An illustration of Fiona's profile. She has light skin, shoulder-length black hair, a mole under her left eye, and is wearing a light yellow shirt.

Eating Studio Ghibli Foods 🌾 by Fiona L. '27

At a mini-restaurant pop-up by MINCE <3

At the start of this month, I had the chance to eat at a Studio Ghibli themed pop-up restaurant, organized by MIT MINCE ⁠01 a cooking club that hosts pop-up restaurants around campus, with a unique theme and menu curated for each event . As a big Studio Ghibli fan with an ever-growing collection of Totoro themed objects, I was extremely excited when I heard about the upcoming pop-up from Gilford T ’26, one of the club’s new members. I’d only been to one MINCE pop-up before (Lunar New Year themed, in the McCormick Green Room!), but I felt like this opportunity couldn’t be passed up.

Screenshot of an email titled "[Sponge-talk] [MINCE] studio ghibli pop up reservation." The email, addressed to "Hello MIT," announces a MINCE pop-up event inspired by Studio Ghibli films. Text provides event details: date (March 1st), time (5-6:30 pm), cost ($20), lottery-based admission. Hyperlinks for registration and contact (mince-exec@mit.edu) are included. A simple ASCII art image of a spirit is below the text of the event. The sender is identified as "Your friends at MINCE."

studio ghibli pop-up announcement!

A few days before the pop-up, I got an email telling me I had been selected to attend through a lottery. It was in the “Plant Room,” a room on the sixth floor of the Picower Center for Learning and Memory ⁠02 also known as the Brain and Cognitive Sciences building .

Screenshot of an email with a white background features black bullet points and blue underlined hyperlinks. The subject line reads "[Action required - MINCE] Studio Ghibli Invitation." The email body contains event details, deadlines, and contact information in a clear, sans-serif font. MINCE highlighted in yellow throughout the body of the message. The layout is clean and easy to read.

my email invitation to the pop-up

When I walked in, instead of the flowers and greenery I was expecting, I saw a neatly arranged and decorated tables set of tables, a beautiful view of the surrounding buildings, 03 it is the 6th floor after all... and a collection of Studio Ghibli clips projected onto the wall.

Interior shot, eye-level perspective, of a modern dining space. A wall of large, square glass panes fills the background, reflecting the light and the outside buildings. The foreground is partially obscured and shows the interior including round dining tables that have white coverings and are elegantly set for guests; a set of colorful chairs completes each table setting. The tiled floor is visible and provides some foreground. The composition focuses primarily on the dining area in a naturally lit scene.
the plant room turned restaurant
Interior medium shot with a high angle. A large framed art of a light gray cartoon-style scene with the foreground a gray sandy beach with light gray waves sits on the far wall, with large framed windows to the left. White walls on the right. A large diagonal support beam runs from upper right to the middle right. A light, almost stainless silver railing is visible at the mid mark of the frame, with three figures standing behind it. Two closed doors and pictures on the wall further to the right are visible. A partial portion of a garbage can is visible in the bottom left corner. Lighting is flat, with some shadows.
a scene from a Ghibli movie projected onto the wall of the Picower Center
Close-up, slightly high-angle shot of a Studio Ghibli-themed table setting. A large, roughly textured, gray Totoro plushie dominates the left of the frame. It sits next to a vertically oriented, light green menu card featuring sketched dishes, with Baby's breath flowers in a vase in the background. A fork and knife are wrapped in a white cloth containing a paper Totoro detail. Positioned on the right is a smaller Totoro plushie with a blue place card titled "Fiona." Each setting is carefully positioned on a wrinkled white tablecloth under soft, warm lighting.

the setup + my plushies

(On a side note, it’s always nice to discover new “hidden spaces” around campus. I feel like no matter how many years one spends at MIT, there are always new rooms, new lounges, and new hidden crannies waiting to be discovered.)

I took the opportunity to bring every single Totoro-themed item I had: a Totoro tote bag, a Totoro cardigan, a Totoro hairclip, and two Totoro plushies. (There were even more items that I unfortunately had to leave at home.)

