The Return to Hidamari Cafe

Hey everyone! Let’s dive into some delicious desserts and coffee!

I’ve talked about this place before—Hidamari Cafe—and if you’re interested in reading about my first visit, you can check out the post here:
https://ibarakieats.com/lovely-cafe-excellent-coffee

This cafe is excellent. In fact, it’s so good that it deserves to be written about again. Mrs. Ibaraki Eats is also a huge fan of this place. One Sunday morning, when we both had a day off from work, she suggested going to Hidamari Cafe to grab a sweet treat and enjoy our morning coffee. I wasn’t going to argue with that.

Hidamari Cafe is a bit of a drive for us, but that doesn’t bother me at all. If this place were in the middle of a forest on Mt. Tsukuba, I would probably still make the trip to visit it. I won’t go into the details of the cafe’s interior or the menu this time, since all of that information is in my first post about Hidamari Cafe. Instead, I’ll focus on our return visit and how the Ibaraki Eats duo found total bliss and relaxation during our time at this wonderful spot.

Cafe Mocha

Mrs. Ibaraki Eats loves cafe mochas, so this was the first thing she ordered at Hidamari Cafe. When her coffee was placed in front of her, it looked like an amazing piece of coffee art. The latte art was beautiful, the dark bubbly cream surrounding it looked incredible, and the coffee itself radiated a delicious atmosphere.
My wife took her first sip and had that cute, wide-eyed reaction she always has. She was very happy with her cafe mocha. She let me try it, and I immediately understood why she was so happy. This cafe mocha was magnificent.
It wasn’t overly sweet at all. It had a bold, chocolaty flavor that made it feel like you were drinking a strong coffee, but then the warm, smooth chocolate taste softened everything and eased you into a relaxed state. It was truly a delicious cup of cafe mocha.

Hidamari Espresso Set

This was my order: the Espresso Set. If you read the first post I wrote about Hidamari Cafe, you’ll know that I already tried the Macchiato Set. This time, I decided to go with the espresso, and I was not disappointed.
This set came with one espresso, another espresso served in a moka pot, and a macchiato.

The first cup of espresso was an eye-opener. It was strong and full of flavor. As soon as I took a sip, it hit me hard and fast and readied my taste buds for the espressos that were still to come. It was a great espresso to start the experience.
For the next espresso, I poured it into my cup from the moka pot and took a sip. I was honestly expecting it to taste almost the same as the first espresso, but I was completely wrong. I don’t know how or why, but this espresso tasted totally different. It was much more soothing than the first one. It had a lighter taste while still feeling like a strong coffee. It was smooth and easy to drink, and it helped me relax even more in the already calming atmosphere of the cafe.
The last drink in the set was a macchiato, and it brought everything together perfectly. After the first two surprises, this macchiato offered a wonderful balance of strong coffee and smooth flavor. It felt like the perfect way to end the experience—like the final note of a great performance.

Espresso Chocolate Terrine

I know I said the café mocha was chocolatey, and in my first post, I mentioned that the hot chocolate my wife ordered was also chocolatey, but this sweet was the embodiment of chocolate. The moment my fork sank into this chocolate terrine, it felt extremely satisfying. It was so thick and rich with chocolate that it felt like cutting into a softer, luxurious brownie. When I took my first bite of this incredible dessert, I was transported to a land filled with chocolate and cream. The texture was unbelievably smooth and creamy. It felt like my taste buds were getting a massage. Eating this dessert felt amazing. It looked like a work of art, and it tasted like a master chef made it. I would love to have this again, and my wife agrees. She loved this dessert, and when she had it with her café mocha, she said she was in chocolate-overload heaven. Mrs. Ibaraki Eats was very happy with her choice of dessert. Our sweets adventure wasn’t over, though.

Strawberry and Basil Parfait

This incredible-looking parfait is a limited-time, limited-quantity menu item. I believe Hidamari Cafe only makes about ten of them a day. I’m not sure if this parfait will still be on the menu by the time this post is published, but if it is, order it. This might be one of the best parfaits I’ve had in a long time.

When we ordered it, I watched as the owner made the parfait right in front of us. He was completely focused, making sure every layer, every strawberry slice, and every dash of cream was perfect. It took him quite a while to make it, but watching the master at work was a great experience. Once he finished, he placed this incredible piece of parfait art in front of us. My wife took several pictures and admired it for a while before we finally dug in.

First, the strawberries. The strawberries on top and the slices inside were extremely fresh and juicy. The chocolate cookie crumbs paired with the rare cheese cream were fantastic. The spiced strawberry jam with basil was incredible. This parfait threw so many flavors at you that it was hard to pick just one that stood out above the rest. All the flavors worked together to create a perfectly balanced and delicious dessert.
My wife loves parfaits—she definitely has a sweet tooth, as I’ve mentioned before. Honestly, if I weren’t around and the parfait were a person, she might have married it. She was in a complete state of dessert bliss the entire time we were enjoying it. Add the chocolate terrine that she ordered, and she was in full dessert overload. She could not eat another bite, but I think she would have found a way to have eight more parfaits.

After we finished our coffee and sweets, it was time to head out. We thanked the owner for the wonderful experience and told him we hoped we would be back sooner rather than later—especially if that parfait is still on the menu.

So if you are a coffee and sweets lover and are around Tsukuba on either a Sunday or Monday, why not give Hidamari Cafe a chance? Who knows? You might see us there. Enjoying some coffee and hopefully that strawberry basil parfait.
Enjoy!

For more information on Hidamari Cafe, check out their Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/hidamari.cafe_tsukuba/?hl=en