Summer is just around the corner, and to celebrate it as it deserves after two years masked and estranged, there is no better way than to spend an afternoon of relaxation, entertainment and culinary delicacies in an urban oasis.

The most spectacular that we have this pre-summer season is undoubtedly Japanese Summer by Roku Gin, a small paradise of Japanese spirit installed in the incomparable setting of the secret garden of the El Olivar de Castillejo Foundation (Menéndez Pidal, 3).

There, the 100% Japanese artisanal gin Roku Gin invites us to travel to the country of the Rising Sun without having to leave the M-30 or get on a plane with a minimum 16-hour journey.

Until June 15, Japanese Summer celebrates Japanese crafts through an immersive experience that allows you to live, taste and feel Japanese traditions with nature as the protagonist, through ‘rituals’ such as Shinrin-Yoku or ‘forest bathing’ ‘, an activity in which the visitor immerses himself in the olive grove through emotions that awaken the senses and reduce stress.

Every Thursday, Friday and Saturday (on Tuesdays and Wednesdays there are also pairing sessions, prior registration), Japanese Summer proposes an agenda of activities to enjoy Japanese art, culture, traditions and cuisine, with elements such as mural performances by various artists such as Masaaki Hasegawa, soundscape music sessions with a chill-out atmosphere by Kazumi Sakoda, DJ Takumi or Hanakito, ceramic workshops, micro-gardens and cocktails in Kokedama and Kintsugi, as well as tastings where you can discover the six botanicals and ingredients with which Roku gin is made.

As for the gastronomic proposal, Roku Gin relies on the talent of the most cutting-edge Spanish chefs and experts in Japanese cuisine: the omakase cuisine of Ebisu by Kobos, by chef Kobos Cortés; the Nikkei cuisine proposal by Roberto Martínez de Tripea; the Japanese tradition of Yoka Kamada, owner of Yokaloka and the innovative menu of chef Sergio Sanz. The menu includes salmon tartare (€19 with sesame sauce and trout roe), tuna tartare (€21 with avocado and crispy pintatu toast), red meat tartare (€17 with brioche bread), classic oyster (4, €90 with ponzu and wasabi seaweed pearls), Natural oyster (€4.90 with yuzu and black pepper), Shrimp Hakao (€17 with yakiniku sauce), Duck dumpling (€15 with kimchie soy mayonnaise), Japanese crispy (€15 with Navarre sausage and oyster sauce), Tuna tataki (€18 with teriyaki sauce), Butter and truffle fish nigiri (€16), Tuna sashimi (€20), Sas himi salmon (19 €), green tea mochi (€6.50), mango mochi (€6.50) and Dorayaki with chocolate syrup (€6.50).

You can reserve a table through the Roku Gin Summer website.

Another highly recommended ‘urban oasis’ style space is Casa Corona, which after two years closed due to the pandemic, reopens to the public for free during the months of June and July to offer all its visitors a unique proposal disconnection for this summer. It will do so, not only by being the meeting point for the best afternoons and disconnection from the routine, but also by offering a wide variety of experiences and activities with an innovative musical proposal that includes the performance of more than a dozen DJs.

The dynamics will be related to sustainability, from the hand of Be Water; with the active lifestyle, with the presence of Better Naked Club, the online training platform founded by influencer Paula Ordovás; or fashion, with Himba, the textile brand of the influencer couple Tomás Páramo and María García de Jaime. In addition, there will be more surprises for fashion lovers as other clothing brands have joined this edition of Casa Corona and will open their own pop-up stores in the space on key days. Among them are The Villa Concept, the brand of influencers Melissa and Grace Villarreal or DosPrimeras, the project of Ana Iglesias, winner of Masterchef 8 and other prominent names such as Bluelow, Testaruda or White

The Casa Corona website will collect all the information and agenda of the experiences that will take place and will offer the possibility of reserving a place to participate in its activities, since they will have a very limited and exclusive capacity. In addition, the website will keep users updated with many other surprises. Finally, for lovers of summer gastronomy, Abbot Kinney’s, the vegan ice cream brand, will also be part of this year’s Casa Corona edition. Their ice creams are made only with natural, organic and 100% vegetable ingredients, a philosophy that brings them closer to Corona’s way of understanding life and its commitment to sustainability.