A new hands-on dessert is arriving at Yanaka Ginza. Hachi San Roku, a renovated old-house cafe in Tokyo's historic Yanaka Ginza, is introducing "Dango Asobi," a build-your-own dango treat where guests grill their own rice dumplings at the table. The new menu item launches Tuesday, September 15, 2026.
With Dango Asobi, guests grill plain dango to their own liking on a tabletop grill, then top them freely with six Japanese ingredients arranged in a wooden box. The idea is simple: enjoy the grilling, choose your favorite toppings, and discover how each combination changes the flavor. Grill it, top it, taste it — a playful, Hachi San Roku take on a classic dango experience.
Product Details
- Name: Dango Asobi
- Launch: Tuesday, September 15, 2026 (planned)
- Price: ¥2,300 (tax included)
- Available at: Hachi San Roku
The launch date and price are subject to change.
Grill It, Top It, Taste It: Build Your Own Dango
Dango Asobi uses plain dango from Kitaya, a long-established wagashi shop, grilled slowly over a tabletop grill.
Watching the dango slowly take on color on the grill, along with the toasty aroma of fresh grilling, is part of the fun. The result is a dango with a lightly toasted surface and a soft, chewy center.
Once grilled, top the dango with your choice of ingredients — smooth koshian (strained red bean paste), mitarashi sauce, Hokkaido cream, or black sugar syrup, among others.
Beyond the classic anko dango or mitarashi dango, the combinations are wide open: pair Hokkaido cream with koshian for something rich and mellow, or use raw soy sauce and Ariake shredded nori for a savory, not-too-sweet finish.
Guests can change their toppings with every bite, discovering a favorite combination along the way.
Six Japanese Ingredients From Across the Country
The wooden box holds six ingredients chosen to bring out the flavor of the dango.
Koshian
Made with 100% Hokkaido-grown azuki beans by a bean-paste maker with 102 years of history, this smooth, strained red bean paste has a silky texture and rounded flavor.
Mitarashi
A mitarashi sauce from Kinoshita Seian, carefully simmered in a direct-fire copper cauldron. It combines select whole soybean soy sauce with black sugar syrup for a lightly sweet, clean finish.
Hokkaido Cream
A rich, full-bodied Hokkaido cream with a smooth texture that brings out the dango's sweetness and toasty flavor.
Black Sugar Syrup
Made from black sugar produced from sugarcane grown on Tarama Island, Okinawa, offering deep, rich sweetness and fragrance.
Raw Soy Sauce "Hishiho"
A raw soy sauce from Yamato Soy Sauce Miso, founded in Ono, Kanazawa, in 1911. Made with domestic soybeans and wheat and finished without pasteurizing, it has a rich aroma.
Ariake Shredded Nori
Fragrant shredded nori from Ariake. Paired with the raw soy sauce, it brings out a new side of the dango's flavor.
Neko Monaka
A cute cat-shaped monaka wafer inspired by Yanaka, known as a "cat town." Enjoy it with koshian or Hokkaido cream, or combine it freely with the other toppings.
From Sweet to Savory: Endless Combinations
Dango Asobi isn't about one fixed way of eating — it's about enjoying how the flavor changes with each combination.
Try koshian with Hokkaido cream for a mellow, rich taste. Combine mitarashi with shredded nori for a sweet-and-savory, toasty flavor. Or keep it simple with raw soy sauce and shredded nori to taste the ingredients on their own — there's a combination to match any mood.
It's also worth filling the neko monaka with koshian or Hokkaido cream to make your own version of the cat-shaped treat.
Whether with family, friends, or a partner, it's a menu made for taking your time, comparing favorite combinations, and enjoying the conversation along the way.
Also Available: Fall-Only Shaved Ice "Imo Kuri Kabocha"
Since Friday, September 11, 2026, Hachi San Roku has also been serving a limited-time fall shaved ice, "Imo Kuri Kabocha," that brings together the season's flavors in one dish.
Finely shaved ice is topped generously with Mont Blanc-style cream piped from Ibaraki-grown Japanese chestnuts, while the accompanying wooden box holds purple sweet potato paste, kabocha squash paste, Hokkaido cream, condensed milk, shiratama rice dumplings, black sugar syrup, and the Yanaka-inspired neko monaka.
Start by tasting the chestnut's natural sweetness and aroma on its own, then add condensed milk, purple sweet potato paste, or kabocha paste as you like. Adding black sugar syrup brings out an even richer flavor.
Combining autumn staples — chestnut, sweet potato, and kabocha squash — to your own taste, it's a shaved ice experience true to Hachi San Roku's style. Pair it with Dango Asobi for a season of Japanese ingredients in Yanaka Ginza.
Product Details
- Name: Imo Kuri Kabocha
- Available since: Friday, September 11, 2026
- Price: ¥2,300 (tax included)
- Available at: Hachi San Roku
A Moment to Experience Japanese Ingredients in Yanaka Ginza
Hachi San Roku is a wagashi cafe born from the idea of giving people more time to savor Japanese ingredients.
Set in a calm space built around an 80-year-old traditional house, the cafe serves menu items made with carefully selected ingredients from across Japan, including Uji matcha from Kyoto, black sugar from Okinawa, azuki beans from Hokkaido, and Kyoto-ground kinako.
Following its signature hands-on shaved ice, "Kori Asobi," the newly introduced Dango Asobi carries the same idea: rather than simply eating, guests choose ingredients, combine them, and enjoy the time spent tasting.
In Yanaka Ginza, a neighborhood that still holds onto its old downtown charm, Hachi San Roku offers a moment to experience Japanese ingredients alongside freshly grilled dango.
Store Information
Name: Hachi San Roku
Address: 3-13-2 Yanaka, Taito-ku, Tokyo
Access: About a 5-minute walk from JR Nippori Station, inside Yanaka Ginza shopping street
Hours: 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM (last order 6:30 PM). Hours are subject to change.
Phone: 080-3097-8564
Main Menu
- Kori Asobi Uji Matcha — made with Uji matcha from Kyoto, azuki beans from Hokkaido, and black sugar syrup from Okinawa
- Kori Asobi Kezuri Ichigo to Miruku (Shaved Strawberry and Milk) — a gently sweet cup made with fluffy shaved strawberry ice and Hokkaido milk
- Kori Asobi Kuromitsu Kinako (Black Sugar and Kinako) — black sugar syrup from Tarama Island, Okinawa, with fragrant Kyoto-ground kinako
