Tiffany Blue Box Café by Natsuko Shoji

⭐⭐⭐

☕️ Cafe / 📍Ginza

📓 Visits: 1

Natsuko Shoji is the most high profile female chef in Japan, perhaps in all of Asia.  She joins Yosuke Suga and Ann Sophie Pic who both have cafés in Ginza attached to their name, but where you'll never find them in the kitchen.

Afternoon Tea is JPY 13,000 14,300 per head and Breakfast at Tiffany's JPY 8,500 9,500 per head.  Both of these have to be ordered when you book.  Otherwise, you can go a la carte, and with the intention of keeping the cost down, that's what I did.  Scroll to the end to find out how well that went.

Menus are reproduced below.  A partially English drinks menu is also available (the descriptions are, unfortunately, in Japanese only).  Amazingly, the place has been open not more than 5 months but prices have already increased.  So those prices quoted herein are already out-of-date.

Beef tartare (¥5,900) to start.  I've had punchier tartars.  On its own the beef didn't have much flavour.  Potato millefeuille are what appear to be triple cooked chips and to die for.  Soft on the inside, crispy on the outside and salty.  The chips and the salsa on the side acted as seasoning for the beef and allowed you to enjoy the tartar, which you could still taste, without getting bored.

French fries (¥1,700) are less good.  "Neutral" flavour and not all soft all the way through.  I'm expecting them to be served with the next item, but they arrive 7 minutes earlier.

Lobster pie (¥10,000) is delicious.  The sauce is a super rich bisque.  The pastry is butter-rich, and the pie is thoroughly cooked yet the lobster tail in the centre is still rare.  I'm wondering how the hell they manage to do that and guess the tail is cooked separately and stuffed into the pie when they cut it open.

Peach millefeuille (¥2,600) to finish.  A mean portion of fresh peach.  Pastry butter rich and flaky.  Jelly cold, refreshing and delicious.  Earl Grey creme pat rich and not over perfumed.  Too much pastry for fruit.

Tea (¥2,200) is served in a pot but not refilled if you run out.

Spoiler alert: at the end of the meal you're invited to purchase a mini version of Natsuko-san's signature cake.  Yours for the princely sum of JPY 15,000. I've had it before, and no it's not worth it, but if you're desperate to try it this is probably the cheapest and easiest route.

There's a small terrace which might be nice when weather permits.  Inside, tables are really well-spaced and the entire place is spotless.  Staff do their best but I avoid challenging them with my questions on cooking techniques.

They could have just done an okay job with the food and most customers would never know the difference and the restaurant would still be perma-full.  Notwithstanding my complaints, they did much better than okay, just try to go when someone else is paying.

📌 https://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1301/A130101/13310761/

❓ My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ 3.7

📱 Booking: 🟧 From 10am on the first of the month for the following month via TableCheck (account required).

📍 Location: 

4F, Tiffany Ginza, 6-9-2 Ginza.  3 mins south from Ginza Station Exit A2.
Map data ©2025 Google

📅 Visit August 2025

Blue Box Blend Tea 2,200
East Side Tartare 5,900
French fries 1,700
Natsuko's Iconic Lobster pie 10,000
Seasonal cake 2,600

💴 Damage: 24,640 incl. service at 10%

⏱️ Time taken: 1h15m