One of the major conveniences of Japan is that vending machines are around just about every corner, and outside of a variety of beverages, they sell just about everything, from sake to dashi. If you’ve ever spotted a Georgia brand vending machine, you’ll have noticed it’s owned by Coca-Cola and sells their products along with a variety of canned coffees. Now the brand is crossing streams with a vending machine exclusive Coca-Cola coffee called Coca-Cola Coffee Plus. コークご乱心!? コーラにコーヒーはアリなのか、自販機限定『コカ・コーラ COFFEE PLUS』を飲んで確認！ https://t.co/pUDOnY2GIr pic.twitter.com/wPW2xDi1cu — 【公式】リュールブ 最安値ショップ (@ryuurubusaiyasu) 2017年9月13日 If you remember Coca-Cola BlāK, you’ll know this isn’t the first coffee Coca-Cola. While it doesn’t feature the charming aesthetic of Japan’s…

Matcha is probably one of the most recognized of Japanese flavors, even beyond Japanese borders. While it is a delight to sip matcha in the traditional style, sweets containing matcha are a more accessible way to enjoy the rich and concentrated powder. And while cakes, cookies, donuts, macarons and other varieties of sweets containing matcha continue to appear on Japanese store shelves, one combination stands out among all others as a perennial favorite with matcha lovers: matcha ice cream! For example, ice cream giant Haagen Dazs created a bittersweet matcha crumble ice cream bar, Shizuoka-based gelato shop Nanaya prides itself on offering the darkest (and most intense) matcha ice cream…

When it comes to nostalgic taste in Japan, you won’t find many bigger names than sweets and snacks maker Morinaga. Their popular caramels were a childhood favorite of those in the Showa era, so much that they were turned into McShakes for a vintage success. One of the company’s most well-known products, however, is their pancake mix, which has even inspired a maple syrup pancake hot spring in Japan. Now Morinaga is delivering their popular pancake mix flavor in two forms sure to be a sweet success: pancake flavored pudding and pancake flavored ice cream bars. Source: PR Times Japanese-style pudding is often compared to Flan or creme caramel, made…

When Cup Noodle released its Mystery Meat Festival noodles last year to celebrate its 45th anniversary, fans of the ubiquitous instant noodles were surprised by Nissin’s bold move. After all, for the past 45 years since it first appeared on store shelves, all it took for customers was a cursory glance at the ingredients list to realize that Cup Noodles original flavor contained pork. And yet, the tasty pieces of protein floating in their cups clearly contained other ingredients which were not yet identified. For the company to embrace the “mystery factor” and make it into a selling point created a renewed interest in the true identity of this “mystery…

Sometimes, certain less populated prefectures of Japan which are less commonly frequented by tourists and less commonly known by average city-dwellers are characterized in popular culture as wild and dangerous. For the most part, such characterizations are tongue-in-cheek, and even the locals enjoy playing it up. This seems to be the case with Fukui, located in the central Chubu region of the Honshu island facing the Sea of Japan, and one of the least populated prefectures. This picture posted on Twitter last Saturday by @oyayubi_814, along with the caption: “Fukui…dangerous!” caused quite a stir. It would seem to be a hammerhead shark lying on a street gutter, clearly far removed…

One of the features characterizing the Japanese commercial food and beverage industry is that new variations of products, whether in flavor, packaging, or size, continually appear on the market, some lasting a whole season, others only lasting a few weeks. In other words, consumers can expect to see something new at all times. A stroll through the aisles of a Japanese convenience store is never boring. Right now, this is what you’re likely to see in the potato chips section of your local store: source: Grape Inc. “Wait a second? What’s a Japanese man in blackface doing on the cover of that bag of chips?” you may wonder. It turns…

There’s nothing more frustrating than opening up the freezer and discovering that you’re out of ice, especially when you know it will take hours to make new ice from scratch. Specialized ice makers already exist on the market, but they also take time, and can be noisy and cumbersome — not exactly a welcome addition to your home or a crowd-pleaser if you’re having friends over. Thankfully, the wise folks at Thanko have a solution to your problem. The IceGolon, in spite of its name vaguely reminiscent of an ice golem, is an ultra-compact and quiet ice maker that can produce bullet-shaped ice cubes in just six minutes. source: Thanko,…

