mipig cafe Harajuku — Restaurant in Tokyo

This was our experience and I’m share some may have a better experience than us: Overpriced for 30 minutes experience where it was crowded and chaotic A cafe which only serve self serve dispenser soft drinks and sachets of coffee and tea bags. Do not book the 5pm slot as the pigs were mostly hungry and upset

We booked for one private room for our family and one outside floor table for my parents.

The private room was warm and stuffy and we were allocated two piglets in the room. My husband was the luckiest to have the two piglets sleeping in his lap. He didn’t and couldn’t move throughout the 30 minutes. 😂

But my toddler girl within 5 minutes didn’t like the piglets asked to leave the room to join my parents outside. This silly girl was brave to pat the pig but once the pig turned around and she saw their faces 🐷 🐽 , she started crying and saying she’s scared. 🙈😵‍💫

When we wanted to head outside to join my parents and swop some members, we were told that we can’t do that as the rates were different. I explained that my younger daughter is not comfortable and we can pay for the higher private room rates for all. This was lost in translation. Read on to find out why we got all upset.

When outside, no pigs came to us, they were all crowding at the staff door, hungry and squeaking. In the last 5 minutes, we told the staff that there were no pigs and they managed to lure one with food where we quickly took a picture for my mum.

We noticed the slot after us, at 5:30pm were feeding time and the guests were given a bowl of feed for the pigs. This was probably a better timing. FYI for those who wishes to visit.

At the end of 30 minutes, we were asked to line up to exit but there were no opportunity or spot to wash our hands. At the reception , upon enquiring, we were told to that the only restroom was inside.

During payment, the staff wanted to charged us for 12 pax. We had 7. They explained because 3 came out to the shared space and 2 went into the private room. The people who swopped had to pay twice for both private room rate and outside rate even if we only spent 10 minutes at each spot. We spent 30 minutes explaining , we can’t be charged for 12 pax for a 30 minutes experience and are more than happy to pay for 7 pax at the private room rate for all. The staff were polite throughout but not empathetic. In the end, they charged us for 8 pax. I’ve no idea how they did the math but at this point as we were tired and gave up.

While Mipig calls themselves a cafe, there were no drinks or food menu. The only drinks they have were self served dispenser and some sachets of coffee and teabags. Most of us didn’t grab any drinks as it was pretty chaotic. They were all busy trying to get people in and out within 30 minutes.

Is it me who is not reasonable or is there something I...

This place is super cute.

My husband and I booked a reservation for 55 minutes. I thought the pigs would be like dogs and interact and walk around. They walk around alittle, but they mostly pass out on your laps. It was still a sweet and unique experience. I honestly think the shorter time frame would have been sufficient for me, but it was still a fun experience as long as you factor in the following:

They are animals, so they wont smell like a field of daisies. Some of them are potty trained, but the younger ones (3 and 4 month olds) will simply pee on the floor and try to crawl into your lap 5 seconds later 🤣. We ended up leaving after 50 min instead of the full 55 because one pig was cutely persistent and wanted to crawl on my lap, but it was after stepping in its own urine. A blanket was provided for my lap, but I didn’t want to take a risk and get pig pee on my clothes on a HOT summer day. I wouldn’t have smelled very good for the rest of the evening.

Some of the pigs get feisty or will initiate little fights with one another. If you have dogs or pets, this prob won’t bother you— it’s just alarming when you hear it because they are oinks, squeals, and grunts. It’s not something you hear everyday.

The staff was friendly and welcoming. They all speak English. The pigs are monitored by several ladies who help navigate the pigs around and they also “break up fights” or redirect the pigs when needed.

At one point I had 4 piglets in my lap!! It was adorable. The older pigs scared me a little bit. Some of them tried to show dominance by scaring off the little ones, but I would use my arm to redirect the big ones from scaring off the little ones who were contently sleeping on my lap!

Reservation def recommended. It was packed when we got there (follow the email directions and get there 10 min before reservation time to give yourself time to sign the terms and conditions/ store your belongings in a locked cabinet). and the line was already queuing when we got up to leave. I wasn’t offered any drinks during my stay, so I’m not sure where the “cafe” part comes into play. In the end, I was happy to see all the cute piggies. I don’t know if I would want to drink anything while petting the pigs anyway. It was a fun and...

Not pleased with my experience, but even less so after talking to the staff. One thing to take away is the private room is not worth the price. All the staff kept saying is that they had the rules and I agreed, but that does not reflect what the experience ends up being. I did read the rules on the website and on their paper freezing in the rain trying to read it so I can go inside. What happens is the room is a little corner where they will put two pigs in and then ignore you. The staff has to watch the pigs so they don't fight in the main room. The pigs want to be together, at least both ones they gave us. You can move them, using the methods they say, but the pigs do not like it. They squeal and then quickly go to return to be with their fellow pig. This happened with both sets, the pig would stay on one lap while the other person just watched. I could tell they wanted to be together, I have handled pigs before as well as working handling animals as it's my job, and they were uncomfortable. The staff acknowledges this as the site says that picking them up makes them stressed. I understand not switching out the pigs, but what I dont understand is why I am paying more to be put in the corner and repremanded when I ask questions. And then just looking over to the main room and seeing people be able to walk around, look at other pigs and say hi to the big ones. When I asked at the end why I was paying more for that experience, I was just told that the rules were clear and that I agreed. They heard me say I didn't like the two pigs and just started treating me like I didn't read the rules at all, ignoring me asking why I was ignored in the corner and being upcharged which was my biggest issue. One little note on the form that the two pigs are not negotiable does not reflect that experience . I've been to a lot of animal cafes in Japan, but this one was very uncomfortable to be in and the staff were mainly pig mediators. I really should have thought about it more about how the pigs feel, but watching them do nothing but fight, follow staff for food and sleep is hard while you look at one in your lap covered in bite marks and dried blood. Overall a horrible time to be charged...