CONTRIBUTED BY KATHRYN STRONG

In the northern reaches of Okinawa, where there are no Starbucks, cafés where you can spend an afternoon sipping coffee and reading are a rare discovery. Most places are small and busy and I always feel guilty hogging a whole table for hours at a time. Fuu Café, on Sesoko Island is an exception. I have lost track of the number of weekend afternoons I’ve spent sipping a latte and studying Japanese, occasionally asking the (always extremely friendly) staff for help on a difficult question.

Fuu is maybe the perfect café. Seating is available both inside the simple and tastefully decorated restaurant, and outside in their bright yard. There are hammocks, lounge chairs, and even a small slide for the kids. The owner’s friendly dog is often outside, sleeping in his house or begging a belly rub off patrons.

All the food is organic and many of the ingredients come from the garden adjacent to the building. It’s also all delicious. The menu is small, with a few pizzas, an umibudou (sea grapes) salad, a curry set, and a pasta of the day, which is served with a salad and toast. There is also a selection of desserts, ranging from gelato made with local dairy to shikuwasa (Okinawa lime) shakes to cakes made fresh that morning. The menu is written in both English and Japanese, and the staff speaks enough English that you shouldn’t have any problems. They’re also familiar with vegetarianism, and always happy to make substitutions if you ask.

What really clinches Fuu’s title, in my mind, is the coffee. They roast their own beans, which create a blend that is rich and flavorful without being bitter. They have an extensive menu of lattes and teas. Try the Yanbaru Honey Latte!

Fuu gets very busy during the summer, so it can be hard to find a table, but during the off-season, there is always ample space. So next time you head up north, be sure to stop by, this is a café that shouldn’t be missed!

Hours: 11-Sundown. Food service is from 11:30-4, and the lunch drink bar is only from 11:30-2. Closed Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Phone: 0980-47-4885

Payment: They accept yen only.

Directions: Take the 58 to the 449 heading towards the aquarium. When you get to the big white bridge towards Sesoko Island in Motobu, turn left. Once on the island, drive straight past the stop light, to an intersection where a road joins the main from the right. This is the same road you would take to get to Sesoko Beach. Turn right (there will be signs). Follow this road as it curls around behind the island, and then turn at the green sign for Fuu Café.

2 COMMENTS

  1. The food and drinks are absolutely delicious. I don’t like coffee, and I could drink their coffee all day everyday!! I had the hot cafe latte and they had brown sugar cubes to add to it. I had their pasta of the day which was a seafood pasta with red sauce. The other special with grilled fish of some kind. They also had pizzas and sandwiches to choose from. The homemade cakes today were chocolate ganache cake, cheesecake, some apple cheesecake that they just put out as we were leaving and chiffon cake. There were a couple other desserts, but I didn’t look hard enough to remember them.

    I would like to add that they have a Square and take MasterCard, Visa, and American Express.

  2. I absolutely LOVE this place. Fuu Café has the best coffee/latte’s I’ve ever had (and I am a coffee casa lover, they’ve got amazing coffee as well, but this place just narrowly beats them out). This café roasts their own coffee on the spot. We get our beans from them, it really is exquisite coffee, and you cannot beat the atmosphere. The resident dog is adorable too.