Summer-mode sandwiches

Summer is the season when fruit is at its sweetest and most delicious. Shops start filling up with glossy cherries, fragrant melons and juicy watermelons. Of course, you can eat the season’s fruit just as it is, but we propose something a little different: the Japanese fruit sandwich. Their light flavour makes them perfect for hot summer days when you’ve lost your appetite, and not only are they satisfyingly filling, but they also are packed full of nutrition. Time Out Tokyo has found the best five Tokyo fruit parlours where you can enjoy this delicious treat.

Kyobashi Sembikiya (Harajuku)

Sembikiya uses fruits like bananas, strawberries, kiwifruit, pineapples, papayas and raspberries. Sandwiched between brown or white bread is fruit cut into fine two millimetre-thick slices, and cream which uses yoghurt to give it a light, fresh taste. The store is currently running its ‘mango fair’, so not only fruit sandwiches (¥945), but also mango sandwiches (¥1575) are on offer. Filled with sour cream, smooth, sweet mango and touch of rocket, they are a refreshing dish, perfect for summer.
(Full details & map)

Nishimura Fruit Parlour (Shibuya)

Photo by Kaoru Aoki

Nishimura’s sandwiches are filled with fruits like bananas, apples, kiwifruit, strawberries and oranges. The bananas and apples are sliced thickly, so you can enjoy not only the variety of flavours, but also of textures. The cream is quite sweet, but it is balanced perfectly by the acidity of the kiwifruit and oranges. The sandwiches (¥1,260 incl drink) are served with a selection of fresh fruit, so the dish has a light, simple look. For those of you who are looking for a little more than just sweet food, we’d recommend the ‘Fruit Croissant and Egg Sandwich’ meal.
(Full details & map)

Petit Monde (Akabane)

Photo by Kaoru Aoki

The sandwiches (¥1,050 incl drink) here are usually filled with six or seven varieties of fruit, including bananas, strawberries, kiwifruit, pineapples, apples and melons. The fruit is finely diced and in such lavish proportions that the centre of the sandwiches seems to swell out. The cream that fills the soft bread is not too sweet, so the crisp acidity of the fruit can be truly enjoyed. To compliment the sandwich we’d recommend a cup of their coffee, carefully brewed with a siphon coffee maker.
(Full details & map)

Manso Fruit Parlour (Kanda)

Photo by Kaoru Aoki

Manso uses fruit like bananas, strawberries, kiwifruit, pineapples and peaches. Their satisfyingly filling sandwich (¥1,260) is cut into small portions, making it easier to eat while showing off the vivid colours of the generously sized pieces of delicious fruit. Manso’s fresh cream retains the clear flavour of milk, and gives the sandwich a wonderfully creamy texture.
(Full details & map)

Fruit Café Frutas (Monzen-nakacho)

Photo by Kaoru Aoki

Frutas’s sandwiches are filled with fruits such as bananas, strawberries, kiwifruit, pineapples and papayas. They use rich, heavy, homemade fresh cream, fruits with a strongly sweet, tropical flavour and strawberries that have a strong sweetness, rather than acidity. The sandwiches come in a medium and large size. We’d definitely recommend you accompany your sandwich with a fruit juice, made with fresh fruit as each order is taken. The medium sandwich is ¥840, and the large ¥1,260.
(Full details & map)