Harajuku Tokyo Café has carved a niche as a premier Japanese casual dining brand in India, bringing the vibrant essence of Tokyo’s iconic Harajuku district to life. Building on its success, the brand recently launched Harajuku Bakehouse, a specialized bakery and dessert-focused vertical. Together, they aim to scale to 90 outlets across 20+ cities within the next three years, blending immersive dining with convenience. Powered by a centralized 12,000 sq. ft. kitchen and a strategic dual-format model, the Café offers a premium, dine-in experience, while the Bakehouse caters to quick-service demands. With a menu spanning over 300 SKUs, including Jiggly Pancakes, Japanese Cotton Cheesecake, and Instagrammable bubble teas, the brand is on track to achieve 85% YoY revenue growth as it continues to introduce Indian consumers to the vibrant flavors and culture of Japan.

In an exclusive conversation, Mr. Gaurav Kanwar shares his journey and provides detailed insights into the brand’s expansion strategy.

1. With the introduction of Harajuku Bake House, how does it enhance and complement the core identity of Harajuku Tokyo Café? What unique value does it bring to your overall brand portfolio?

Harajuku Bakehouse is the newly launched QSR vertical of Harajuku Tokyo Cafe. Specializing in bakery and desserts, this concept builds on the success of Harajuku Tokyo Cafe’s popular bakery offerings, creating two distinct formats for customers to enjoy. While Harajuku Tokyo Cafe provides an elevated dining experience, Harajuku Bakehouse offers a curated spread of beloved Japanese sweet and savory delights.

The first Harajuku Bakehouse, located in Vasant Vihar, South Delhi, marks a natural evolution for the brand, as its bakery items have consistently been bestsellers. From Mochi, their famous “Jiggly Pancakes” and Japanese Cotton Cheesecake to Korean Pizza and light as air Japanese breads, the Bakehouse offers a menu brimming with flavor.

In addition to dine-in, Harajuku Bakehouse caters to pickup, takeaway, and delivery orders, with products available on Swiggy and Zomato. Plans are underway to extend availability through quick commerce platforms, ensuring customers can easily enjoy their favorite treats anytime.

With a seating capacity of 10 to 24, Harajuku Bakehouse introduces a more agile and scalable QSR model designed to complement every Harajuku Tokyo Cafe location. While the Cafe delivers an elevated dining experience, the Bakehouse focuses on quick service, catering to dine-in, takeaway, and delivery orders with equal ease. This strategic dual-format approach allows the brand to expand more efficiently across locations, offering customers the best of both worlds: a refined meal at the Cafe and high-quality bakes and beverages through the Bakehouse. Together, they reflect the essence of Japanese food culture, blending rich flavors with convenience, accessibility, and community connection.

With growing demand for Japanese-inspired bakes, Harajuku Bakehouse arrives at the perfect time, offering an ideal destination for mid-week coffee catch-ups or weekend date nights. After the Vasant Vihar launch, the next Bakehouse is scheduled to open in Gurgaon, followed by Mumbai and other cities across India.

Together, Harajuku Tokyo Cafe and Harajuku Bakehouse are poised to become a one-stop destination, providing customers with a complete and memorable dining experience.

2. Can you shed light on your expansion plan? What new markets or cities are you targeting, and what strategies are in place to ensure a successful rollout?

Harajuku Tokyo Café plans to scale across 20+ cities in India, focusing on major metros like Mumbai, Pune, and Bangalore alongside high-potential Tier-2 cities. The strategy includes opening 90 outlets across both formats in the next 3 years.

The anchor outlets will support smaller, more scalable Bakehouse units (400-800 sq. ft.), placed strategically near the main outlets for operational efficiency. This ensures consistency in quality and branding while driving rapid expansion.

3. How do you plan to manage vast geographical presence while maintaining Harajuku’s signature quality and authenticity?

Key strategies include centralized sourcing, staff training, to maintain Harajuku’s signature experience.

Quality Control through Standardization: We utilize centralized kitchen operations to standardize recipes across all outlets, ensuring consistent product quality. Our central kitchen in Noida, spread over 12,000 sq ft., ensures consistent quality and operational efficiency. More than 85% of the preparation is now done in the central kitchen with products and recipes  that are fully standardized,Our menu dishes can be created at the outlets using our precooked and packaged portions from the central kitchen and we plan to replicate this model across cities.

4. Harajuku Tokyo Café operates in a highly competitive QSR space. What do you believe sets it apart and makes it resonate so strongly with customers?

Harajuku Tokyo Café’s ability to stand out and resonate with customers comes from its immersive brand experience and diverse offerings:

• Immersive, High-Impact Branding:
  The café transports guests to Tokyo’s Harajuku district with vibrant, pop-culture-inspired decor, manga comics, and visual storytelling through its interiors. Instagrammable elements like bubble teas, jiggly pancakes, and conveyor belt sushi create a visually engaging experience, appealing to younger, trend-conscious audiences.

• Unique Product Mix:
  Harajuku offers a broad range of Japanese street food, premium desserts, and specialty beverages. The inclusion of a live bakery and unique features like conveyor belt sushi ensures guests enjoy a dynamic and memorable visit, differentiating it from traditional QSRs.

