February 18, 2008
Harajuku Crepes
In order to get a taste of Japanese pop culture, we decided to head to Harajuku (原宿) to have a look. This is like the equivalent of Singapore's Far East Plaza, except that it's many times more happening and interesting.
We were hoping to catch a glimpse of some cosplayers but none were there. Still the narrow street was packed with shoppers. We came across several Lolita shops and shops with all kinds of weird fashion which only the Japanese could carry off. The fashion being sold there wasn't really my style so all I really wanted to do was get out of the crowds asap.
The only stall I was looking for was one of the crepe stalls so that I could get my hands on some crepe. It was as if everyone who came to Harajuku came for the crepes 'cos I saw so many people eating one. Being a sucker for crepes, I couldn't resist getting one either even though I had already had lunch.
The staff at the stalls make the crepes with speed to keep up with the queue that never seems to shorten. There are savoury and sweet crepes in all sorts of flavours like strawberry, chocolate, banana, blueberry, crepe with ice cream etc. Don't worry if you don't speak Japanese 'cos the menu is a series of fake crepes with numbers next to each crepe. When it gets to your turn, just tell the person the number. The girl who served me understood English...failing which, just write the number down. Easy!
This tiny lane was filled with people eating crepes they had just bought. Everyone was ducking into the lane to finish up their crepes instead of braving the crowds with a crepe in hand.
The crepe I chose was called the Mont Blanc and true dessert lovers would know that with a name like that, it would surely have to contain chestnut puree. I love chestnut so I couldn't go away without giving this a try. To be honest, it wasn't that fantastic, but I'm partial to chestnut so I liked it all the same.
Getting there: Take the subway train to Harajuku Station on the Yamanote Line