I guess everyone has his own imaginary ideal place. A place, where everything is the way you like it. Interior, some little details that make you smile and, of course, your favourite food, delicious and yummy, and in many-many varieties! One good point about these places - when being revived, they actually can make other people happy, too.
40 plan is exactly this kind of ideal place. It all started with the owner’s dream to open a cafe by the time she is 40. Her dream eventually came true, and the newborn cafe was named 40 keikaku (40 plan) - as a reminder to everyone that dreams do come true if you follow your plan and work hard enough. And what followed was a small shop selling muffins - one more ideal place for those who love delicious and unique pastry.
The shop’s design is bright and lovely - there are toys and Barbie dolls on shelves, pretty little cups in a window and a fairytale book for those who has to wait for their order. It reminds me of the times when I used to visit my friend’s house. Her mother was very good at cooking, and, while my friend and I were playing in her tiny room with dolls, her mother prepared us some incredibly tasty snacks and sweets to tea.
How about these muffins?
“Everyday we prepare one kind of a meal muffin and ten different kinds of sweet muffins”, says the shop assistant, “The menu changes constantly, for example, every season we have a special “muffin of the season”. The meal muffins are always different. I think, the most popular is anko muffin (a type of muffin with traditional Japanese bean paste filling), but if you would like to taste this one, you should hurry - it’s getting sold out very quickly.”
Additionally, the shop is selling drinks that go very well with muffins. Autumn is a time for hot coffee and hot lemonade, which is my own recommendation.
I buy two kinds of muffins - one meal muffin (tomato sauce and cream cheese) and a “muffin of the season” - this time with fig. Meal muffin should be warmed up in the oven toaster - this way it tastes just like freshly baked. And it’s love from the first bite - tomato sauce goes perfectly well with cream cheese! The muffin disappears in a moment, and so does my hunger - a great snack for those who are always on the run! And the sweet one is just like the buns my friend’s mother baked for us - not too sweet, with a gentle fig’s flavor, so suitable for Sendai’s cool autumn.
The owner of 40 plan has recreated her ideal place for us, those who are living in Sendai. And who knows - maybe this shop will become your favourite!
2–10–5 Honcho, Aoba, Sendai, Miyagi
Closed on Sundays and Holidays
10:00–18:00