Blue Bottle Is a Major Hit in Japan

The chain is opening a third location at the end of this year.

California-based cult favorite coffee shop Blue Bottle is seeing much success in Japan. The chainlet opened its first location in Tokyo in February and opened a second outlet in the city a month later. Lines were insanely long at the opening of the first store, with many customers arriving hours before the location opened. According to the Associated Press, the outposts are still incredibly popular. Eager customers have waited upwards of four hours for a cup of Blue Bottle coffee.

The AP writes that the Japanese population is sick of large chains: McDonald's is "suffering declining popularity in Japan" — it probably didn't help that a human tooth was found in the food last year — and consumers are seeking out higher quality restaurants and cafes, like Blue Bottle.

While McDonald's aims to build thousands of locations, Blue Bottle is "likely to aim for 50 or at most 100 outlets in Japan," notes the AP. The coffee company will soon be one step closer to that number: Blue Bottle is opening a third Tokyo location later this year. It will have a menu that prominently features pastries from San Francisco's Tartine Bakery, which the coffee company recently merged with.

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