A sacred place for shogun...
and lovers of lactic acid bacteria ice cream. Ever since it was first introduced to the market in 1935, Yakult has been taming the intestinal tracts of the nation and the wider world with its Shirota strain of lactic acid bacteria, named after its founder, Dr Minoru Shirota (1899-1982). In recent years, the company has grown even further, with the September 2023 opening of its first-ever cafe in Utsunomiya City, Tochigi Prefecture.
Called the Yakult Gohonmaru Cafe & Gallery , the new establishment is located about a 25-minute walk from JR Utsunomiya Station, right next to Utsunomiya Castle Ruins Park. ▼ Utsunomiya Castle was famous for accommodating successive Tokugawa shoguns during their visits to Nikko. The cafe immediately attracts attention with a giant bottle of Yakult 1000 — a probiotic lactic acid bacteria drink containing 100 billion Shirota-strain lactic acid bacteria — out front.
This bottle works to immediately catch the eye of drivers, who can easily stop by, thanks to the cafe’s convenient parking lot. It’s not just drivers who stop by here, though, as the cafe has become a destination for Yakult lovers, many of whom travel from overseas to visit. It’s been incredibly popular since it opened, with lines out the door every day, and even now, half a year after opening, its popularity still hasn’t waned, due in part to the fact that it’s not only a cafe but a gallery and beauty salon as well.
Beauty starts from the inside.