Sanrio has announced that it will open its third-ever limited-time cafe themed on their magazine Ichigo Shimbun at EGG & SPUMA located on the 8th floor of Shinjuku Lumine EST from July 11 to September 30.   Ichigo Shimbun is a monthly magazine published by Sanrio which includes information about the latest character merchandise, the Sanrio Character Awards, and more. Many of Sanrio's characters appear in the magazine and are set to appear at the cafe in the form of food. The theme of the cafe will be "Vacation." The menu special is the special party combo box for two. Served in an original box, it contains Pochacco and Cinnamoroll burgers, fries, cute Kiki & Lala desserts, two drinks, and more. EGG & SPUMA are known for their pancakes, so for the Sanrio collaboration, they will serve a special plate of pancakes themed on a beach with Pompompurin sunbathing on top. You can also order refreshing summery soda drinks too. There will be two different menus served at different periods for the duration of the collaboration, meaning a repeat visit is a must. We hope you get to try everything!

The KAWAII MONSTER CAFE in Harajuku is teaming up with Sanrio bring Hello Kitty, Harajuku culture and kawaii culture to the restaurant in a collaborative event that will run from July 12 to September 1. This year marks Hello Kitty's 45th anniversary and KAWAII MONSTER CAFE's 4th anniversary making this an event not to be missed. "Harajuku x Kawaii x Hello Kitty" Themed Menu Eight dishes will make up the colourful menu arriving at the KAWAII MONSTER CAFE on July 12 inspired by Harajuku, kawaii culture and Hello Kitty. Dishes include the Hello Kitty Burger packed with colourful melted cheese sauce, the Hello Kitty Harajuku Rainbow Curry which imagines Hello Kitty looking up to a rainbow after the rain lets up, and more. Don't forget the beautiful desserts either from a vibrant pop cake to a gorgeously layered parfait, all imbued with kawaii♡ During the event, customers who order from the collaborative menu will receive one of these original coasters featuring Hello Kitty and the restaurant's popular character Mr. Choppy.   Mel-Tea Hello Kitty Room: A Special Reservation-Only Room Also running at the restaurant during the event will be a special reservation only "room" which can be found at the KAWAII MONSTER CAFE's popular Mel-Tea-Room area. This room will see Hello Kitty take on the theme of a Harajuku girl and be decorated in pastel colours, ribbons, strawberry cake and more. You'll wish this room was your own!   Mel-Tea Hello Kitty Room Running: July 12, 2019 - September 1, 2019 Reservations: Once reserved please speak to the Mel-Tea Hello Kitty Room staff Slots: [Weekdays] 11:00/13:00/15:00 [Sundays & Holidays] 11:00/13:00/15:00/17:00/19:00 *2 hours per slot, limited availability   Original merchandise and novelties will also be available to purchase and pick up at the restaurant.   The collaboration is running until the end of Japan's summer break, so if you're here this summer then be sure to plan a trip to Harajuku to eat at the KAWAII MONSTER CAFE.

Hi, everyone. Midori here from MMN's editorial department.   The Sanrio Character Awards is a hugely popular event held in Japan every year. The winners were just recently announced, and I got to attend the announcement event.   This year marks the 34th run of the awards which have become an annual custom amongst Sanrio fans. People waited with a slight nervous anticipation at Puroland where the event was held as they awaited for the award ceremony to begin. The ceremony began with an initial greeting by Kabuki Nyantarou before the participating characters of the awards were presented on screen. There were over 80 entries this year!   They took no time at all in listing the winners in order from the top. Cinnamoroll has reigned champion for two years in a row, but taking the crown this year is Hello Kitty who is celebrating her 45th anniversary. After her were Cinnamoroll and then Pompompurin. Hello Kitty is the poster girl for Sanrio but the last time she earned the No. 1 spot was six years ago in 2013, and last year she was in 4th place.   Hello Kitty is the only character since 2000 to win three years in a row. The highest streak by the other characters is just two years. When the votes began rolling in this year Cinamoroll was initially at the top with Hello Kitty in 2nd place, but halfway through they swapped places. Of course, we mustn't forget Pompompurin and YOSHIKITTY either who followed close behind them.   Firstly, let's take a look at who received the Special Awards. Cogimyun―Sanrio's flour dough fairy character―obtained a much higher ranking than last year, earning her the Hop Step Jump Award. Fans were fascinated with this announcement as Cogimyun is said to the most elusive of the Sanrio characters. Hello Mandy reigned in the Collaborations Category, a collaboration between Hello Kitty and Mandy Sekiguchi from Japanese boy band GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE. Sekiguchi himself surprised the crowd as he was present to receive the award alongside Hello Mandy. Taking home the TikTok Award this year is Marumofubiyori Moppu. Moppu is a cute white bear who likes to lounge around at home wrapped in his favourite blanket. His sleepy videos were a hit on the Japanese TikTok.   Now, for the main announcements. Ranks 20 through 10 were announced via large cardboard panels.   The top 10 were then announced in order, from 10 down to 1. Each of these popular characters were announced until just 2nd and 1st place were left to be announced. The remaining two names were Cinnamoroll and Hello Kitty, leaving fans anxious to hear who the winner of 2019 will be.   And the winner is... Hello Kitty, with 1,647,073 votes! Not only does she take home the top award, it's also her 45th anniversary and the first win of Japan's Reiwa era. Cinnamoroll came in a close second at 1,584,057 votes. I saw some fans with tears in their eyes as a result of this heated battle. At the end, the characters lined up in a big row and celebrated their rank by holding up a card. To celebrate her win, it was announced that Hello Kitty will hit up Sanrio stores across Japan to show her gratitude. Exclusive merchandise will also be available for purchase to thank fans for their support. Full details can be found on Sanrio's official website.   The Awards were also held in several overseas countries with the outcomes being much different. In Taiwan Cinnamoroll was 1st place, Pompompurin 2nd place and Hello Kitty 3rd place. In China, it was Cinnamoroll in 1st place, My Melody in 2nd place, and YOSHIKITTY in 3rd place, a collaboration between X Japan member Yoshiki. And in Hong Kong it was Pekkle in 1st place, Pompompurin in 2nd place and Cinnamoroll in 3rd place.   This year's award ceremony for the internationally beloved Sanrio characters comes to an end. Congratulations, Hello Kitty!