Life of Guangzhou - Maid Café: "Welcome Home Master!"

Animation Figurines on Display Throughout the Shop (nddaily.com)

"Maid Café" first started in Akihabara Electric Town in Japan, quickly becoming popular amongst youngsters across Asia. Interested in a unique form of sadomasochistic consumption? Try out Palace Elite, Guangzhou's very own "Maid Café" knock-off which opened on Jiangnanxi Lu.

The shop is tiny, maybe only twenty or thirty square meters with only half a dozen tables, but its size really contributes to the intimate and reassuring atmosphere. When someone walks through the door, a waitress dressed up as a nineteenth century European maid welcomes her customers with the same sensual phrase: "Welcome home Master! Would you like a drink?"

There is an old, almost obsolete feeling to the shop and if it wasn't for certain elements, a European visitor might easily believe himself in a café lost down the old streets of Vienna or Prague. But no, we are in Asia where so many influences meet and merge. The owner of Palace Elite is no fan of Oscar Wilde but of manga magazines and animation figurines are on display around the shop. Even the maid's outfit reveals more at second glance. In the cosplay world based on manga culture, these girls incarnate the cute, simple, and obedient girl Asian men (supposedly) all desire.

Young Maid in Her Costume (nddaily.com)

Welcoming the "Master" in the most respectful manner and investing him with a unique sense of power is probably an excellent way to attract male customers but undoubtedly leaves us with the strange impression that the emancipation of women is far from complete even amongst the younger generations. Female customers even have the option to try out the costume so as to "experience the feeling of being a maid." How exciting. For "the Master," after finishing your coffee, you can obviously ask to have you photo taken with your maid, and even get her to record a personalized ring-tone so she can wake you up in the morning... Unfortunately for me – and let it be said – these maids do not deliver breakfast in bed.

"Palace Elite" on Jiangnan Xi Road (nddaily.com)

(By Kobe Gao, David Keyton)