A cozy restaurant in the heart of Harajuku, famous for its pancakes
Bills is a small chain from Sydney, Australia. I’ve been to two of the Tokyo locations, in Omotesando and in Odaiba. They shared a natural, homey vibe with a greenery-on-wood interior.
Here’s what Bills is about, in their words:
Every Bill Granger’s restaurant reflects the spirit we like to think of as ‘Australian’: sunny, easy-going and generous. Bill opened his first restaurant in Sydney’s Darlinghurst in 1993. It soon became loved for its legendary breakfasts, served at the famous central communal table, where locals and travellers, families and friends, continue to be welcomed. Twenty years later, Bill’s relaxed, friendly and infectious joy in good, fresh food has become truly global, and is enjoyed at his restaurants in Sydney, Seoul, Tokyo, Honolulu and London.
https://billsjapan.com/en/about
Bills, a popular lunch spot for couples
Bills is full of couples. This is especially true around lunchtime. Don’t get too scared — this is pretty normal in Japan, especially in a crowded area like Harajuku. You can hop from store to store if you’d like, but realize that many of the other popular restaurants will also have lines. That said, they’re an all-day diner, so you can hop in when the crowd dies down as well.
I only managed to take a photo of my own pancakes at the Omotesando location, so here are a couple of shots from their Odaiba restaurant. We had the ricotta hotcakes and the free-range scrambled eggs, as well as some smoothies.
Ricotta hotcakes, fresh banana and honeycomb butter 1,600 yen 
Free-range scrambled eggs and toast 1,450 yen
Both were delicious, though quite pricey for Tokyo. Alas, you’re paying for the atmosphere and location as well as the taste of your food.
Pro tip
Bills Omotesando is inside the Tokyu Plaza Omotesando Harajuku building. Right below the stairs that go to the restaurant are some small gardens you can enjoy after your meal. A nice way to continue your date.
For locals
How did we pay for this? My fiancé owns shares to Sunny-Side Up, the company running the Bills in Japan. He gets free meal tickets once a year. Each ticket is 1 dish + 1 smoothie at the time of writing. If you’re interested in “kabunushi-yutai” (stockholder benefits) for Bills, deets are here (Japanese).
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