Medium, slightly soft-focus shot. A person, centered, holds a Totoro plush in front of them. They are sitting at a white table with a floral design. A smaller Totoro plush and table are beside the center table.. Jars and floral centerpieces decorate the table. The BG is a blue-tinted window overlooking a cityscape at dusk. Focus is on the person and plush, creating a whimsical mood.
me posing with my totoro plush!
Medium shot, slightly high angle, showing composition on a restaurant table covered with a patterned tablecloth. The focus is on the left foreground, featuring a large grey Totoro plush with detailed fur and prominent eyes, positioned to the left of a small gray paper Totoro figure. A round Hedgehog like plush toy sits to the right of the paper figure. To the side, silverware in a white napkin is visible. Slightly blurred background includes of a restaurant environment and a blue-tinted glass of water with ice. The lighting is a bit moody.
a happy family
Close-up, slightly high-angle shot of two Totoro plush toys and a Totoro gift bag, occupying the foreground. The scene is lit with slightly warm, ambient indoor lighting. Soft-focus Baby's Breath flowers add texture to the left side of the frame and obscure a person above the largest plush toy. A secondary person is out of focus in the background. The composition focuses on the Totoro characters, with the depth of field blurring background elements.
three totoros is better than one (origami courtesy of MINCE)

There was an option to enter the lottery as one or two people, although I didn’t have the time to ask somebody else to come with me, since I filled out the form last minute (😭). However, whether you come with a friend or not, you’ll still get the opportunity to meet new people at the pop-up—seating arrangements are randomly decided. At this particular pop-up, I got the opportunity to get to know Vivian H ’25, Jessica X ’24 MEng ’25, and Abrianna Z ’28. We were all different class years, but throughout the dinner, we bonded over enjoying the food and sharing our love for Ghibli films!

Now, onto the part that you’ve probably been waiting for: the food! Members of MINCE came from downstairs to bring each dish, so it really felt like we were at a restaurant. The food was as pretty as it was tasty. I used up a lot of self restraint taking pictures of each dish before digging in. 04 I kept thinking to myself: I need pictures for my blog >:((( After each dish had been served, the people who had created each recipe talked about their ideas for the dish, and the process of creating it.

A hand-held, light green menu card features color illustrations of themed food from Studio Ghibli films. The illustrations, starting from the top-left and going down and then right include: three Totoro characters on a green bed, a baguette and brown fish, a white pudding with blue decoration, a breakfast styled food plate, two brown cookies with a red center and a glass of ice water. Text labels each food creation. The text overlays the images and says: TOTORO TRIO, KIKI’S FLIGHT, CASTLE CRYSTAL, CALCIFER’S FEAST, SOOT SURPRISE, and PONYO'S SEA. The Menu is titled: MIT MINCE STUDIO GHIBLI POPUP. The Background is blurred with various objects and colors.

the menu for the pop-up

Drink: Ponyo’s Sea

Blue Curaçao, coconut extract, lemon-lime soda.

My Rating: 7.5/10

Close-up shot of a clear, cylindrical glass with a blue liquid and ice, set on a tablecloth with floral patterned. Flower arrangement in the background in a steel vase. A transparent glass bottle on the right. Shallow depth of field blurs the background details, keeping focus on the drink. The image is warm-toned, with natural lighting.

i slurped the ocean 😋

The drink was delicious! Fizzy, a little sweet, and really, really pretty. If you search up “anime water,” you’ll see exactly what this drink reminded me of. I wish water in real life could look like this ;-;

I finished the drink very quickly, as I usually do, and found that there was one, long cylinder of ice left behind. I battled with that piece of ice as I tried to retrieve the leftover pieces of blue jelly from the bottom of the tall glass.

Bread: Kiki’s Flight 05 Also!! I noticed the double usage of the word 'flight' here! A new word to add to my vocabulary.

Kavring cat rolls, herring biscuits, and baguettes with a butter flight: ube, black garlic, and tomato chili.

My Rating: 9/10

Overhead shot of a rectangular wooden cutting board featuring a row of various artisan breads; rustic dark breads, and a pastry baked to resemble a fish. Above the bread are bowls filled with a purple, orange, and brown sauces. The edges of the board intersect the corners of the frame diagonally, resulting in a high-angle composition. The event appears to be Studio Ghibli themed due to the menu text and character drawings on the table around the board.

a ‘flight’ of bread & butter

The most challenging parts of eating this, for me, was finding a way to split each bread⁠06 especially the fish bread, which I took up the hard task of cutting and trying not to double-dip in the butter. Each of the dips was so good, carefully balancing between “too much” and “not enough” flavor. I also liked how different and high-quality each type of bread was, especially given that they were all homemade.