• Cultural Connection:
  The brand authentically integrates Japanese elements, offering an experience beyond just food. This cultural immersion resonates with customers seeking something innovative and authentic.

5. Japanese cuisine is still a relatively niche segment in India. How have Indian consumers responded to your offerings, and what steps have you taken to blend authenticity with local preferences?

Indian consumers have embraced Harajuku Tokyo Café’s offerings enthusiastically, drawn to the unique experience of Japanese street food and desserts. Our signature items like bubble teas, Japanese pancakes, and savory items like ramen, sushi and bao have become popular, especially among younger, urban audiences seeking new culinary experiences.

While maintaining the essence of Japanese cuisine, some offerings have been adjusted to include more familiar flavor profiles. For instance, spicier sauces and vegetarian options cater to local tastes without compromising authenticity.

6. With Harajuku Bake House now in the spotlight, how do you plan to redefine how Indian consumers view Japanese bakery products? What role does this sub-brand play in furthering your mission?

Harajuku Bake House builds on the success of the bakery offerings already introduced at flagship outlets but with a focus on Japanese baked goods. It showcases signature items like Japanese cheesecakes, Jiggly Pancakes, authentic Japanese breads, and our signature “Kawaii” desserts, elevating customer expectations around bakery products.

This sub-brand helps scale rapidly across locations, enhancing accessibility while reinforcing Harajuku’s mission to introduce more Indians to authentic Japanese cuisine, creating a dedicated space for bakery innovations and deeper customer engagement.

7. As the brand scales, balancing premium quality with affordability is crucial. How are you strategizing to ensure that your offerings remain accessible without compromising on excellence?

To balance premium quality with accessibility as we scale, we are implementing several key strategies:

• Efficient Sourcing & Centralized Kitchen: By centralizing food preparation in our central kitchen, we maintain consistency and quality while optimizing operational costs. This approach allows us to standardize dishes across outlets, improving efficiency and reducing waste.

By streamlining operations, using centralized kitchens, and focusing on scalable formats, we are able to maintain a premium experience while offering greater accessibility.

8. Harajuku Tokyo Café has built a loyal customer base and a strong brand presence. What strategies have you implemented to foster this loyalty, and how do you plan to sustain it in the future?

As Harajuku Tokyo Café scales, we remain committed to maintaining the premium quality that has defined our brand. To achieve this, we focus on:

• Efficient Sourcing: By collaborating closely with certified suppliers and managing our supply chain, we ensure a consistent supply of top-tier ingredients for our diverse menu offerings.

• Consistency in Service: Training teams across all outlets ensures a uniform experience that aligns with our brand's standards, preserving both the quality of food and the authentic customer experience.

• Consistent Branding Across Locations: Every Harajuku Tokyo Café and Bakehouse, regardless of location, stays true to the unique, immersive Tokyo-inspired experience. This consistency helps strengthen brand recognition and ensures that customers can expect the same high-quality experience wherever they visit.

9. How your entrepreneurial journey has been instrumental in shaping Harajuku Tokyo Café’s success.

My entrepreneurial journey has played a key role in shaping the success of Harajuku Tokyo Café. Driven by a passion for authentic Japanese cuisine, I took a hands-on approach to create a unique offering that blends traditional Japanese cooking techniques with local preferences in India. The vision behind Harajuku Tokyo Café was to bring an immersive, Harajuku-inspired café experience to India, connecting with younger, trend-conscious consumers who were looking for something fresh and exciting in the F&B space.

In less than four years, we’ve expanded from a single outlet to five locations across Delhi/NCR and are now targeting pan-India expansion. This growth is reflected in our 85% YoY revenue growth, a clear indication of how the brand has resonated with customers. I’ve also led the development of over 300 SKUs in collaboration with chefs from Tokyo and Osaka, ensuring our menu stays authentic while catering to local tastes.

10. Can you share insights about your vision for the brand and how you have grown personally and professionally through this journey?

My vision for Harajuku Tokyo Café has always been clear: to bring an authentic, immersive Japanese café experience to India while introducing the vibrant culture of Japan’s Harajuku district to a new, young audience. I’ve always been passionate about Japanese cuisine, and when I started this venture, my goal was to create a space that was more than just a restaurant—it was meant to be an experience where food, ambience, and culture came together in a unique way.

Through this journey, I’ve grown both personally and professionally. Professionally, I’ve had to wear many hats—first as a self-taught chef, then as an entrepreneur, and now as a brand leader. Scaling the business and dealing with the challenges of quality control, supply chain management, and maintaining authenticity while appealing to Indian tastes has taught me invaluable lessons about resilience, adaptation, and leadership. The rapid growth of the brand, from one outlet to five across Delhi/NCR, and our impressive 85% YoY revenue growth, shows the success of this approach.

On a personal level, this journey has transformed my understanding of what it takes to build a brand, from the ground up. The dedication to providing an immersive experience to our customers has taught me the importance of staying true to your vision while also being open to innovation. As the brand continues to grow, I’m excited to see how we evolve, stay connected to our roots, and expand into new markets, all while continuing to focus on quality, customer experience, and authenticity.

This journey has also reinforced my belief in the power of passion and persistence. Every milestone we’ve achieved at Harajuku Tokyo Café has been a testament to the incredible team and community that supports us. The key to our success has always been staying aligned with our values while adapting to the changing needs of the market.