Nice portions for the price. One order of the soft-serve is good for two people. You can order the soft serve in a cup instead of a waffle cone.There is no seating in the shop, but there are a few tables and seats outside. They dont ask for proof of vaccination as of 10/30/2021.

A must try if your in Japan town! The ube/matcha mix is to die for! Great ice cream..

So many ways to enjoy matcha here so if you love matcha as much as I do this place is a must! Such a clean and fast location. Try the matcha coffee or the ice cream, Highly recommend!

Authentic matcha soft serve ice cream. Delicious and flavorful matcha.There is a line of customers queuing up. Dont let that discourage you. The service is quick and seems like many of the folks know exactly what they want which hastens the wait.Great dessert after lunch or dinner. There are so many restaurants nearby.

So delicious. Best matcha ice cream. I got matcha soft serve on a cone. The cone is so sweet 😋Follow my instagram for more food posts@connoisseur009

Its worth coming all the way to japantown just for the matcha boba sundae

The line is always crazy long here, but it goes by fast! We received our orders within 5 minutes of putting it in. I got the special and Hojicha Frape 🤤 both delicious and definitely put me over-the-top after lunch 😛 they have soy and almond milk options for those who eat vegan or are lactose. They do Apple Pay, which is quick and touch-free :)

I love matcha and when I seen they serve green matcha I just had to try it. My first time there and their ice cream is good. You have to try it for yourself. Even putting the soft serve matcha they took pride in the way it looked in the cone. I appreciate the little things like that.

SUPER aesthetic storefront, and perfectly placed within the walking district of San Franciscos Chinatown. Due to social distancing, the lines can quickly go out the door as the interior of this location is small. However, the flavor and quality of the ice cream is just the same -- PERFECT!I got the Hojicha Latte Float with Matcha Ice Cream; its what I always get, and the refreshing tea flavor finished off with the creamy matcha is ALWAYS a stomach pleaser.

Should order 2 of them if you are going to be walking around for a bit. The matcha half swirl is worth the 15 min line wait. It is a bit small but it not meant to sit down, as there is plenty of space outside the store. The staff was quick and friendly. Would recommend if you are nearby for a quick dessert.

Love their matcha cheese with jelly. So yummy. And the service is fast, servers are friendly, store is clean. And of course the queue is long. To avoid waiting time - 15 mins on weekend, I’d recommend order online through their web and let the servers know you’ve done so when you are there.

Hands down the best matcha ice cream!Got mine in a cone with a 24K Gold leaf! Delish! 🍦😋

My favorites here are their matcha soft serve (look for their monthly flavor too and what flavors can be swirled) and the hojicha drinks! Love that we have a place in the city that specializes in tea (matcha and hojicha).

Matcha Maiko is has 3 locations in the San Francisco area in California. I went to the location at the Stonegalleria which is located near San Francisco State University. Matcha Maiko is on the 2nd level near the food court and my first impression was yay no line!I got the vanilla and strawberry ice cream! I really like how creamy both of these ice creams are and how fresh they turned out to be. I really like the taste of plain vanilla and how lucious it taste. I like the strawberry however, I tasted no strawberry and I feel that the strawberry should be distinct in the ice cream. I felt it tasted like the vanilla with that same flavor but it was still creamy and smooth. It was kind of a miss on me with the seasonal strawberry flavor ice cream and I love strawberry so much so I was disappointed when I tasted no strawberry.I did try their Matcha Maiko special with their matcha ice cream. I can see why they are named matcha Maiko because their matcha is premium, fresh, and well balanced! It’s basically like a yogurt parfait except with matcha ice cream. I liked the mochi in the ice cream and the crunchy texture of the granola (I think that’s what it is). I thought it completed the dessert and you always get that nice crunch, the squishyness of the mochi, and the bitter sweet flavor of the matcha! I thought it was delicious!Overall I recommend their vanilla and matcha ice cream however their strawberry flavor was a miss for me but it does look pretty. I would go back but probably only get the matcha and or vanilla only.

I thought the line was going to take a while but it went by pretty quickly. I got a matcha frappe and it had a lot more than I expected! Much better than Starbucks matcha frappecinos, and definitely had more of the drink in there instead of whipped cream.

Update: came today to try their flavor of the month- Hojicha, roasted green tea with a smoky chocolate flavor.Matcha is absolute blissful - Eating one while writing this review

Matcha dessert place inside the Japan town center... On the 2nd floor, this place has every matcha ice cream dessert one could want. Pre-covid, the lines were long, and the service was decent. Prices are high, but the quality is pretty good. Worth checking out.

