School boy cafes, maid casinos the latest cosplay offerings

School girls have a well-documented following, but what about the boys? It turns out that school boys are building up a following of their own: since opening last fall, the school boy themed café, Edelstein, has been filled to capacity every weekend and has seen repeat customers visit upwards of 40 times in just a few short months.

Regular customers become “students” and can have their picture taken with the cute young male waiters in school uniforms (which definitely makes up for the $5 coffee). Rest-assured the hiring policy ensures that all of the waiters are over 18.

Due to the popularity, would-be customers book a 90-minute “lunch time” or “bar time” (remember it’s a fantasy!) in advance. Naturally, Valentines’ Day is already fully booked.

The café is located in Harajuku, making it a convenient shopping stop-over for the women in their 20s and 30s that the café is targeting. The interior is designed to resemble a German boarding school, but is more reminiscent of settings from manga series of the same theme aimed at girls and young women.

In other cosplay entertainment news, the original maid café, in an effort to keep its stake in the market, is diversifying to include “maid karaoke” and a “maid casino.”

With the cosplay market seemingly here to stay and intent on growing, its anyone’s guess what the next innovation will be. Any wagers?