Mr. Puffy's Japanese Cheesecakes Bring Jiggly Joy to Dallas

The fluffy, Japanese-style cheesecakes served at Mr. Puffy set a new standard for first impressions. They look moist and supple, and a tap from a fork will make them wiggle like Jell-O. They’re a common sight in Japanese bakeries, but more niche here in the states. Their wobbly disposition dazzles social media foodies.

Japanese cheesecakes are the kind of dessert that a kid will take one look at and say, “I want that!” Their parents will retort that the child doesn’t even know what it is, but that doesn’t matter. It’s a thing that wiggles. What else do they need to know?

Mike (who requested that we omit his last name), the chef at Mr. Puffy, makes all of the cakes in-house daily. He says the restaurant was born out of what he and the owner perceived to be a gap in the Dallas dessert market.

“There’s some other stores that are selling Japanese cheesecake, but frozen,” he says. “They’re not that fresh. [...] You can see in the store itself that we don’t have anything frozen.”
Mike claims that Mr. Puffy is the first store in Dallas to offer fresh, authentic Japanese cheesecake. The store is even advertised on Instagram as “a slice of Tokyo in Dallas.”

The signature cheesecakes are served in three sizes, the smallest of which is about six inches and can be finished by one very hungry person. There’s also a wide selection of sauces you can drizzle on top of your cake, including chocolate, caramel, honey and Nutella. In Japan, the cakes are usually served as is. The sauces are to cater to American tastes.

“When people here eat dessert, they expect a dessert,” he says.”Something with more sugar. Something sweet. Some people love it because it’s real light, but others insist that it needs more.”

The first time we went, the menu screen was out of order. But a quick glance across the counter will convey an adequate sense of what’s available, and our cashier was helpful in making recommendations. They also serve soft serve, macarons, coffee and tiny servings of American-style cheesecake. Mike says that the last offering is so customers have a chance to compare the two styles.

We got two cakes, one with chocolate sauce and one with strawberry, and one of the little cheesecakes as well.

While we were talking to Mike, a customer approached him and asked him what the Japanese cheesecake was and who he would recommend it to. Mike explained that it’s for people who want a dessert on the lighter side.

“When the people eat it, they feel very light,” he says to the customer. “You can even eat two."
This has been our experience with Japanese desserts in general. They’re so delectable and mouth-watering, but they have a clean and light quality to them. They’re never too rich and they never sit too heavily on your stomach.

Mr. Puffy’s cheesecake tastes a little like angel food cake, but with a more dense and moist texture. You can cut through the cake like butter and it doesn’t fall apart. The sauce doesn’t make the cake soggy, but instead glides across the top and sits like icing would.

It doesn’t have much in common with an American cheesecake (which truthfully functions more like a pie if we’re being honest with ourselves). But we weren’t there for an American cheesecake. We were there to eat something jiggly, and we can safely say our inner child was satisfied.

Mr. Puffy, 17390 Preston Road, No. 243. Sunday – Thursday, 9 a.m. –  8 p.m.; Friday – Saturday, 9 a.m. – 10 a.m.