When you think of maid cafés, cute young Japanese girls in frilly French maid outfits probably come to mind.
But one maid cafe in Japan has been attracting attention with its “senior maids”.
Maid Café Shangri-La in Kiryu, Gunma Prefecture, has a strict age limit for its maids and only hires women aged 65 years and above.
It currently has seven maids, aged 65 to 72, and only opens once a month for four hours.
As with most maid cafés, they dress up as French maids to serve and entertain customers. Expect a playful atmosphere and lots of cutesy heart gestures.
They were initially hesitant about wearing frilly maid costumes, but with encouragement, they transformed into “senior maids” and are now rediscovering joy in life and a different perspective on ageing.
One 65-year-old maid said: “I learn a lot talking with customers who are older than me, and it makes me feel happy and young again when young female customers say I’m cute.”
But the café is more than just fun — it carries a deeper meaning.
Its creatively designed interior, featuring things like “coffin experience” and “Rope Bridge Over the River Styx”, playfully explores themes of life and death while prompting reflections on ageing society.
Even the café’s name in Japanese, “Meido”, is a clever pun — it refers to both maid café and the underworld.
Opened in July 2024, the café started as a place where local elderly people could gather, but now attracts customers from Osaka and Tokyo.