Very Berry Hawaiian retro cafe

Very Berry occupies a traditional machiya style house...

... and features a Hawaiian, retro, surfer style theme.

Very Berry has to be one of Kyoto’s most comfortable cafes – particularly if you grab one of the small sofas looking out over the garden. Part of the ambience comes from VB occupying a 100-plus year old machiya, so a lot of dark wood, including the furniture. The rest is supplied by the Hawaiian, retro and surfer-type knick-knacks decorating the interior and some very mellow lighting.

The music is likewise fairly unique with lots of old Hawaiian and blues tunes, and there is also a large screen projector that provides an interesting sideshow against the back wall of the garden. Last time around, it was the Family Guy take-off of Star Wars but you’ll often see surfer/skater footage. All in all, it is a very cozy space but watch your head on the doorways – they are authentically low.

Chips with avocado, cream cheese

Bacon and tomato salad

Remains of a chicken BBQ pizza

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On our last visit, we started with dip chips, which are large, warm wedges similar to pizza base (better than it sounds!) with avocado and cream cheese dips, and a bacon and tomato salad. Next up was a chicken BBQ pizza and hamburger loco moco. For drinks we had red wine and cider and a final organic sparkling pomegranate juice – oo-la-la!

The food was a nice balance of familiar flavors with some new ideas to keep things interesting, and in sizeable servings. There is also a wide range of sandwiches, pastas, gratins, etc., as well as stacks of mega-calorie desserts – over 200 dishes apparently – plus good Hawaiian coffee. Our order arrived promptly but being an old house, the layout is quite segmented, so it can be a challenge to flag the wait staff.

Details
Web: Main page and Nijo branch
Access: Very Berry is located near the center of Kyoto. From the corner of Oike and Kawaramachi, head north toward the mountains for five to 10 minutes. The cafe is on the west (sunset) side of the street just after Nijo. Look for the illuminated sign outside. There are also branches on Gokomachi and Kitashirakawa.
Special needs: The menu has most items in English, though some of the drinks and desserts are not listed. There are a variety of options for vegetarians.
Other images and info: Kyoto after dark on Facebook (link only but must be logged into Fb)