Tucked in a small street off the main thoroughfare and within a stone's throw from the local elementary school in Koma is a cozy little cafe called Cafe Hangout. When the shutters are down, it is easy to miss it as it looks like an ordinary clean, whitewashed house from the outside. But when the cafe is open during the weekends, the same nondescript house is transformed into an intimate space with its warm inviting lights radiating from big glass windows. Stepping inside, strains of ethnic music blend skillfully with sounds from nature and the generously big indoor plants transport guests into a place that is at once exotic and familiar. True to its name, Cafe Hangout is as casual as you can get. Guests can choose to keep their shoes on and relax in the dining area near the entrance or go further in, take off their shoes and sit right beside the open style kitchen.
The cafe opened last August 2015. Owner Miwa Shijo, who also prepares the meals behind the kitchen counter, says she is not at all a professional chef but she loves food and whips up some pretty good stuff. She visualizes Cafe Hangout to be a gathering spot for everyone: kids, adults, friends, families, and particularly the disabled. Miwa has worked with and continues to work with organizations that help the disabled. Someday, she hopes that Cafe Hangout can provide gainful employment for them.
Cafe Hangout's specialty is home cooked food with seasonal produce and as such, the set meals vary, but there is always a rice set, a noodle set, and a soup and bread set to choose from, all at affordable prices (ranging from ¥600 to ¥800 for a set). They also offer different chiffon cakes every weekend and the earl grey chiffon cake is worth sampling (at ¥250). Miwa is particularly proud of their ginger ale which they brew from fresh ginger, as well as their ume or plum juice which they blend themselves. Open only on the weekends from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., it is the perfect place for a leisurely lunch or an early dinner when you want a break from cooking but still want to feel at home.
