The Matcha Kyoto Birmingham Selfridges: Manchester's Matcha Pop-Up Lands in the Bullring

Kyoto in the name, Manchester in the blood.

That surprised me: The Matcha Kyoto isn't a Japanese import at all. It's a Mancunian brand that grew from city pop-ups into two Manchester sites, with matcha shipped over from Japan. Now it's landed in Birmingham's Selfridges. I went hungry, and I came back… thirsty.

Classic match latte, it's ok, I expect stronger flavour as mine is no sugar

🍽️ Food & Drinks

The Manchester shops do cookies and desserts, so I'd hoped for food. No such luck. Birmingham is drinks only, with a heavily trimmed menu. The good news? The quality holds up. The ube (sweet potato) matcha latte beat the classic matcha latte for me. My pro tip is to add the flavoured cream on top. It's worth it.

Pop-up set up without proper equipment

👋 Service

There were plenty of staff and only about 15 people in the queue, yet the wait still dragged. Workflow is clearly the problem. It just felt disorganised behind the counter.

The ube one is quite good, should add cream on top next time

✨ Decor & Ambience

This is a pop-up in every sense. There's no running water, no drainage, no proper fridge and no proper power setup. It feels temporary, and it looks it too.

💰 Value

Prices are in line with the big high street chains. To be fair, the matcha is better than your typical high street cup. But there's room to improve, and right now you're paying full price for a half-built experience.

I'm rooting for this one. Give it a proper home in Selfridges, or better yet a real shop in Birmingham city centre, and we could be onto something.

Verdict Good matcha (go for ube with cream), but the bare pop-up setup, drinks-only menu and slow service hold it back. One to revisit.

Ratings ⭐

Food: 3.75/5 – The matcha beats the high street, and the ube with flavoured cream is the pick, though there's no food.
Service: 3/5 – Plenty of staff, short queue, long wait, which points to a workflow problem.
Decor: 3/5 – A bare-bones pop-up with no water, drainage or proper fridge.
Value: 3.5/5 – High-street-chain prices for better matcha, but a reduced offering.
Overall: 3.75/5 – A promising brand that needs a proper Birmingham home.

💰 Estimated cost per person: £4–£8

📍 The Matcha Kyoto (Selfridges Birmingham- 3rd floor next to sunglasses area)

Address: Selfridges, Upper Mall East, Bullring, Birmingham B5 4BP

Comments

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