“One Piece” now has a Vegas piece.
The hugely popular Japanese manga and anime franchise starring Monkey D. Luffy, a boy who can stretch his body like rubber, and his crew, the Straw Hat Pirates, recently opened One Piece Cafe on Spring Mountain Road in Chinatown. The cafe is the first official One Piece restaurant in the U.S.
The restaurant comes out of a partnership between L.A. restaurateur Andy Nguyen and Toei Animation, which adapted the manga into an anime series.
“Our hope is to bring folks together at the Cafe to celebrate what One Piece represents: camaraderie, friendship, the promise of adventure and a delicious journey for all,” Nguyen said.
Curry, cake, pumpkin juice
In its announcement on X of the launch, @OnePieceAnimeUs said the cafe “will serve food based off the Straw Hat’s favorite meals & iconic anime moments.” Some of these dishes are a Japanese fruit sando, onigiri rice balls, beef curry and a Mighty Meats Pirates Platter, a nod to Luffy’s enthusiastic carnivorousness.
Sweets also draw inspiration from character cravings. Look for stretchy mochi cookies in four flavors (including obligatory ube); Big Mom’s Wedding Cake layering strawberry, chocolate and, yes, ube; and a Gum-Gum Fruit Mousse Bomb featuring vanilla sponge cake, a white chocolate shell and fresh fruit.
Beverages round out the menu: a tangerine slushy; Pumpkin Juice mingling pumpkin, coconut, apple and garam masala; and an All Blue Mocktail starring a blue pea flower and oolong tea.
One Piece Cafe is throwing a grand opening party at 11 a.m. May 11, with giveaways and with character appearances by Luffy and Zoro from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The restaurant is at 5600 Spring Mountain Road, 702-405-7010. Visit onepiececafe.com or follow @onepiececafeofficial on Instagram.
Contact Johnathan L. Wright at jwright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @JLWTaste on Instagram.