Forget Pokémon: Hello Kitty Pops up in Irvine

Hello Kitty in Irvine (Kenneth Chan / Facebook)
Kenneth Chan / Facebook

Not everyone is obsessed with Pokémon Go. A new Hello Kitty café has popped up in Irvine, California inside a shipping container. And already, the beloved Japanese kitten is attracting droves of die-hard fans from across Southern California.

The store celebrated its successful opening on Friday:

Thank you to everyone who visited today’s ‪#‎HelloKittyCafe‬ Pop-Up Container grand opening! We are excited to begin our year-long residency at Irvine Spectrum Center and will be open everyday this weekend from 11AM – 10PM (while supplies last). As many of our pastries are made with love and care daily in limited quantities, they are expected to sell out quickly. We hope to see you soon!

Though scheduled to be open until late in the evening, the café was so popular that it closed shortly after 2 p.m., according to the café’s Facebook page.

One irate fan, Kenneth Chan, posted a complaint: “I was there today. Didn’t have a chance order anything because way too many people. I ain’t wait 3 hours in the 88F.”

Another, Mandy Dunkle, agreed:

We got there at 9:30am (actually, I can see my elbow at the front of the line behind that man in the beige!) and waited almost 4 hours. It wasn’t worth the wait at all. I mean, we got a couple “paper” freebies in our bag, but it was a bit of a cluster. I recommend going after the hype wears off. They should be building the permanent cafe soon.

Fox 11 Los Angeles reports: “Visitors can enjoy a menu which includes sweet treats and artisanal sodas and coffee drinks from Portola Coffee Lab.

“The cafe which is located in Giant Wheel Court at the Irvine Spectrum Center also sells Hello Kitty merchandise.”

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News. His new book, See No Evil: 19 Hard Truths the Left Can’t Handle, will be published by Regnery on July 25 and is available for pre-order through Amazon. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.

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