identity
IKEA’s national menu offers single pieces and groups of ten or twenty, while a separate dessert combines five cakes with plant-based soft serve. These are different serving choices within the same cake family. [1]
history
The cakes began as a Maebashi-only offering when that store opened in January 2024. A July 2024 interview with manager Kazumi Noyama still described them as exclusive to the store and reported more than 600,000 sold. The same interview connected Maebashi’s outdoor Bistro Window to Gunma’s car culture. IKEA subsequently announced a wider Japanese rollout for February 6, 2025. [2] [3]
nutrition
The table covers 100 grams of plain cake, excluding soft serve. With no piece weight, it cannot give calories for one, ten or twenty cakes. Soy and wheat are declared allergens; the factory handles egg and milk, with kitchen cross-contact also possible. [4]
| Nutrient | 100 g plain baby castella; not one pieceIKEA Tokyo-Bay |
|---|---|
| Calories | 286 kcal |
| fat | 8.8 g |
| carbohydrate | 47.8 g |
| protein | 4 g |
| salt equivalent | 1.1 g |
- 100 g plain baby castella; not one piece: No piece weight or soft-serve-combination nutrition. Salt equivalent is not sodium. Label effective date unknown. Source ↗
prices
distinctions
Country Food Manager Takeshi Kikuchi described developing the cake without egg or dairy ingredients: soy flour helped it retain its shape, while Japanese wheat flour and an emulsifier helped retain moisture. Vanilla contributes flavor. The Tatsumiyu family’s July 2025 tasting described a gently sweet cake that felt lighter than pancakes, an individual reaction rather than a consensus. Menu coverage also differs locally: the national page excludes the soft-serve combination at Shibuya and lists limited daily quantities of plain cakes there. [2] [5] [1]
Local evidence
Price observations
- 20 JPY(≈ $0.13 USD) · One plain baby castella · IKEA Japan national web listing · web listing checked 2026-10-01; effective date unknown. National web listing checked October1,2026; local variation and stock limits apply. Not a dated transaction. [1]
- 20 JPY(≈ $0.13 USD) · One plain baby castella · IKEA Japan national web listing · menu document dated 2025-02-05. Published launch offer, not proof of transaction or continuous availability. [2]
- 200 JPY(≈ $1.26 USD) · Ten plain baby castella · IKEA Japan national web listing · web listing checked 2026-10-01; effective date unknown. National web listing checked October1,2026; local variation and stock limits apply. Not a dated transaction. [1]
- 200 JPY(≈ $1.26 USD) · Ten plain baby castella · IKEA Japan national web listing · menu document dated 2025-02-05. Published launch offer, not proof of transaction or continuous availability. [2]
- 400 JPY(≈ $2.52 USD) · Twenty plain baby castella · IKEA Japan national web listing · web listing checked 2026-10-01; effective date unknown. National web listing checked October1,2026; local variation and stock limits apply. Not a dated transaction. [1]
- 400 JPY(≈ $2.52 USD) · Twenty plain baby castella · IKEA Japan national web listing · menu document dated 2025-02-05. Published launch offer, not proof of transaction or continuous availability. [2]
- 150 JPY(≈ $0.95 USD) · Five baby castella with plant-based soft serve · IKEA Japan national web listing · web listing checked 2026-10-01; effective date unknown. National web listing checked October1,2026; local variation and stock limits apply. Not a dated transaction. [1]
- 150 JPY(≈ $0.95 USD) · Five baby castella with plant-based soft serve · IKEA Japan national web listing · menu document dated 2025-02-05. Published launch offer, not proof of transaction or continuous availability. [2]
Nutrition observations
Read the scoped nutrition table and source limits in Nutrition ↑
Last checked 2026-10-01 UTC. A listing is not a live stock check.
Sources & photo rights
IKEA’s dated announcement establishes the rollout, the Maebashi manager interview supplies earlier local context, and the Tokyo-Bay portal supplies the nutrition basis. The family review contributes an attributed purchase and tasting. A permitted photograph of this specific IKEA cake has not yet been secured; official and reviewer photographs are not cleared simply because they can be viewed online. [2] [3] [4] [5]
- 2. Japan baby castella national introduction Open original source
IKEA Japan · Published 2025-02-05 · Checked 2026-10-01 UTC. Company statements and sales figures are attributed, not independent measurements. Local menu exceptions.
Supporting section
February 5, 2025 release; introduction and Country Food Manager statement
- 3. Interview with IKEA Maebashi manager Kazumi Noyama Open original source
Maebashi Shimbun mebuku · Published 2024-07-19 · Checked 2026-10-01 UTC. Manager interview is firsthand for statements, not independent audit of sales; outdoor window is not proof of a drive-through.
Supporting section
Section about Maebashi exclusives and Bistro Window
- 4. Baby castella product 705.939.13, Tokyo-Bay Open original source
IKEA Japan · Publication date unknown · Checked 2026-10-01 UTC. No per-piece gram weight. Cross-contact possible; pistachio/macadamia status under investigation. Full ingredient list unavailable in portal.
Supporting section
Tokyo-Bay selected; opened nutrition and ingredients/allergens dialogs
- 5. Family takeaway review of IKEA plant-based baby castella Open original source
Tatsumiyu family sweets blog / yuinahiru · Published 2025-07-12 · Checked 2026-10-01 UTC. Unspecified Japanese IKEA store. Individual opinion, not representative public consensus. Reviewer allergy-safety generalization not adopted.
Supporting section
Purchase details and family impressions