August 31, 2022 was a sad day for sweets fans in Japan. It was on that day that Anna Miller’s, one of Japan’s first pie specialty restaurants, closed its Takanawa branch in Tokyo, which was its last location in Japan.
Anna Miller’s started out in Hawaii, but in 1973 Japanese confectionary company Imuraya struck a deal to bring the chain to Japan. At its peak, Anna Miller’s had 25 restaurants in the Tokyo area, with the Takanawa branch, located just outside of Tokyo’s Shinagawa Station, becoming a local landmark. Alas, a Takanawa redevelopment project forced Anna Miller’s and the other tenants out of the building.
▼ When news broke that the Takanawa Anna Miller’s was closing, huge lines of fans going back for one last slice of pie stated forming (this photo was taken roughly 10 weeks before the shutdown).
Image: SoraNews24
Since then, Anna Miller’s has existed only as an online-sales bakery that very occasionally has very brief pop-up shop events. So great rejoicing met Imuraya’s announcement that Tokyo will once again have a permanent Anna Miller’s restaurant, and it’ll be open before the year is over.
Image: PR Times
For its comeback, Anna Miller’s is returning to its Tokyo roots. The new branch will be located in Tokyo’s Minami Aoyama, the same section of the city where the first in-Japan Anna Miller’s opened in 1973.
▼ The original Minami Aoyama Anna Miller’s
Image: PR Times
▼ An Anna Miller’s pie
Image: SoraNews24
The new branch will occupy the first and second floors of the Seizan II building, a one-minute walk away from Gaienmae Station on the Tokyo Metro’s Ginza Line. In addition to a takeout counter for those ordering pie to-go, there will be approximately 30 seats for eat-in customers.
Its pies and American-style entrees aren’t the only things Anna Miller’s is famous for, however. The restaurant’s iconic jumper dress-esque uniforms hold an iconic status within Japanese pop culture, and it’s likely for that reason that Imuraya makes a special mention of them within the reopening announcement, saying that the distinctive outfits will be returning as well, and sure enough, they can be seen in the preview images.
Image: PR Times
The new Anna Miller’s is slated to open in early December.
Source: Imuraya via Sankei Shimbun
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