Matcha Cafe Maiko
OC's best matcha ice cream shops closed, and one transitioned to a new brand
For years, the best matcha ice cream shop in Orange County was Matcha Cafe Maiko, a Hawaiian chain operating locally in Garden Grove and Stanton. Featuring the most intensely green matcha ice cream found outside of Japan, as well as hojicha brown tea ice cream, sweet chestnuts, gold leaf wraps, and milkshakes, the store was the darling of Instagrammers and serious foodies alike – a rarity.
One of their star attractions was the Shogun, a soft serve ice cream cone wrapped in thin, edible gold foil. If this was the only thing on the menu at Matcha Cafe Maiko, it would be worth visiting at least once for the novelty of seeing gold flecks on your lips. But this indulgent item – only a $3 surcharge – is unnecessary given the awesome quality of the matcha and hojicha ice creams, shown swirled here.
Throughout 2023, Matcha Cafe Maiko’s signage began switching over to a new name – MyCha – and the menu changed, though the Garden Grove location is largely untouched from the previous branding. However, the Stanton location closed in 2021.
As of the time of writing, Matcha Cafe Maiko’s main website shows that an Irvine location is under construction, with no further details. We’ll update this entry if the chain reappears in Orange County; we hope it will.
Stats
Price: $-$$
Service: Counter
Open Since: 2019
Closed (OC): 2023
Addresses
9738 W. Garden Grove Blvd. #8
Garden Grove, CA 92844
Instagram: @matchastand_maiko