Tokyo Pop

It just so happened that L.A. is now officially Japan-infused. With Japanophiles popping up across the city's landscape, and since L.A. is a bonified hub of the cutting-edge, welcome Royal/T cafe; a capitalization on the maid cafe trend of Tokyo's Akihabara district. Although the little cafe off of Washington Boulevard is a bit more art gallery oriented, its novelty is enough to bring an influx of curious patrons and manga maniacs alike. However, nothing can replace the original design. See Here...STOP THE MAIDS!!



Modeled after cafes in Tokyo's Akihabara district, Royal/T garnered a lot of attention, as it is the first of it's kind in this big city.



Travel + Leisure reports, "One of the quirkiest phenomena in Japan has come to L.A. with the opening of Royal/T in Culver City (8910 Washington Blvd., Culver City; 310/599-6300; royal-t.org). The 10,000-square-foot, Japanese-themed space houses a contemporary art gallery, a shop with artist-designed toys and clothing—and a café where the waitresses are dressed up as French maids. ROYAL/T, owned by Whitney Museum Council member Susan Hancock, was conceived as a 21st-century "guerrilla" version of a traditional museum. None of the art in the gallery is for sale, and the café features Japanese comfort-food dishes such as tomato-rice omelets and macha milk. The debut installation, "Just Love Me," includes works by Yoshitomo Nara and Takashi Murakami, from Hancock’s private collection."