Nestlé Japan is known for grabbing headlines with their exciting Kit Kat flavors such as chocolate-caked filling and even a sushi variation, but one of their most talked about releases has been sake-flavored Kit Kats, containing sake power kneaded in between wafer and white chocolate clocking in at .8-percent alcohol per bar. Now much like a recent effort to upgrade their standard Green Tea Kit Kats with double-matcha flavoring, Nestlé Japan is putting in extra effort to release a new premimum sake Kit Kat, enlisting the help of a sake-loving Japanese soccer player and a famous sake brewery. Source: Nestle Japan The release is part of an effort by Nestlé…

One of Japan’s most popular anime-themed pop-up shops is back, with the Sailor Moon Cafe 2017 officially opening up at four different locations in the country. While previous iterations of the cafe have featured Sailor Moon themed food and drink, the 2017 edition offers perhaps the most distinct and character driven menu yet, with a colorful menu sure to satisfy fans of the popular animated series. Source: Sailor Moon Cafe While the shop is once again a limited-time offer, the restaurant is worth a trip to sample at the wide variety of Sailor Moon-themed food, drink, and desserts–as well as take home memorabilia. Food: Luna and Artemis Good Friends Burger…

Japanese fast food chain Lotteria is certainly no stranger to spicing up their menu with some creative items. In the past they’ve released such adventurous items as burgers so cheesy and stretchy they come with a bib, as well as the overwhelming “Everything On It” burger. In a departure from hamburgers, however, they are combining one of Japan’s favorite traditional snacks with one of the country’s favorite dishes in the form of Omurice Taiyaki. Lotteria Press Release Taiyaki, fish-shaped (seam bream, to be exact) cakes usually filled with red bean, have gathered some attention around the world in recent years, thanks to colorful dessert and ice cream varieties becoming popular….

Japan is famous for its astounding variety of vending machines selling almost everything under the sun, including dashi cooking stock, specialty goods from rural areas and such esoteric items as ema prayer plaques to hang in Shinto shrines, as you can see here, or even bicycles. But when it comes to sake, vending machine offerings are often limited to just one or two varieties at most. Not exactly a happy solution for the sake connoisseur. However, if you want the convenience of sake dispensed on demand but also seek to enjoy numerous varieties of sake, there is a paradise waiting for you in Niigata Prefecture, less than 90 minutes away…

Many traditional Japanese sweets (wagashi) are lauded not only for their exquisite taste, but also their intricate and beautiful designs as well. As recently seen with a Japanese jelly dessert that reveals a different picturesque scene with each slice, many longstanding wagashi makers are looking to enhance the aesthetic qualities of these treats, but sometimes it’s the simple creative effort people apply at home that stands out the most. Take for instance, animal lover and Japanese Twitter user Nao’s (@england618) take on dango, a Japanese dumpling sweet made from mochiko rice flour. Nao has made perhaps the cutest dango Japan has ever seen, as they are shaped and decorated to…

It’s often thought that sushi (although which contrary to popular belief, doesn’t actually require any seafood) is thought of to be Japan’s representative fish dish, it may be eel, or unagi, that is the country’s most beloved. Now changing attitudes toward food abroad has helped unagi gain more popularity in foreign countries, shifting toward the same status as a savory and luxury treat (and one of the country’s summer delicacies) that it holds in Japan. Much like sushi, unagi may as well have become part of the English language, with many high quality varieties in Japan attracting foreign guests and tourists. The sauce-covered warming dish is a big crowd-pleaser, and…

Despite how great they taste, sometimes traditional Japanese desserts and sweets are best eaten with one’s eyes. Carefully crafted techniques that withstand generations often capture an impressive balance between beautiful aesthetic and delicious flavor, with many Japanese sweets makers treating their snacks as works of art. One of the most well knownwagashi, or traditional Japanese sweets is Yōkan (羊羹), a thick, jellied dessert made from sugar, red bean paste, and agar. While it may be one of the simpler examples of wagashi, one Japanese confectionery maker is introducing a type with a gorgeous new twist. Source: Nagatoya Source: Nagatoya Called the Fly Me to The Moon Yōkan Fantasia, the treat…

Despite what many think, the most crucial ingredient in sushi is the shari (しゃり), or sushi rice, and neta (ネタ), the ingredient used as topping, isn’t actually the defining factor–which allows for some creative toppings at sushi restaurants. Popular conveyor belt sushi chain (kaitenzushi) Kura Sushi definitely embraces that trend, having even featured Sushi Rice Cola And Sweet Sake Cream Puffs on their menu in the past. Kura Sushi may be pushing the envelope with their most recent seasonal menu, however, as it takes that critical sushi rice and replaces it with vegetables for a low-carb sushi option. Source: PR Wire Source: PR Wire To make up for what might…