Ginza West Aoyama Garden — Restaurant in Tokyo

I was able to relax and have two cappuccinos in the sun with a delicious hot cake. It’s a lovely cafe that reminds me of the good things in life.

Ginza West began in the ‘good old days’ in 1947 as a Western restaurant named ‘Grill Westginza’. It’s since transformed into a patisserie institution with outlet shops selling the signature Ginza West cookies throughout Tokyo as well as a flagship cafe salon in Ginza and all-day eateries in Aoyama and Yokahama.

If anything, Ginza West is a symbol of Japan’s attachment to the old-world glamour of 20th century Western culture. It’s cosmopolitan and accessible.

At the coffee/tea salons, there are delicious finger sandwiches with dainty parsley and lemon wedges, unlimited drink menu refills for the stragglers, golden puffed pancakes for the Instagram generation and a bring-to-table cake set display for the old-fashioned. Oh, and the hot soufflé from the Aoyama store comes with a stoic man dressed head to toe in white garment wheeled to the table on a trolley with a small ramekin of cream. The waitress could have bought it - but the excess of having this pastry chef magically appear every time a souffle is ordered is so entertaining to the point of comical one can’t help but laugh.

The best thing about Ginza West is that whilst the tea salons are in fashionable districts, everything still remains homely and delicious. The cappuccino comes with foamed milk and a touch of cinnamon. The butter toast comes crust off, lightly brushed with salted butter. The pancakes are spongy, fragrant and airy - the perfect vehicle for a pat of butter and maple syrup.

The Ginza flagship store has these charming seasonal floral arrangements with handwritten name tags and classical music is still played on CDs using a Denon Digital stereo system. So customers dig into fresh cream puffs and puddings while an orchestral version of Schubert is on full volume.

Classical music, good food and hotel school service. I suppose the appeal of Ginza West is it’s resounding dedication to preserving a long-lost dining experience we are all nostalgic for.

The Aoyama store - famous for it’s pancakes - also has a small book and magazine library at the corner for customers to browse and enjoy. After you finish, there are cookies and fresh cakes for you to purchase as souvenirs at the counter.

It’s these small details that makes Ginza West an absolute pleasure. Unlike so many places in Tokyo where people come in and out, Ginza West is a place that welcomes one to stay, relax and experience the flow of time.

Eating out can be classy, glamorous and fun. And no one knows that better...

This is a Japanese reinvention of the western classic and they have done it far better. This is without a doubt the best pancake I've had in my life and the one pancake is about the size of a stack of 4-5 American pancakes. It is both dense and fluffy so you will need a drink to wash it down. I recommend the Royal Milk Tea. I only wish they provided a bit more syrup as the pancake really soaks it up. The food is very much worth the wait and we waited extra for an outdoor seat as the day was just too beautiful to waste indoors. This is an elegant cafe with gorgeous food in a lovely area of Tokyo and many Japanese people come here for special occasions, so I have to disagree with the comments that it's too expensive. It was around £20 (less than $30) for 2 (very large) pancakes and 2 hot beverages. One could easily pay far more for the equivalent in...

We first came around 11am but there was a huge line so we came back the next day at 5pm. There was still a line so we wrote our name on the list and went to grab dinner somewhere else first.

After dinner we came back and waited a further 30 minutes before being seated. Our pancakes then arrived a further 30 minutes after ordering. By this time it was 7:15pm! The pancakes themselves are great but not mind blowing. Turns out there's a local maximum for how good a pancake can get. As someone else wrote, it's basically fancy McDonald's hotcakes. And yes, not enough maple syrup.

If you must wait then the line moves at ~15 groups an hour. Yes it's a popular spot but their service is also extremely slow to serve food and set tables. They also don't kick people out who have finished eating and are simply sitting looking at...