Heigoro Nagano
Posted By Jennifer Ho Dec 25 2012 · 0 comments · Snacks & Street Food
Now, for a change of scenery. We’ve left the hustle and bustle of Tokyo behind for the more quiet, rural city of Nagano. We’re here for one night, two days. Walking up the main street in Nagano, you’ll find shops that sell curio items, cute little souvenirs and dried goods en route to the Zenkoji temple at the top of the hill. There are stands that sell fried snacks, cozy coffee shops and ice cream kiosks – one of the shops that stood out to us was Heigoro for its beautiful window display and classy gold lettering. In an attempt to evoke a classic French aesthetic, Heigoro has a mini Eiffel tower set up in the salon. They serve tea, coffee and a small variety of cakes.
Cappucino
Chai Tea
We sat down and ordered a couple of cappucinos and a chai tea to warm up from the cold outside. It’s way colder here than in Tokyo – there’s actual snow on the ground and the temperature fluctuates from around zero to slightly below it. Plus it was windy today, brr! As we waited for our orders to arrive, we watched the constant stream of people come in and out of the store to pick up and pay for these mysterious boxes. Obviously they were cakes but our interest was piqued – not much was on display except for five different small pastries. We wondered what the cakes looked like and peeped a box as it was opened for a customer’s inspection. We only found out that they were specially ordered Christmas cakes towards the end of our meal. Oooh.
Yuzu Mousse
Cubed Apple Cake
Jasmine Red Bean Cake
The cakes we got were the jasmine red bean cake, the yuzu mousse and a cubed apple cake. The jasmine red bean cake was silky, smooth and light and had this subtle but very distinct flavour. It had this gorgeous yellow colour too. Yuzu mousse was citrusy and delicate, almost air-like with a great thick crust at the bottom. The cubed apple cake was thicker and stiffer, harder to cut into but equally delicious.
Heigoro is a nice rest stop if you’re in town. Beware of the prices though, it adds up!
