Japan’s Dreamy “Treehouse” Café: Thick Pancakes & Daily Limited Cakes

Text & Photos /Upper Right 45-Degree Angle Girl

Back in our wild-child days, having a treehouse was a “dream”—even if we could only stay for one night. As we grew up, those naive thoughts were buried deep in our hearts along with *The Adventures of Tom Sawyer*. So when I stumbled upon this treehouse online, I instantly committed it to memory.

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The café’s name is in English and rather long—I couldn’t remember it at all—but luckily, Taiwanese media workers and bloggers with strong SEO skills made it easy. Just search “Hiroo Treehouse,” and you’ll find tons of info. Take the Tokyo Metro to “Hiroo Station,” exit at Exit 3, and turn left immediately.

Walk straight and you’ll pass a FamilyMart. This one is pretty big, and from certain angles, it looks a bit like a bookstore.

Though I’ve visited Japan quite often, I’m really not familiar with Tokyo. So, I had no idea about the Hiroo area either. As I walked and strolled around, I realized this neighborhood is actually quite lively, with plenty of cafés and afternoon tea spots.

After walking for about 5–6 minutes, you’ll see Mishima Maru Sushi, then take a left into an alley.

You’ll be greeted by a small parking lot; right next to it is our target—the “treehouse.”

Calling it a treehouse is technically a bit off—it’s more accurately a house built around a large tree, which looks quite unique. At the very least, it’s hard not to stop and glance at it, maybe even snap a photo as you walk by.

Next to the tree is an extremely steep wooden staircase. A note is posted nearby, roughly saying, “For safety, please be careful when going up and down, and children must not climb.” To be honest, adults shouldn’t climb either—it’s really steep.

Fleur Universelle & Les Grands Arbres is on the third floor, while the first and second floors are a beautifully designed flower shop.

This is the view of the flower shop from the second floor looking down.

The balcony leading from the second floor to the third floor is where you access the treehouse.

The balcony opens right up to a small wooden house nestled in the tree—pretty charming.

Looking down, it’s really steep and narrow, so it’s safer not to climb.

From the ground, it looks like just a wooden house, but once you climb up, you realize it’s actually seating space—you can probably order coffee, tea, or even desserts here for a lovely afternoon.

Inside the treehouse, there’s a card detailing the story and background of the tree, which I really liked—it even moved me a little.

The third floor is a wooden restaurant, with a branch protruding through the table—an oddly adorable design touch.

At the other end of the restaurant, there’s a tiny enclosed space that feels like another private treehouse. If I could, I’d love to sit there with a coffee, reading a favorite book—instead of working on my laptop XXD.

The restaurant isn’t big, and there aren’t many staff, but the two ladies who work there are super friendly. Even though I arrived well past afternoon tea hours and dinner reservations were already in place, they still gave me an hour to dine.

Pricing is actually not much different from Taiwan—and even a little cheaper, which surprised me.

Aside from thick pancakes, there are also daily limited handmade cakes, but unfortunately, they were all sold out by the time I got there XXD.

Weakly and predictably, I ordered a latte—the milk foam was light and fine, the coffee was decently smooth, and the usual strong bitterness of Japanese coffee was much milder.

Hmm, I have to say I really liked the dining atmosphere here, but in terms of the quality of the thick pancakes—or perhaps just my personal taste—Taiwan has just as good, if not better. That said, one thing I did love about these pancakes was the strong egg flavor, and the caramel sauce drizzled on top was pretty tasty. As for the slightly dry texture, it was manageable when paired with whipped cream and ice cream. Oh, and the nuts on the side were delicious—even with my not-so-great teeth, I finished them all. It suddenly reminded me of the delicious nuts and caramel sauce at my friend Xiao V’s (MISS V) shop—these might even be better than hers.

Fleur Universelle Les Grands Arbres
Address: 3F, 5-15-11 Minamiazabu, Minato City, Tokyo
Phone: 81-3-5791-1212
Business Hours: Mon–Sat 11:00–22:00 / Sun 11:00–19:00

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