Maid cafe 'Akiba' in Hiroshima!?

08.05.2009 by Patrick W. Galbraith

We all know that maid cafes, or what passes for them, can be a little shady outside of Akihabara. At last count, their were 217 maid establishments in Japan, and not all clients are looking to idolize moe characters from a far. A cursory online image search or trip to the local video shop reveals the maid costume is often treated as a sort of erotic cosplay and moe mild eroticism, however much diehard may disagree. This image is a great example - a "maid cafe" called "Akiba" smack in the middle of the red light district in Hiroshima. All the signs of good clean otaku fantasy and fun are there, but I wonder if the services are even remotely similar... Thanks to Erika Alpert for the picture! If anyone else has something to share, let us know!