Cover A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
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The art of ice comes to fruition here at Toyo Eatery’s latest baby: Azukitoyo, a kakigori collab with the highly regarded Florilège, Tokyo
In the quiet courtyard of Karrivin Plaza, where hot air drifts through its corridors, brushing against warm concrete as the unhurried melody of late afternoons melts into a more dazzling evening, a brand-new eight-seat café is reintroducing shaved ice desserts to the Philippines.
Azukitoyo is no ordinary dessert stop—it is a dialogue between cultures, a study in craft and a reminder that sometimes the most delicate pleasures are also the most deliberate. The seed was planted in 2019 after a collaboration between chefs: Toyo Eatery’s Jordy Navarra and Florilège’s Hiroyasu Kawate. Navarra spoke of halo-halo—its hand-shaved ice, riotous textures and kaleidoscopic colours—while Kawate listened, amused and intrigued by its similarity to Japan’s kakigori. A short while after, he responded with a gift: a professional kakigori machine from Tokyo. What began as a conversation about ice became a collaboration that would draw in Miho Horio, the kakigori master behind Tokyo’s cult-favourite Azuki to Kouri.
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Above A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
Above A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
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The restaurant is headed by chef Sam Constantino, but the menu is closely developed by her, along with chefs Navarra, Kawate and Horio of Azuki to Kouri. Pastry chef Constantino, formerly a lead in the kitchen at Inatô, took this as a prime opportunity to return to her love for sweets. She travelled to Japan, observing and assisting at Azuki to Kouri, where the team shared not just technique, but also their philosophy. They learned that kakigori is as much about pacing and precision as it is about flavour—a mindset that treats the ice as an ingredient, not a backdrop. Back in Manila, team Toyo adapted this discipline to local produce, layering the familiar warmth of Filipino flavours into the ethereal cool of Japanese craft.
Horio would visit for R&D on the current menu, which includes reworks of Azuki to Kouri classics as well as creations that showcase what’s in season. In fact, Kawate even flew in for the grand opening of Azukitoyo. Their partnership is tightly knit, with both teams working together in menu development for a rich and mouth-watering exchange of ideas.
Above A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
Above A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
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The current menu is both homage and invention. Some bowls reinterpret Azuki to Kouri’s Tokyo classics; others are entirely new, guided by Filipino ingredients and the shifting rhythm of the seasons. “Azuki at merengue” is a study in softness, with red bean and shiratama mochi under airy meringue peaks. “Azuki at matcha” deepens the mood with umami-rich Inokura matcha syrup, sometimes accented with smoky macapuno. “Lychee at pomelo“ bursts with tropical tartness and the crunch of coconut meringue cream. The halo-halo reclaims the iconic Filipino dessert as a structured, layered experience—leche flan, ube in many forms, langka, saba, coconut milk, pinipig—meant to be savoured from crown to base, not stirred. And “mais at keso” turns the summer staple mais con hielo into a savoury-sweet revelation with Quezon corn, queso de bola, candied pinipig and a floral hint of Kampot pepper.
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Above A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
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With this niche concept, the ice is everything. Each block is made through a 48-hour slow-freezing process that forces impurities and air bubbles to settle out, leaving behind a crystal-clear density that shaves into delicate, snow-like ribbons. Its purity changes how the ice melts, how it holds syrup, and how each bite feels on the tongue. Kakigori is purposefully layered—syrups, creams, fruit, beans and other components are hidden at varying depths. Eat from the top, and you’ll appreciate the light, clean melt of the outer ice; eat from the side, and you’ll uncover a gentle conversation between what’s inside and out. “There’s always more than what you see at first glance,” says Constantino.
The space is as considered as the menu. The Azukitoyo store used to be home to Panaderya Toyo and still pays homage to the shop. The wall displays a binakael pattern—designed to ward off bad spirits and welcome good luck—crafted from the reclaimed mango-wood table that once stood in Panaderya. The same ceiling from the former bakery remains as well. Here, Japanese minimalism and local warmth meet in clean lines and warm tones, letting the sculptural beauty of each dessert speak.
Above A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
A kakigori experience: Azukitoyo by Toyo Eatery and Florilège
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What lingers, long after the ice has melted, is the sense of care—of two culinary worlds meeting in a bowl, of techniques learned in Tokyo and reimagined for Manila, with ingredients treated with the respect they deserve. Azukitoyo doesn’t shout for attention; it invites you to lean in, listen and discover what lies beneath the surface.
