in everyday life, most people treat androids the same as any other unfeeling tool or appliance. Although, some people, known as “android-holics”, have more of an appreciation for their fellow android compatriots, leading them to be shunned. Rikuo Sakisaka himself tends to think of his own household android, Sammy, as more of a simple gadget. But when he notices that Sammy takes an unknown detour on her daily route, Rikuo discovers the café Eve no Jikan. There, the café requests guests to abide by a single rule: there must be no distinction made between humans and androids. At risk of being labeled as an “android-holic”, Rikuo becomes curious to learn more about the coffee shop.
Portraying a shaky camera feel to accentuate the unease and uncertainty the blurred line between human and machine brings, it’s only fitting that a relaxing public space like a café would be the place to go to find common ground. A futuristic spin on the cozy café atmosphere, Time of Eve is even more relevant today than when it came out in 2008.
Time of Eve can be streamed on Crunchyroll.
Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou
With the world in a state of decline, the remaining human population live their lives quietly and peacefully. For android Alpha Hatsuseno, it’s no different. Looking after the café in the boonies of Yokohama as she awaits her master’s return, she and the little shop don’t receive much in the way of visitors and time passes slowly and leisurely. One day, another android, a courier named Kokone Takatsu, delivers a package containing a camera from Alpha’s master. And with the gift, Alpha spends her extensive, slow life savoring the small things that happen her way. Eventually, the wrath of nature ravages the shop through a storm, destroying it. Determined to rebuild, Alpha journeys out to fund the repairs.
If there were a nickel for every café anime featuring androids, there’d be two nickels. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird it happened twice. This little 4-episode sci-fi slice-of-life epitomizes the heart of iyashikei café atmosphere — soothing with little to no conflict and emphasizing beauty and comfort in the more mundane things in life.
Let us know in the comments your favorite café anime is to enjoy while sipping a nice cup of coffee!