I had eaten so much bread that I felt like I wouldn’t have any room for the rest of the menu, but I would soon find myself surprised by my own abilities.

Appetizer: Totoro Trio

Salmon & black sesame onigiri, butterfly pea & sweet potato onigiri, and coconut mango onigiri, served with broccolini purée.

My Rating: 5/10

Medium shot of a wooden plate on a linen tablecloth. The plate contains three anthropomorphic rice ball formations, garnished with green sauce and nut slivers. The background is blurred with several bowls and cups. The lighting is slightly diffused. Predominant colors : muted greens, various shades of grey, beige. The composition focuses on the rice ball creatures, inviting the viewer to observe their intricate detail.

totoro rice balls :)

Mixed feelings on the Totoro rice balls: I absolutely LOVED seeing them. I felt that creating 30*3 different Totoros would’ve taken so much time and effort, plus they turned out so adorable. I loved the reference to my favorite Ghibli movie of all time, which I’ve indoctrinated my entire family and my friends from home into watching.

I asked the others at my table what order I should eat the Totoros in: big to small, or small to big? They suggested I eat them from from big to small⁠07 a descending arithmetic sequence in terms of rice consumption , and I took a big bite into a Totoro filled with salmon. Although I usually really hate salmon, this salmon was okay! My favorite was medium Totoro, which was filled with sweet potato.

Main Course: Calcifer’s Feast

Shakshuka-baked egg, fondant potatoes, and cripsy pork belly served with a black garlic-romesco sauce.

My Rating: 9/10

High-angle close-up shot of a black plate centered against a white table cloth. The plate features chunks of pork belly and a potato cake topped with creamy sauce. A bright orange sauce surrounds the plate, while a umber-colored sauce spot the plate among the sauces. In the left of the frame, the corner of Studio Ghibli popup menu is visible. Shallow depth of field, natural lighting.

our main course! the sauce on the plate made me feel like i was at a super fancy restaurant ^^

The main course was delicious! Both sauces were also similarly delicious, and I found that the fancy way of spreading them over the plate made them easier to dip into. I had no idea how they managed to “bake” the egg, but I thought it was delicious! I’d never eaten an egg like that in my life. The pork belly was also a great mix of soft fat and crispy skin.

Palette Cleanser: Castle Crystal

Yuzu tofu pudding, lavender raindrop cake, crowned with blue caramel shards.

My Rating: 8/10

Close-up, slightly high-angle shot focuses on a grey speckled bowl containing a white quadrilateral prism topped with an amber-colored gel sphere inside of a green netted structure. Soft, diffused lighting creates a shallow depth of field, blurring the table setting and a Totoro figure in the background. The bowl is in the center of the frame.
the 'castle crystal,' up close
Close-up, slightly high-angle shot of a single amuse-bouche centered in a stone-textured ceramic plate with a gray and brown glaze. The bite is constructed of a square white foundation support that circular brown filling that sits on top encased in a green lattice framework. The out-of-focus background reveals parts of a white napkin in the upper left corners. The composition emphasizes the textural contrast between the smooth topping, the porous grid, and the rough plate.
the caramel topping looks so pretty 🥺🥺🥺

Out of every dish, this was definitely the one where I spent the most time taking pictures. There was hardened caramel on top of each cake with a delicate, ornate design. I had no idea how it was made, but I really want to find out.

I didn’t know what a “palette cleanser” was before this, but I’d figure it would be like what this dish was for me—a small dish with a neutral taste, eaten before dessert.

Dessert: Soot Surprise

Black cocoa cream puff with black sesame cream and red bean mochi, served with raspberry purée.

