Today I would like to introduce my favorite cafe in Uji! As you may already know, Uji is famous for its matcha, but Uji’s hojicha is also very delicious! Matcha and hojicha are very similar, with hojicha being roasted grean tea. I may be biased because I love hojicha, but the iced latte I had here was probably the best I had in all of Japan.
この投稿の日本語版はこちらです。
If you are interested in learning more about Japanese tea, this blog is very knowledgable in all things tea.
Where is it?
HoHo Hojicha is located very close to the Byodo-in Temple. Once you cross the famous Uji Bridge, you will be there within 30 seconds! If you take the Keihan Line or Nara Line, it will take about 7 minutes to walk over from the station.
I recommend visiting this cafe after the temple, as it offers a very relaxed atmosphere to leasurly enjoy a cold drink or snack.
Kyoto souvenirs
I went to Uji to buy matcha souvenirs, but ended up only buying hojicha! (not that I’m complaining). I went to HoHo Hojicha with the intention of buying a cold drink for the walk home, but there were a lot of delicious-looking products lined up, and I couldn’t just ignore them… I ended up buying three products, as you can see below!
I bought hojicha late powder, plain hojicha tea bags, and yuzu-flavored hojicha tea bags!
The one I’ve used most so far is the hojicha latte powder, and I love it! It’s a little sweet, so if you just add milk it’s quite delicious. Because it’s already sweet, I wouldn’t add any extra sweetner to it – just milk is enough. You can drink it hot or cold, but I always drink it hot.
If you are interested in delicious souvenirs, you might like this cafe that sells honey infused with fruit juice! You can read more about it here.
Hojicha Latte Powder
Using this powder is very easy! It’s a little different from the instructions written on the bag, but I like to add the powder first, and then hot water and milk. This bag contains 100g and can make about 20 cups.
Tea Bags
There are a lot of hojicha leaves packed into the tea bag, so I do feel like I got a good amount for my monday. To use, I like to soak it in hot water for 2 or 3 minutes and drink. When making tea, if you want a strong taste, don’t steep for longer. Instead, add an extra tea bag.
The tea bags are placed in plastic inside the box, as you can see on the left, so they can stay fresh for a long time.
Something you can only buy at the counter
If you go to the store, I recommend trying the iced hojicha latte! I bought the “best tencha roasted tea latte” and it was delicious! At 630 yen, I think the price is rather average for the area.
This is completely different from the hojicha lattes you can buy at convenience stores! This was by far the most delicious latte I’ve had in Japan. . .
The menu changes depending on the season, so it’s best to check before you go! Currently, the winter menu has many limited edition sweets!
While the stores interior was very nice, I was a bit embarrassed to take photos in front of the employees, so sadly I have none to post :(.
If you want to read more about what cafe’s Kyoto has to offer, why not check out this review of four of Kyoto’s most photogenic cafes?
Have you ever tried roasted green tea?
Maddies Manga 
Leave a comment