The first place we’re going to tell you about is Parfait, Coffee, Sake, Sato. It’s three minutes’ walk from Hosui Susukino Subway Station on the Toho line or 5 minutes from Odori Station on the same line.

The bar is located in a little L-shaped alley in Tanukikoji 1-chome. It opened in 2016 and it’s so popular you’ll usually have to wait in line for a table (324 yen cover charge payable from 6PM).

The interior décor is Japanese-style plain wood, with a counter and raised seating area. The trendy black tables are custom made to show off the stunning-looking shime parfaits!

The ball-shaped parfaits they serve here are deceptive – you can’t really tell what they’re going to taste like just from their names or how they look.

Take Mame to Ume, Hojicha (Beans, plums, and roasted green tea), for example. This dish contains an amazing variety of ingredients, such as shiratama (rice flour dumplings), anko (bean paste), soft scoop ice cream, arare (little rice crackers), hojicha mousse, wasanbon ice cream (Japanese refined sugar), edamame cream, boiled beans and Japanese plum sorbet.

The texture and sweetness of the boiled beans combine with the acidity of the plum sorbet to create a taste sensation that regular customers just can’t get enough of!

Another example is Salted Caramel and Pistachio. This dish is notable for its sharp-tasting red blackcurrant mousse, with sumptuous salt caramel and pistachio giving the ice cream on top a truly distinctive flavor.

Chocolate and Mango is another novel combination. This parfait works so well because of the mild and mellow flavors created by the combination of chocolate and mango.

If you need a recommendation for a drink to go with these unique parfaits, we’d suggest coffee for Mame to Ume, Hojicha, sparkling wine for Salted Caramel and Pistachio, and perhaps a cognac with Chocolate and Mango. You can have whatever you like, these are just suggestions! And naturally, there are plenty of other things to order besides parfaits.

All the ice cream, soft scoop ice cream, and candy used in the parfaits are handmade in the bar. "The idea here is to create a perfect balance of sweet and sour, with a combination of contrasting textures in a single parfait dish,” says Satoshi Tomofumi, the owner.

By all means, be sure to try the delectable shime parfait flavors! You’ll be so happy you indulged.

Shime parfait or “night parfaits”, the name given to a parfait that you eat at the end of a night out, first became popular in Sapporo in 2015.

Even before that, there were places that served parfaits and cakes in the evening. In Susukino there’ve been shops serving ice cream until midnight for a long time now. In other words, the habit of eating a dessert at the end of the evening isn’t new in Sapporo.

Sapporo residents have taken to this new trend quite happily. It’s a novel way of rounding off a night out instead of going for a bowl of ramen, for example. And a great way to enjoy Hokkaido dessert!

The bars mentioned above are all part of this new trend but there are plenty of other places to go to for their unique handcrafted candies and parfaits.

Last of all, we’re going to tell you about a specialty parfait bar called Parfaiteria Pal.

It’s about three minutes’ walk from Hosui-Susukino Station. Located on the 6th floor of a south-facing building opposite National Route 36, this place has a natural wood themed decor. It’s a perfect place for a parfait.

The recommended parfait here, Pistachio and Chocolate, is made with bonet (an Italian chocolate pudding), pistachio panna cotta (sweet cream with gelatine) and gelato (soft Italian ice cream). Pistachios and chocolate make for an irresistible combination.

This parfait features a variety of taste and texture. It’s been created to bring you a carefully structured taste experience, from start to finish.

There’s a whole range of other parfaits to try, packed with seasonal fruits. They’re not overly sweet so they go perfectly with alcoholic drinks. Of course it’s fine to order a shine parfait even if you’re not drinking!

We all have a sweet tooth here at Live Japan, so we’re always up for a dessert at the end of a night out. We’re thrilled to see these night-time Sapporo parfait bars opening up: and we love it that they also serve alcohol if you want a drink.

If you’re planning on visiting Sapporo, make sure you try out this new trend in the city’s night-life!

* All prices in this article include tax.

Written by:Fumi