Even if you don’t know his name, you’d recognise Takashi Murakami’s colourful works and iconic smiling flowers. Grand Hyatt Tokyo, a renowned 5-star hotel located in the upscale neighbourhood of Roppongi Hills, is collaborating with the fabled Japanese artist to create a flower-themed afternoon tea menu.
Image credit: Grand Hyatt Tokyo
Takashi Murakami is a contemporary Japanese artist who is known for his visually stunning and vibrant motifs. One of his most well-known motifs is the rainbow-petaled flower with a huge smile plastered on its face.
Image credit: Grand Hyatt Tokyo
The French Kitchen, the restaurant located on the 2nd floor of Grand Hyatt Tokyo, will offer an afternoon tea menu that includes an array of colourful pastries inspired by the artist’s iconic flower.
Image credit: Amatou Style
Guests can enjoy a variety of dainty sweets – mousse, profiteroles, jelly served in glasses, and strawberry shortcakes – adorned with Murakami’s smiling floral motif. The set also comes with scones, the hallmark of an authentic high tea experience.
Image credit: Grand Hyatt Tokyo
Once you’ve satisfied your sweet tooth, you can move on to the canapés, which include savoury finger food such as tomato ciabattas and ham fritters. Every set comes with a choice of a premium organic tea, as well as unlimited servings of hot or iced coffee.
Image credit: Grand Hyatt Tokyo
If you’d like to bring home a piece of art to commemorate your experience, hop on over to Fiorentina Pastry Boutique, which is located on the 1st floor of the hotel. The award-winning pastry chefs at the hotel’s cake shop will be offering sugar cookies modelled after Murakami’s flower motif. Each piece of edible art retails at ¥1,500 (~USD14.15).
Image adapted from: Mori Art Museum
Recently, Takashi Murakami’s artworks have been featured in an exhibition held at Mori Art Museum, which is just a stone’s throw away from Grand Hyatt Tokyo.
Takashi Murakami’s art installations
Image credit: @moriartmuseum
Titled STARS: Six Contemporary Artists from Japan to the World, the exhibition gathers art pieces by 6 famous contemporary Japanese artists – Yayoi Kusama, Lee Ufan, Tatsuo Miyajima, Yoshitomo Nara, Hiroshi Sugimoto, and of course, Takashi Murakami. These renowned artists have all received domestic and global acclaim for their artworks.
The exhibition houses large-scale installations and artworks by these world-famous artists, which makes it a fantastic starting point for those who are interested in getting into contemporary art.
Art installations of one of the artists, Yayoi Kusama
Image credit: @moriartmuseum
STARS: Six Contemporary Artists from Japan to the World runs from 31st July 2020 to 3rd January 2021.
Grand Hyatt Tokyo has started taking reservations for the afternoon tea set. As it is only available from 1 November to 23 December 2020, do book a slot early if you are interested.
Be prepared to fork out at least ¥4,800 (~USD45.28) per head, excluding tax and service charge. It sounds pricey, but considering that some of Takashi Murakami’s artworks can fetch up to millions of dollars, it is a small price to pay.
The French Kitchen (2nd Floor)
Address: 6 Chome-10-3 Roppongi, Minato City, Tokyo 106-0032
Opening hours: 6.30AM – 9PM, Daily
Afternoon tea period: 3PM – 5PM, Daily (Last order at 4PM)
Telephone: 03-4333-8781
Website
Fiorentina Pastry Boutique (1st Floor)
Address: 6 Chome-10-3 Roppongi, Minato City, Tokyo 106-0032
Opening hours: 9AM – 9.30PM, Daily
Telephone: 03-4333-8781
Website
Mori Art Museum
Address: 52F/53F Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, 6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-6108
Opening hours: Wed – Mon 10AM – 10PM (Last entry at 9.30PM), Tue 10AM – 5PM (Last entry at 4.30PM)
Admission: ¥2,000 (~USD18.88) for adults, ¥1,700 (~USD16.05) for seniors aged 65 and over, ¥1,300 (~USD12.27) for students, ¥700 (~USD6.61) for children
Telephone: 03-5777-8600
Website
Check out these articles for more interesting openings in Japan:
Cover image adapted from: Grand Hyatt Tokyo
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