A Fat Purple Fig

When Sayo said she knew just the cafe to take us to, I was unable to form any opinion whatsoever about what it might look like, so was up for anything.

The first thing that struck me about XXX Cafe & Bar in Osaka was, for obvious reasons, the name. Do they not know what XXX means in just about every other country in the world? Or was that what they were going for?

I loved the way ‘XXX’ sat alongside ‘LUXURY’, ‘SENSES’ and ‘I ♡ PARFAIT’, in the same basic, printed typeface on pink paper, pretty much blu-tacked on the front wall.

It might be a bit too early to call, but they are so far VERY fond of plastic models of food and drink items in Japan. XXX had a pretty standard set on the front counter and, although they were a long way from making me want to eat a parfait, I have a new appreciation for their potential to assist point-and-shoot foreign diners.

Besides, Sayo took over the ordering at the last minute, and surprised us with this unexpected marvel. I’m not sure who woke up one day and thought, ‘I know…rainbow toast!’, but it certainly made for a very Sayo surprise. It was a cheese toastie, in case you can’t tell exactly what has been dyed…with some honey added for good measure.

Sayo was keen to take a picture of us here, setting the tone for the day…ie. a photo (or twenty) at every pitstop, AND in between. I’m feeling a sense of impending dread at the thought of being snapped all day in a jumper that I’ve worn every day since we arrived.

Look how photogenic we are.