Mipig Cafe in Tokyo is becoming a popular tourist destination thanks to its unique business model: allowing customers to enjoy coffee while playing with adorable pigs.
Unlike traditional animal cafes, Mipig Cafe offers a completely new experience to customers. Pigs are considered gentle, approachable animals that bring a sense of relaxation to humans. This cafe believes that playing with pigs helps reduce stress, anxiety and brings a feeling of joy and comfort.
Pigs are considered gentle, approachable animals that bring a sense of relaxation to humans.
Mipig Café in the trendy Harajuku area is one of 10 pig cafes that have opened across Japan, including one on the northernmost main island of Hokkaido and another in Fukuoka on the southern island of Kyushu.
Mipig Cafe was founded in 2019 by Shiho Kitagawa, who previously ran a cat cafe.
This cafe claims that playing with pigs helps relieve stress.
The animals in this cafe are called “micro pigs”. Even when they are grown, they are no bigger than a corgi. In particular, the cafe also has adorable piglets that are the size of toy poodles. These micro pigs attract many customers to come to the cafe to enjoy fun and unique moments when interacting with them.
The restaurant uses pigs that are properly trained and have regular health checks to ensure the safety of customers. In addition, Mipig Cafe also provides pig rental services for events or parties.
Mipig Café in trendy Harajuku
A beverage dispenser was placed in the corner of the cafe, but hardly anyone paid attention to it because everyone was too busy playing and taking pictures with the tiny pigs. The charm of the adorable piglets took all the attention of the customers, making them forget to enjoy their drinks.
Customers must pay 2,200 yen for the first 30 minutes to have an unforgettable experience next to the super small pigs. Before coming to the shop, visitors also need to make a reservation to ensure they can enter the shop.
Foreign tourists who visited the cafe said they learned about it through social media, although the cafe did not advertise. The popularity of the tiny pig cafe on social media platforms has attracted many curious and animal-loving tourists, making it a must-visit destination.
The restaurant uses well-trained pigs and has regular health checks to ensure customer safety.
However, the "pig cafe" model has also received mixed opinions. Some people are concerned about hygiene issues when coming into direct contact with pigs, questioning the level of cleanliness and safety in the cafe environment. In addition, there are opinions that raising pigs in the cafe space can affect their health and spirit, because this environment is not completely natural and can cause stress for pigs.
Despite the controversy, “pig cafes” are still a trend attracting young Japanese people. The combination of pet ownership and unique cafe experience is creating a new wave, promising to continue to develop in the future.
