Takachiho is home to many amazing cafés.

Here, we’ll be introducing you to our recommendations for cafés you’ll want to drop into while exploring in the history and scenery of Takachiho – the land of myths.

Café ARIGATO, a slow cafe with a view of the station building

Café ARIGATO, located near Takachiho Town Hall, has a large parking lot that makes it a very easy and nice place to stop by.

We recommend the seats along the large windows, which offer a view of Takachiho Station and the train carts on the Amaterasu Railway.

For dessert, we recommend the “Pudding and Ice Cream,” which goes perfectly with coffee.

On top of the pudding your will find ice cream, which in return is topped with a rich chocolate sauce. This is a combination that will satisfy any dessert lover!

Click here for directions to Café Arigato

Marchen, a retro-cute café that offers old-fashioned siphon coffee

Marchen is a retro-cute café frequently visited by locals, located along the main street near Takachiho Shrine.

They offer coffee made with an old-fashioned siphon coffee maker. The bubbling sound of the water boiling in the coffee maker boosts the chic feel of the café.

Each cup of coffee is brewed with meticulous care, and is so delicious you’ll want to take your time enjoying it.

While their cakes and parfaits are great, we recommend the “Warabi mochi”, dusted with nutty soybean powder. Enjoy it with plenty of brown sugar syrup.

Click here for directions to Marchen

Nijiiro, for the freshly baked Ohisama Cheese Manju

Nijiiro is a café that offers the very popular Takachiho souvenir, cheese manju.

They offer a variety of flavors in addition to the standard “Ohisama Cheese Manju”. Trying the different flavors while comparing them is a lot of fun!

We recommend trying the drink set, which comes with a drink and the Ohisama Cheese Manju—a crisp manju filled with delicious cheese.

Their fruit syrup drinks are very popular, as well as their coffees and teas.

Click here for directions to Nijiiro

TAKACHIHOYA, a highly photogenic vegan café

At the entrance to TAKACHIHOYA, you’ll be greeted by two komainus (guardian dog statues).

The interior of the café is incredibly photogenic, with stone lanterns and gravel creating a shrine-like atmosphere.

We recommend the “Chocolate banana pancakes”, made with Kyushu Pancake Mix. A hearty meal, but so delicious it’ll be gone in an instant!

Their amazake smoothie consists of fruits and amazake, made only with malted rice, white rice, and water.  This healthy combination is sure to make your skin a touch more beautiful.

Click here for directions to TAKACHIHOYA

Amaterasu no Kakure Café, a café with scenery so mystical you might just lose track of time

Amaterasu no Kakure Cafe is an absolute must-visit if you go to the Ama-no-Iwato Shrine or Ama-no-Yasukawara.

Take a seat out on the terrace, gazing out over the Iwato River while feeling the gentle breeze on your skin. Here the sense of time just seize to exist.

This is a Japanese-style café and we recommend the “Kinako mochi set”, which consists of mochi dusted with a sweet and nutty soybean powder. Before it used to only be on the menu during the winter time, but was so popular that it was made available all year-round.

They also sell an original blend of coffee beans.

Click here for directions to Amaterasu-no-Kakure Café

Conclusion

These were the five best cafés to drop into while exploring Takachiho. What did you think?

Of course it can be fun to wander around and explore all day, but it is sure to be nice to take a beat and relax. When you get the urge to do so, we recommend you stop by one of these cafés.