Orangina Blood Orange Soda: A "born in France, bottled in Japan" flavor of Orangina featuring blood orange, one of my favorite citrus variants. The color is a tad more red than grapefruit juice; it's pulp-less, unlike normal Orangina. Doesn't have the same tart flavor you'd get from fresh blood orange fruit but does have a distinct berry-like flavor that distinguishes it from regular orange juice. On the sweet side but still refreshing. 3.5/5.0
recommended soda drinks japanese orangina orange 3.5 bloodorange
Nissin Annoimo Waguri sweet potato cookies: I grew up eating coconut sable biscuits from Asian grocery stores, the type that has scalloped edges and a glazed coating with flakes of sugar. I like them so much that i made the biscuit my avatar for Tasty Snacking. It turns out that in Japan, there are extended flavors of this basic coconut cookie. For autumn, they have a sweet potato flavor with decorative packaging featuring maple leaves and chestnuts. I was pretty amazed by how concentrated they were able to get the sweet potato flav... (read more) 3.5/5.0
recommended japanese lawson sweetpotato biscuits nissin annoimo waguri sweet potato cookies 3.5
Lotte Cheesecake Koala's March: The way this product sat on the shelves at my local kobini, I was initially drawn in by the cheesecake flavor before realizing it was also a special collaboration with Pokemon. These are standard Koala's March biscuits, shaped like koalas with an icing-like filling. With this collaboration, the cookies also feature prints of Pokemon as well as cute koalas doing random things (I found a koala caught in a UFO catcher in this box, something I suspect I wouldn't find in America). I liked Pokemo... (read more) 3.5/5.0
recommended japanese aeon lotte cheesecake koala's march 3.5
Pringles Takoyaki Flavor: These special edition Pringles were originally released in the Kansai region of Japan, but I was able to find them at an Odaiba vending machine in Tokyo. With the vending machine, you pay 200¥ (about $2 USD) and press a button to randomly get between 1 and 3 mini Pringles cans. I ended up with one but luckily still received the flavor I was looking for, which is meant to resemble the Japanese street snack takoyaki, battered octopus meatballs drizzled with mayonnaise and a sweet and tangy b... (read more) 3.5/5.0
recommended chips junkfood japanese pringles takoyaki flavor 3.5 octopus
Kit Kat Okinawa Beni Imo KitKat: There are a few different form factors for KitKats here in Japan beyond the breakable sticks, along with a never-ending stream of seasonal flavors. This special edition KitKat came in a resealable pouch with a flavor inspired by Japanese Beni Imo sweet potato from Okinawa. I haven't had the chance to try it, but apparently there is a very famous Beni Imo tart featuring a swirling mound of sweet potato creme (pictured on the packaging). The Kit Kats come in bite-sized cubes and have a thic... (read more) 3.5/5.0
recommended japanese kitkat okinawa beni imo 3.5
YBC Noir Cocoa Cookies: These are the Japanese equivalent of Oreo cookies, which I tend to have about once a year at the MIT Mystery Hunt competition. Since Mystery Hunt was completely remote this year, I wasn't able to partake in the normal consumption of college-dorm junk food normally shared in person to fuel late-night puzzling, but I still wanted to capture the spirit, which led me to purchase this snack. The YBC snack packs are ubiquitous and can be found at basically all convenience and grocery stores. Ov... (read more) 3.5/5.0
recommended cookies japanese coop ybc noir cocoa 3.5