Massive portion the size of a fist — crafted from thick tamagoyaki, Kyoto’s legendary egg sandwich

Text & photos by /Kavanagh

Cafe Madrague is a recently popular café in Kyoto. Though it's newly opened, it carries a sense of long-standing history. Huh? Why would I say that? Well, let me explain in detail...

Located on Kamogawa-dori near Nijo Castle, Cafe Madrague features an old-fashioned, historic-looking blue signboard — the one originally used by the previous tenant, Cafe Seven. In other words, the current shop resides within the former premises of Cafe Seven.

Actually, after frequenting cafes and restaurants for a while, you start to develop a certain intuition (or perhaps a sixth sense). I’d passed by this place many times before, and every time I looked at this shop, I thought to myself, “Hmm—this place seems really special!” Later, it turned out I was right. But what makes this amazing café truly remarkable isn’t its appearance — it’s the legendary egg sandwich “Corona no Tamago Sand,” passed down from the renowned old coffee shop “Cafe Corona.”

Cafe Corona was an old Kyoto coffee shop established in 1945, famous for the “egg sandwich” made by its owner, Mr. Harasho Harajiro. Unfortunately, as Mr. Harajiro aged, he decided to close Cafe Corona in 2012, and it seemed the legendary egg sandwich would disappear forever, never to be tasted again. But a few months later, the iconic egg sandwich made a comeback — at another coffee shop, Cafe Madrague. It turned out that Mr. Harajiro had passed on the recipe to Mr. Yamamoto Shiro, the owner of Cafe Madrague, allowing this legendary taste to live on.

When Cafe Madrague first started selling “Corona no Tamago Sand,” things didn’t go smoothly. Regular customers who came out of curiosity often nitpicked, saying it didn’t taste the same as the original from Corona. Though frustrated, owner Mr. Yamamoto humbly took customer feedback to heart, continuously refining the flavor of the egg sandwich — which gradually won over more and more patrons.

On the day of my visit, even while I was still lingering outside, a staff member came out to greet me, informed me there was no seating available and that I’d need to wait. I left my name to reserve a spot...

After waiting about twenty minutes, a customer came out. Seeing me waiting outside, he greeted me and chatted briefly. He said when he arrived at noon, there was a long line, but now it was a better time to come with not many people waiting. I casually asked, “Was it good?” He replied, “Whether it’s good or not is one thing, but the portion is just too huge — I couldn’t finish it all...”

I would soon find out he was absolutely right.

The interior of Cafe Madrague is composed of wooden flooring, classic seating, and wooden furniture. The walls are adorned with many hipster-style posters (such as those from “In the Mood for Love”), creating a very atmospheric café.

I was seated at a single seat near the entrance.

I ordered the “Corona no Tamago Sand” (¥680) and also a cup of coffee (which felt relatively inexpensive, probably because the sandwich was so filling...)

The “can’t finish it” comment I heard earlier was absolutely true...

Because the “Corona no Tamago Sand” is unbelievably huge. The egg filling — thick tamagoyaki — is made with four eggs. Each of the four sandwich pieces is as big as my fist (and my fist is quite large)! Owner Mr. Yamamoto Shiro apparently also thinks the cholesterol content is a bit high, so he has reduced the amount of eggs used and substituted some with milk to make a lighter, less heavy sandwich.

The sandwich bread is very soft. The thick tamagoyaki filling is fragrant, tender, and delicious, with a faint sweetness — it tastes a bit like the thick tamagoyaki you get in sushi, but it’s lighter in flavor and much fluffier. Though delicious, after eating two, I was already full, and I practically had to force down the last two...

Final verdict: Delicious and affordable, but portions are enormous. Before coming here, please consider your appetite and your blood cholesterol levels...

Cafe Madrague
Business hours: 11:30–22:00; Lunch 11:30–18:00, Dinner 18:00–21:00 (last orders)
Closed on Sundays
Access: Take the Kyoto City Bus to “Nijojo-mae” stop, a 7-minute walk.

Kavanagh @ Kyoto, Free-Styling.

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