Best place for soft serve matcha ice cream. While it may not be light on the calorie side - certainly hits the spot on the yummy scale. Matcha doesnt come out to be too powdery or too synthetic.

A real good matcha ice cream. Beautiful presentation and perfect texture.

I frequent this establishment often. Probably the best place to go for matcha ice cream. Im never disappointed.

Hojicha too sweet :(

I particularly enjoy the boba sundae, the hojicha frappe was also great. Very friendly service as well.

The best matcha 🍵 that I tried ! Rich in flavor, totally natural and great service .

Amazing! Soft serve here is the best

The best matcha soft serve in the city. I also love the hojicha one and hope it will stay in the menu. Some of the drinks can be a bit sweet, partially because I don’t usually like my drinks to be sweet. But you can’t go wrong with their ice cream! The line is moving quickly - usually around 15mins wait.

I got a large hot matcha to go this morning, which was gloriously green, tasty, foamy, and made me feel good inside.

The matcha here is good quality and I love the options. After traveling from Japan, you will never have better matcha or soft serve. However this is a close second that I gladly support, and the best matcha soft serve/lattes I’ve had in the Bay Area. The matcha is rich and not cloyingly sweet. I always look forward to getting something for myself every time I’m in Japantown.

Very creamy soft serve!

Loved this cafe so much, got the hojicha latte and matcha float. The matcha had a sweet undertone and the hojicha tastes slightly chocolate. Definitely recommend this drink as it has the best of both worlds. Service was also fast.

A hidden gem inside the Japanese center. This place served some of the smoothest and refreshing ice cream cones in SF. I love match flavor and this place definitely does it really well. The place gives you a really authentic Japanese shop feel and the place is clean. The staff is super friendly and makes you have a good time ordering and spending time there.

If you order the sundae at the Japantown SF location, make sure you check first thing that it isnt hollow!When I received my sundae and punctured it with my spoon I realized they poured it in a way that it looks like a full serving but has a hollow center and is thus a partial serving. This location is dishonest.When I let them know, they said they always pour it like that. But I visit the Chinatown location weekly where they serve full servings. I let them know this and they then said they pour it to weight. When I asked what is the weight they stuttered and obviously didnt really know.I understand that businesses are struggling. But the consumer is also struggling to get value from their dollar.Maiko, please respect your customers and serve an honest product. Boba and ice cream is supposed to be fun and enjoyable. That pleasure is diminished when the customer finds theyve been deceived.

Love this place! The soft serve and lattes are so good!The best is that they have nondairy options for lattes!I avoid this place on the weekends because I don’t like waiting.If you really crave matcha, try to come during the week! :)

I was just exploring Japan Town and this place seemed pretty busy so I thought I would give it a try. The line went by pretty fast and I got to order. The have so many different options but I stuck with their popular section since it was my first time there. I got the the green tea soft serve. It was around $6 which is average for ice cream in the city but I think it was well worth it. They topped it up pretty high and the quality of the ice cream was extremely high. It was extremely creamy and the perfect amount of sweetness. My friend got the mixed one and regretted not having as much green tea flavor. I will definitely come back to try some of the other items on the menu. But overall I think this place is amazing.

Update: Went to this a place a second time. Love it even more.Loved this place. I got the matcha less creamy soft serve in a waffle cone and is was delicious. I would definitely stop by here again after grabbing a bowl of udon/ramen or some takoyaki. Theyre super busy, so I wouldnt take it personally if theyre to the point without all the verbal social niceties.

Soft serve is really creamy. I like the texture. What I had was Mocha and Vanilla mix which was a perfect combination!

Worth the wait! The matcha flavor is strong in the matcha soft serve. The menu is very extensive with lots of drinks, ice cream sundae and floats options. The matcha chiffon cake chunks in their soft serve sundae are delicious and so are the mochi balls and chestnut. Waffle cone is nice and crispy. Great spot in Japan town!

The staff was so kind that I felt good when I ordered. And the cost-effective one is the best. The waffle cone is delicious and the quality of the ice cream is so awesome!

Decent place for tea and small snacks. Girlfriend wasnt a fan of her chai tea though, had to much milk.

Great matcha place! It is located in the japantown, 1st floor. I ordered maiko special with matcha/hojicha ice cream, so good and good for pictures. For hot matcha, is us great as well, not too sweet.

Best matcha ice cream you can ever have. Fast and freat customer service

Fun, colorful and tasty green sweets.

One of my favorite places to get matcha desserts!

Great matcha fix! Colleagues recommended this place and it didn’t disappoint! Expect a line here but goes by quickly.

The Matcha swirl was amazing and the prices are pretty good when you take into account that they import all their matcha and goodies straight from Japan. Will definitely go again.

