We got this story sent to us by a reader on this CNN news story (aired on June 30th), “Cafe provides royal treatment.” (2:25 minutes). In My Humble Opinion, I find the story on The Butlers Cafe disturbing in so many ways.
This Shibuya, Tokyo cafe offers a variety of homemade food, sweets and drinks, as well as photo shoots and English lessons with white foreign men. And all the women are addressed as princess. Yes, you read that right…
According to CNN, the founder interview 200 Japanese women and they supposedly all wanted the same thing, “a cafe where the waiters were male, good looking, would treat them nice and most importantly, were Western.”
One of the white waiters compares the place to a Hooters, a themed-restaurant. Please! Can you imagine a restaurant, cafe, coffee shop, or bar in the United States catering to all white men and women, and being served by black men and women? And CNN doing a piece on this place as a puff humor piece? I guess since this is in Japan, it’s okay to show how racist certain Japanese women are against Japanese men? (Then again, I would say that Japanese society is still fairly sexist against Japanese women and one reason why Japan is experiencing negative population growth…)
Stories like these only perpetuate the stereotype that Asian men, and thus most likely, Asian American men, are indifferent, sexless, and worthless, even to women of their own race and only desire the superior white man. Give me a break!
However, in doing some more research (i.e. Google), I did come across an AFP story, “Tokyo cafe taps into women’s Prince Charming fantasies” where the articles goes on to explain a lot more in detail about the cafe that makes it seem a little less disturbing than the CNN piece, like [the owner] interviewed other women and found their wish list — “romantic settings and a chance to learn English. While many were curious about foreign men, they wanted a safe setting — not host clubs or drunken nights out in bars catering to Westerners.”
“In some ways, the Butlers Cafe is a mirror image of the growing number of “maid cafes” where men are served by young women in frilly maid uniforms.” I guess both in Japan and in the United States, having sexist themed restaurants like maid cafes and Hooters are okay (I swear I have never been in a Hooters).
What next?
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8 Comments to “The White Butlers Cafe – for Japanese Women”
Jeff C. wrote:
> “Can you imagine a restaurant, cafe, coffee shop, or bar in the United States catering to all white men and women, and being served by black men and women?”
No, but I can imagine one being served by Asian women… dressed as maids: http://www.royal-t.org/cafe/
I'm not sure if you're angry at the concept of such a cafe, or the fact that the Mainstream Media is reporting it.
But honestly, the cafe wouldn't exist if there wasn't demand for it. Japanese culture, especially in the Shibuya area, has a fascination with anything Western. This has been the case since the Meiji Restoration period, and then catalyzed by the US occupation after WWII. Hell, they'll even pay more for a blond-haired blue-eyed white English teacher than an equally-fluent Asian teacher.
Posted on 02-Jul-08 at 10:54 am | Permalink
Roger wrote:
Don't be such a “victim” John. I'm sure you can get a job as a waiter in most other Japanese restaurants!
Posted on 03-Jul-08 at 1:33 am | Permalink
eggrollstan wrote:
Restaurants like this definitely are in the same vein as places like Hooters. Places like Royal/T also cater to some sort of fantasy of East-West mash-up, albeit in a reverse way.
In contrast, I have been known to go to certain gay establishments with a reputation of having pretty boys as servers. Ad you know rent is due for some of them when the hemlines shorten and their ages lower!
Posted on 03-Jul-08 at 8:15 am | Permalink
Tom wrote:
Western means white?
Posted on 06-Jul-08 at 7:14 pm | Permalink
gregsdaone wrote:
I'm good looking. I'm western from the midwest in the U.S. Now can I have a visa to work at this place in Shibuya, Tokyo ? Probably not. At least when I do get there I'll have a place to earn some extra cash. Thanks Japan. You make me want to visit even more now.
Posted on 21-Jul-08 at 5:20 pm | Permalink
gregsdaone wrote:
Well no, but if Japanese women want us white men, who are we to judge?
Posted on 21-Jul-08 at 5:22 pm | Permalink
kagoshimaguy wrote:
The difference between this restuarant and hooters is that black, asian, latino, white, etc. women can work there.
It appears that being “western” (white) is the lone prerequsite for this job.
Posted on 13-Aug-09 at 4:34 pm | Permalink
A_Rin wrote:
I don't think it's just a question of looking foreigner. My opinion is that this is more cultural than racial. Japanese culture can be very repressive toward women and maybe the foreigner princes are just the picture of a better treatment.
Posted on 08-Oct-09 at 12:26 pm | Permalink
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