My Rating: 7/10

Close-up shot. A centered composition of a white plate on a white tablecloth, featuring four black choux pastries, each cut in half and filled with off-white cream. Pastries also have candy decorations on top. The two most visible pastries in the foreground feature edible googly eyes. Shallow depth of field blurs items in the background, which includes a small bowl of pink syrup and green decorative fauna. The photograph has a warm, indoor lighting.
dessert !!!
Close-up, hand-held shot of a dark brown choux pastry filled with white cream. The pastry is shaped like an open clam. Two large cartoon eyes are visible within the cream filling. The top
a little mochi soot sprite (about to experience a terrible fate (being eaten by me))

The dessert was so cute! Almost too cute to eat. Almost. And fortunately, not too sweet either. The texture of the cream puff was nice, and the soot sprites came with multi-colored meringue stars that were very fun to eat.

Overall, I had an amazing time! The venue was set up beautifully, and all the food was really good. As a bonus, I got to discover a new part of a building that I rarely have the chance to go into. As somebody who loves meeting new people randomly and eating good food, I’ll hopefully find my way into more MINCE pop-ups soon :^)

A final note: if you’ve never seen screenshots of Ghibli food before, then you’re missing out!!! All the food in their movies looks so life-like and delicious, and I’m glad that this pop-up lived up to that aspect of its Ghibli inspirations.

Anime-style digital illustration featuring a close-up of a black frying pan filled with three strips of bacon and three sunny-side-up eggs. The bottom of the pan is animated as a stylized orange and red fire with a simple, cheerful face. The pan is placed between two dark, roughly hewn stone sculptures. Soft, muted colors establish a warm, slightly hazy atmosphere. Background shows a blurred, sandy landscape. Lighting suggests an early morning or late afternoon.
Calcifer-fried eggs and bacon from Howl's Moving Castle
Animated still featuring a crowded tableau with predominantly warm color tones. Several human and frog-like characters with exaggerated facial expressions are centrally positioned, each carrying an overflowing platter of food, including various delicacies, stacked vertically or horizontally, creating a sense of visual overload. The camera angle is close-up, enhancing the feeling of being overwhelmed by the crowd and food. Background filled with additional figures and food items, rendering the composition dense and chaotic.
a feast from Spirited Away
Close-up, eye-level shot of an anime-style bento box. The silver box is filled with white rice, an umeboshi, cooked ground meat, rolled omelet segments, blanched green vegetables, and more meat. A hand is using chopsticks, while the bento box is laying over an open newspaper. Colors are muted, with emphasis on the food contents. The composition emphasizes texture and detail, creating a visually appealing meal presentation.
a bento box! not sure what movie this is from :(
Close-up, eye-level shot. Dominated by a white oval baking dish containing a pie, prominently featuring a fish-shaped crust in the center. The pie filling appears striped, with evenly spaced, black dot accents. A pink floral design is visible on the side of the dish. Partially visible above the dish is pink and white checkered oven mitt on a decorative, tile surface. The overall color palette leans towards soft, muted tones typical of animated films.
fish pie from Kiki's Delivery Service
Close-up, eye-level shot in an animated art style. The focal point is a thick square of toast with a fried egg on top, held by two hands with tan skin near the bottom center of the frame. The egg's yolk is a vibrant orange, contrasting with the creamy white. The blurred background features soft, pastel colors of beige sand and grey rocks, set against a light blue sky. Composition is centered to emphasize the food item.
an egg over bread from Castle in the Sky
High-angle, medium shot of an anime-styled bowl of ramen. The bowl dominates the frame, centered on a yellow-green textured background. The ramen is arranged with visible noodles, broth, pork belly slices (pink hue), a halved hard-boiled egg, and sliced scallions atop. The bowl is light blue with red raindrop shapes along its base. Steam is suggested visually above the bowl. The line art is bold and clean. The style is reminiscent of Studio Ghibli animation.
ramen from Ponyo

 

  1. a cooking club that hosts pop-up restaurants around campus, with a unique theme and menu curated for each event⁠ ↑
  2. also known as the Brain and Cognitive Sciences building⁠ ↑
  3. it is the 6th floor after all...⁠ ↑
  4. I kept thinking to myself: I need pictures for my blog >:(((⁠ ↑
  5. Also!! I noticed the double usage of the word 'flight' here! A new word to add to my vocabulary.⁠ ↑
  6. especially the fish bread, which I took up the hard task of cutting⁠ ↑
  7. a descending arithmetic sequence in terms of rice consumption⁠ ↑