The matcha ice cream is excellent with intense matcha flavor.The combination of cheese foam and intense tea is also a good choice.

Split the matcha parfait with a friend. Soft serve was thick, creamy, and not too sweet. Really enjoyed the diversity of toppings, especially the frosted flakes and chestnut!We waited in line for about 10m to order on a Sunday night and got our order in 5m. Pretty quick turnaround at a busy time of day

Update 1/10/21:Still amazing ice cream here, I come to this one most often because it’s the closest to me, but I’ve been to all 3 in the city and they serve the same menu at the same quality. Everything they make is great, but it’s the matcha soft serve I keep coming back for. They offer a special monthly flavor, and those are also great. If it happens to be tofu or strawberry calpico you should definitely get it!——2018-This is the best matcha ice cream in town, no competition. I was worried it would disappoint, but boy did it impress. I can’t wait to go back and try their drinks, the matcha is excellent quality, and the ice cream is very strong and bitter, as it should be. There is other ice cream around the area, but don’t even waste your time on them.

Some of the best matcha soft serve Ive ever had outside of Japan! 美味い！

Menu not detailed, the drinks look asthetically pleasing but the cup design blocks the drinks.

Finally tried here! We all got different stuff and we were all very impressed with the quality. And the hojicha taste accurately like a hojicha latte youd get in Japan for the most part, which is extremely rare here! My only complaint is the line but I hate to take off a star just for that when everything else was amazing, so I wont.

I happened to find this place on its opening day. Was very lucky. The line was long as to be expected, but the service of the staff was great. Happily taking orders and ensuring speedy service on probably their busiest day. The quality of the ingredients is top notch. My order of the Hojicha Float was delicious. I will definitely be going back for another. Although this time Ill probably go without the ice cream as I remember that I am lactose intolerant after three bites of the ice cream, lol. They have options for this too, so bonus points for that. Also on their first day they are doing a great service and donating all their profits to the Japanese Community Youth Council (JCYC). Ive added their menu in my photos be sure to check it out and hopefully you find something delicious to have too.

Excellent taste, excellent serving size, excellent price, what more do you need?

Golden Sho-Gun. 24k Gold Leaf. Service was friendly and the quality is very good.

Definitely some of the best matcha soft serve Ive ever had.The only other place that I remember comes close to the quality of this is a place in Japan Town LA called master tea I believe. This is a great addition to SF and at the time of this review they have three locations in the city which is quite remarkable. I definitely recommend the matcha or the hochicha soft serve.

Best matcha I have ever had in my life!!!!

I saw really high ratings so maybe I set my expectations too high. I got the parfit which has a lot of ingredients in it ... Two different flavors ice cream, a chestnut, mochi, corn flakes, green tea cake, and read bean. It almost felt like there were too much going on that it didnt come together for me. So just average for me.

Wow.. best match soft-serve I have tried ! 👍🏻

Great place for Japanese tea inspired drinks with some crossover into bubble tea style toppings. Their soft serve added to some of the latte options are also superb. Personal recommendation is to try the hojicha latte with kinako and kokuto jelly (if available).

Such an amazing spot love the matcha

BEST matcha Ive ever had in the US. Had their soft serve with less creamy matcha. I think that tasted perfect for me :)

Very good matcha and hojicha. The ice cream is awesome too.

If you love matcha - I mean REALLY love it - youll love everything at the Cafe. The cones, the boba sundaes, lattes and kokuto, the flavors of the month, their signature Maiko Special... all of it is superb! The only thing I havent tried is the Golden Shogun, but Im saving that for a truly auspicious day. Seriously, you cant go wrong with anything on the menu!

Wow! Like a brief visit to Japan! Creamy yumminess, best soft serve I’ve had for a while. The shop is located inside the Japan center. Cutest staff and the place is immaculate, which I always appreciate. 10/10!

Nice spot located in Japantown Plaza in Japantown SF. They offer a variety of matcha drinks and desserts. My wife got the matcha float and I got their chocolate donut. Their donut was thick and had a mochi consistency and really good!The float was also good. We will be back to try their other offerings. There are a few ramen and noodle restaurants in this plaza also so this place is perfect after a bowl of noodles!

Recommend matcha soft serve. Not too sweet and great taste!

Got the matcha and roasted green tea swirl soft serve ice cream. It was really delicious! Definitely would you back again.

Very yummy!!! Great for anyone who loves matcha or tea flavored things. It was the first time I tried hojicha and it was delicious!

I forgot to take a picture before trying my cone... there two types of matcha soft serve (creamy and less creamy) the less creamy is more starkly matcha flavor and the less creamy is more like the matcha soft serve you get at some normal ice cream place (but slightly better). The waffle cone is pretty good and crunchy but not too hard. Great! But the line is long...

