Taiyaki meets Matcha at Gin no An

Japan has many sweet dishes which I really like to eat, such as mochi, daifuku, melonpan, manju and more. However, one of my favorites will always be Taiyaki (たい焼き) - the fish-shaped cake you often can find as a snack at some small shops at the street. I have one of these on my way to work at Nagatsuta station, where I have to change between JR Yokohama line and Denentoshi line, and trust me, for me it is always an inner fight not to buy something there all the time. The shop is called Gin no An (銀のあん) and there are several shops of this brand all over Japan. I even have one more at Tamaplaza station where I work.

At my Gin no An shop in Nagatsuta they have a standard menu of Taiyaki with azuki (red bean) filling or custard creme filling, which I really like, for 150 yen each. Next to this they also have Crossaint Taiyaki (ムクロワッサンたい焼き) that is super crunchy and sweet outside. This they offer with the same fillings, too, for 210 yen each. Furthermore, they always have some seasonal specials, which is the main topic of my short article.

This month they are selling a Hinyari Maccha Cream Crossaint Taiyaki (ひんやり抹茶クリームクロワッサンたい焼き). I tried it out this week and it was really nice. The outside is very crunchy and sweet with the sugar pieces inside. Also some red beans are inside the dough which give a great combination to the matcha green. As I expected, the matcha cream inside was not so sweet and even had a slight bitter taste. That was really nice and yummy, especially as a great contrast to the sweet outside.

We ate our Taiyaki after dinner, my husband decided for a normal one with azuki inside. As a dessert it was a lot and I was super full after eating everything. But for a snack in the afternoon when you are out for something it is nice, I think.

The Hinyari Matcha Cream Crossaint Taiyaki costs 250 yen and should be eaten cooled. If you take more time to carry it home, a cooling pack will be put to your paper bag, however, you should put it in the fridge for a while before eating, because it is most yummy when the matcha cream is cool.

To end up, some more information about the Gin no An at Nagatsuta station:

• Address: Kanagawa-ken, Yokohama-shi, Midori-ku, Nagatsuta 4-1-1 Nagatsuta Station, 2nd floor (神奈川県横浜市緑区長津田4-1-1 長津田駅 2F )
• Opening times: 9:00 ~ 21:00 from Monday to Saturday, 9:00~20:00 on Sunday and public holidays
• Closing days: no holidays, open all over the year
• Websites: Gin no An | Tabelog

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This post is a special tea blog report, part of our Shizuoka Green Tea Guide, and a chance through City-Cost for bloggers in Japan to engage in new “Japan” experiences about which to create posts.