Japan loves Alice in Wonderland. So much so that there are a bunch of Alice in Wonderland-themed restaurants throughout the country. Six restaurants in particular are owned by Diamond Dining, a company that manages a slew of themed restaurants across Japan:
- Alice in a Labyrinth in Ginza
- Alice in a Picture Book in Shinjuku
- Alice in a Magical Land in Shinjuku
- Alice in an Ancient Castle in Ikebukuro
- Alice in a Fantasy Land in Osaka
- Alice in the Silver Screen in Nagoya
This post will focus on the Alice in a Labyrinth restaurant in Ginza, Tokyo. It was such a whimsical dining experience, and I’m excited to share it with you!
P.S. I’m sorry some of the photos are a bit blurry or low quality. It was quite dimly lit in the restaurant, and I struggled to find a good setting for my camera. Hopefully the photos still illustrate the fun experience!
Table of Contents
Entering Alice in a Labyrinth
Alice in a Labyrinth is located on the 5th floor of the Taiyō Building along Ginza’s main street, one of the most upscale shopping districts in Tokyo. One step off the elevator and we were already immersed in Alice’s world. Giant reproductions of pages from Lewis Carroll’s novel were set up all around the lobby. A host dressed like the Mad Hatter greeted us, checked off our reservations, and led us through a small labyrinth formed by all of those floor-to-ceiling book pages.
Dining Area
From there, we entered the dining area, which was completely mesmerizing – there were themed decorations covering every inch of space! The lighting was quite dim, which lent an air of mystery to go along with the labyrinth theme. Elegant Victorian-style chairs were set up at tables made to look like large playing cards. There were a bunch of curved playing cards adorning the ceiling. The floor looked like a chess board. Spikes topped with hearts, diamonds, spades, and clubs separated each booth.
The focal point, however, was a large blue and white teacup-shaped table in one corner.
Meeting Our Server, Alice
After we sat down, we were introduced to our server dressed up as Alice. Her outfit was amazing! She had on the iconic blue dress, white apron, and black hair bow with the addition of black and white striped stockings and chunky black shoes for a modern twist. I noticed all of the servers were wearing the same Alice getup.
Our server then brought over a box. Coolest thing ever: the box transformed into a diorama of an Alice-themed room that contained the menus! She explained the menu to us in Japanese, but if you’re not fluent (I’m still trying to get there!), fret not – the menu has lots of pictures. She gave us time to figure out what we wanted to order and told us if we had any questions to call out “Alice! Alice!”
Food & Drinks
We first ordered drinks. I had the Cheshire Cat Smile cocktail, which was topped with an orange slice that had a cutout like a smiling mouth and a round sweet in the middle with skewers sticking out of it to make a cat nose and whiskers. So creative! Alice came over to the table to finish it off with ingredients procured from a small vial just like the one in the book.
Next, our table got a serving tray of bread with sauce served in club- and diamond-shaped dishes. On the tray was a sign with an illustration of a key and the words “Eat Me” printed on it.
We also had an appetizer of crackers shaped like playing cards served with dip. These were really neat – each one had two heart-shaped cutouts.
For the main course, I had a Cheshire Cat tail shaped pizza with tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil. It was quite yummy! Notice the little footprints on the plate.
My friend had Cheshire Cat-shaped spaghetti that had two triangular pieces of bread for the ears, two zucchini slices topped with olives for the eyes, a cherry tomato for the nose, and a big zigzag spread of balsamic vinegar on the bottom of the plate to make the signature smile. We weren’t aware of it at the time, but we really did go all out with a Cheshire Cat-themed meal, didn’t we?
After that, we had some Mad Hatter profiteroles for dessert. Alice periodically checked in on us to make sure everything was good. At the end of the meal, she gave each person a packet of strawberry tea. She was also kind enough to let us take a photo with her on our way out.
We said our goodbyes and walked back through the labyrinth feeling full and happy. Back on Ginza’s main street, we walked around and admired the opulent architecture of the storefronts and buildings.
Final Thoughts
Overall, Alice in a Labyrinth was a really fun experience! I loved all of the themed touches in the decorations, the food, the drinks, and with the wait staff. It had a very cool ambiance. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a restaurant so dedicated to its theme before! Plus, finding vegetarian food in Japan isn’t always easy, but there were a good amount of vegetarian options on the menu. However, it was quite pricy; but if you are a fan of Alice in Wonderland, it is worth it as a one-time thing. I suggest making reservations in advance as these themed restaurants tend to get booked up quickly.
If you go on your next trip to Japan, I hope you have a fun and whimsical experience like I had!
(All photos taken by Clara Juliette)
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Clara hopes to share her love of exploring cultures and inspire others through the power of storytelling. In addition to writing and travel, she loves psychology, nature, green tea, and cats.