The ice cream tastes really nice, I particularly love one of their rotational flavor-roasted soy bean. But since covid, I had some bad experience with their service. Stuff were being rude, like making fun of my name, and giving and attitude when I constantly smile it off. Not sure what’s going on but don’t vent it off on me, geez.

This was my second visit to Cafe Maiko. The first time, I got the matcha soft serve in a cup with black honey on top. This time I tried the Maiko Special, which has your choice of soft serve flavor with chestnuts, mochi, match cake and cornflakes.It’s the match soft serve which is the star. It’s an amazing texture. It also really tastes like high quality matcha. The flavor isn’t overly sweet, which makes all the difference. They even sprinkle match powder on top.I would recommend this place to anyone who loves matcha!

Really original Japanese matcha the ice cream and kokuto matcha kuromtsu kinako are just PERFECT

Matcha Cafe Maiko has fast service even when busy and prices are decent. You can buy high quality matcha and hojicha powder here at a good price compared to in stores! Everything here is rich, silky, and amazing! I only wish they had bigger sizes!

Definitely a popular place for dessert and date night! Tried the Matcha-hojicha soft serve and it was delicious!

Best matcha dessert in town.

I would recommand just order regular matcha soft-serve將軍 looks cool, but not worth itmatcha float is also cool but it might be better with less icenumber 2 got too much stuff inside. Looks cool but just soso

Pretty good! But make sure you really like matcha. Service was fast and polite.

I love this place too. Their matcha ice cream with the boba is great. I also love their Hojicha float. But its the matcha with the vanilla swirl. Thats my favorite.

This is the best in Japantown. The food are tasty. Therere lots of people queuing. Quality is good.

Great matcha based desserts!

Located in Japanese Town in San Fran there was a line of people for this dessert. Ive also seen these on instagram. Decided to try it and got the Maiko Deluxe. Love the matcha and vanilla swirl taste. The Maiko Deluxe has so many ingredients. They had a matcha cake bites, corn flakes, jelly, red bean, and mochi. It was a really great dessert!

Small space but large menu with plenty of options. This place definitely met my high matcha standards. Amazing hojicha and matcha lattes. Tastes like the matcha stuff you get in Japan! Line on weekends, get there on a weekday afternoon.

Awesome matcha soft serve!

Its supposed to be a wild day out in the midst of pandemic. After seeing a disappointed foggy view of Golden Gate Bridge. Hoping to pamper ourselves with really authentic Japanese Hojicha ice-cream. But its only sesame ice cream floating in the semi bland Hojicha. Its still in comparable to the Asian ones. Gan-Ba-Dad!

Maiko never disappoints. Fantastic matcha soft serve, and it looks like the hojicha is here to stay as a permanent offering as well. Well worth every penny.

This my favorite spot in the city to get matcha ice cream. If you are a fan of matcha you must try the matcha and hojicha mix it is heavenly.

Yummy treats with the Japanese classic favor of thick bitter green tea (matcha) seems to be all the talk these days. This place offers a new Twist on a Japanese classic; serving up matcha ice cream with japanese dango Mochi on the side as a trendy dessert. It certainly is a welcome refreshing dessert after a classical Japanese meal just around the building.

They have the best hojicha lattes and soft serve in the Japantown center.

Good quality and good flavors. Really organized line and service is super quick!

Great matcha soft serve. Just remember you have to eat outside

Best green tea ice cream Ive had outside Japan.

I had the non milk matcha latte and ot was very good ... I had the matcha ice cream in the past and it was absolutely delicious

The desserts are bomb! I had a cone, a drink. And a brownie from this place and I wasnt disappointed. The service was good, quick, and easy. It can get busy for a small shop but its definitely worth the wait.

Matcha and hoji soft serve

The lines were a but long on weekend but reasonable. It really revigorated that part of the plaza. I enjoyed the special a lot. The item served actually looked like the pictures.. amazing. Staff was efficient and we got out dessert pretty quick. Good experience overall.

Yummy!

Matcha flavor was intense and true and tasty!! The parfait was delicious and interesting, with jelly balls and cornflakes and my favorite, red bean!! Would love to go again, even despite a long line ;) it moved very quickly though! Fast and friendly service

A perfect matcha dessert

Great tasting desserts. I would recommend not getting the matcha and black sesame swirl as the combo doesnt work well. But still it was good.

Had the sweet rice soft served and it was pretty good. Just the right amount of sweetness for me. Came with free topping and they have a pretty big selection. Got to get some honey on mine.

Great vanilla soft serve here