Oshidori Milk Cake: I bought this candy because of the cute but somewhat dated-looking packaging, which made me think it was probably an older classic snack. Inside the bag are individually wrapped milk cakes, hard sticks about 2x in length as a stick of gum. They are completely opaque in color but have some air holes in them. Each stick is fairly brittle so that they snap when you bite into it. Flavor-wise, this was definitely one of the worse things I've eaten in Japan. It tastes kind of like I'd imagine... (read more) 1.0/5.0
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Mont Thabor Hokkaido Milk Bread: I found the picture I took of the Hokkaido Milk Bread from Mont Thabor, a neighborhood bakery in Azabu Juban in Tokyo. One characteristic I've noticed of most bakeries in Tokyo that aren't chains like Starbucks is that they don't normally have any seating, with the idea that customers purchase items to eat at home. Unlike America, where it is normal for people to eat or drink while walking, in Japan, this is considered rude, so even if you purchase say a soft drink at a convenience store, ... (read more) 3.5/5.0
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Morinaga Mango Pudding Snack: This is another flavor of Morinaga pudding packs. They come in packs of three at the grocery store and are small pudding cups, about 2/3 the size of America ones. (To be fair, the 3-pack comes with smaller cups than the individually-sized pudding cups you can also buy, which are actually bigger than American ones). The mango one is extremely sweet and reminds me of mango-flavored gelatin snacks you get in those miniature squeeze packets from Chinese grocery stores (similar to the lychee g... (read more) 2.5/5.0
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Morinaga Annin Tofu: Morinaga is a common Japanese brand that can be found in the supermarket for all sorts of things, probably most popularly in the US for their Japanese instant pancake mix. Recently I've been trying their pudding sets, which are overall decent and affordable. This was their version of almond jello (called annin tofu, though it doesn't contain tofu but just resembles it in its look), the type you get in asian restaurants with canned fruit or goji berries. It has a familiar concentrated almo... (read more) 3.0/5.0
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Koikeya スコーン Quattro Cheese Corn Snacks: The powdered flavoring on these Cheeto-like Japanese corn snacks is a mix of four different cheese: gouda, camembert, mozzarella, and cheddar, and gives it a unique umami flavor that's particularly delicious. It's much more interesting than Cheetos, though just as strong, with a smoother and creamier cheese flavoring overall. Definitely worth trying! 4.0/5.0
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Koikeya スコーン Barbecue Corn Snacks: These snacks are available everywhere in Japan and are like the Japanese-equivalent of crunchy Cheetos, but with bolder flavors. The barbecue flavor has more of a charred than smoky flavor and tastes more strongly of beef specifically (whereas in the US, chips taste more like the glaze you apply to meat). A solid savory flavor that is quite addictive. 3.5/5.0
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