01 / ABOUT THE PLACE
About this place
A warm, buttery aroma drifts out the moment you take a paper bag from Pain Maison Shinjuku. The bakery's signature item is shio-pan (salted butter bread). Bite into one and the outer crust gives a light, fragrant crunch, while the base has baked to a crisp in melted butter. Inside, the dough stays pillowy and chewy, where the rich spread of butter meets a clean hit of salt that keeps you reaching for another.
Once you have tried the original roll, the variations are equally enticing. The shio melon pan layers a crisp cookie crust over the roll, balancing sweet sugar-crunch against the salted butter seeping through underneath. The truffle shio-pan is finished with aromatic truffle salt, releasing an earthy fragrance with every bite. For something more substantial, savoury fillings offer satisfying choices, such as ham and egg, ham and cheese, or a roll filled with spicy Japanese mentaiko (seasoned pollock roe).
For a sweet snack, look for the anko-and-butter roll, filled with smooth red bean paste, or the custard whipped cream roll, piped with homemade custard and light cream. Exclusive to this branch is the raw donut, baked rather than fried using shio-pan dough, delivering a moist texture and a gentle sweetness.
Operating entirely for takeaway, the shop moves quickly through queues. Opening from 8:30, it is handy for picking up breakfast before work or grabbing lunch. Reheating the bread lightly in an oven or toaster re-crisps the crust and brings the buttery aroma right back to life.
