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Starbucks Japan adds exclusive limited-edition Frappuccino drinks to the menu for spring

Choux cream pastry is one of the flavours ready to boost your mood this season.Spring in Japan is a time for flowers, outdoor strolls…and strawberries, according to Starbucks, who’s giving us not one, not two but threedrinksfilled with the fruit for a limited time this season.Kicking off the triple taste extravaganza is the Strawberry Choux Creme Frappuccino, a new take on the Cream Puff Frappuccino, which was released earlier this month.▼ Sold in a Tall size only, at 717 yen (US$4.5

Nissin Donbei to sell Classic line of instant udon and soba noodles for its 50th anniversary

The new bowls will recreate the old taste of 50 years ago when the famous brand first dropped.Nissin Donbei’s kitsune udon and tempura soba cup noodles are getting a makeover–by going back to 1976. The brand is no newcomer to creating novel recipe ideas for its noodles or branching into other foods like rice balls. Beginning in 2024, it also created East Japan and West Japan versions of its products for sale in different parts of Japan, in which the noodles, broth, ingredients, and s

Japan now has a “for foreign tourists only” Mt. Fuji sightseeing train[Video]

Hokusai Special Train made its first run this month.As one of the closest stops to Mt. Fuji, every day trains arrive at Fujinomiya Station in Shizuoka Prefecture carrying not only local residents, but also travelers eager to see Japan’s tallest and most iconic mountain. As of this month, though, one of those trains will be carrying only foreign tourists.Central Japan Railway Company, a.k.a. JR Central, has teamed up with travel provider JTB to create a special train that’s intended only for visi

Studio Ghibli releases the My Neighbour Totoro tea caddy, with a magical self-closing lid

A unique product handmade by traditional craftsmen at Kyoto’s Kaikado, Japan’s oldest tea caddy manufacturer.As a globally recognised brand that prides itself on traditional, handmade processes, Studio Ghibli is always keen to promote other like-minded artisans, often teaming up with them to produce high-quality, limited-edition products with a traditional flair.Now, the studio has joined forces with Kaikado, Japan’s oldest handmade tea canister manufacturer, to produce the &#8

A secluded British mansion in Chiba is a hidden holy land for afternoon tea lovers

You might get lost on your way there, but you’ll be rewarded by a stunning escape filled with scones, antiques, and cow-shaped jugs.British culture is seeing a rising trend in popularity in Japan, with British fairs at department stores often being packed with people every time they are held. One aspect that the Japanese people seem to romanticize is the culture of afternoon tea, and while there are several places throughout the country where you can partake in such an experience, there’s

Fake police phone scam also highlights dumb stereotype about how foreigners speak Japanese[Video]

Fake police officer targets possibly the worst person, phone transcript isn’t so great either.In this article, we’ve got two things to talk about. Both of them are pretty dumb, but we’ll start with the one that’s illegal.On March 16, the Iwate Prefectural Police released an audio recording of a conversation that took place after a man answered a call on his phone while in his workplace. It was from a number he didn’t know, but the caller quickly identified himself by saying “I am contacting you

Secret Starbucks sausage customization sparks sweet joy in Japan[Taste test]

Adding something usually meant for coffee to Starbucks Japan’s Sausage Pie.As Starbucks fans know, many times the coffeehouse’s menu is simply a starting point, and your drink isn’t really complete until you’ve customized it just to your liking. Recently, though, we’ve been hearing about a Starbucks Japan food customization hack that’s gone viral, and so we decided to try it for ourselves.This is a customization for Starbucks Japan’s Sausage Pie, which is the chain’s take on Japanese-style sausa

Create a tiny Ghibli anime world on your bookshelf with new miniature papercraft art kits

Star characters from Ghibli short film Mr Dough and the Egg Princess play inside these mini museums.Studio Ghibli has long flown the flag for hand-drawn animation, reminding us of the beauty that can be born from human hands. In keeping with this spirit, the studio also likes to produce papercraft kits for customers at its official retail outlets, and now there’s a trio of kits that feature anime characters interacting with the Ghibli Museum.These kits focus on three of the stairways insid

Japan’s Mos Burger creates tempura rice bowl bento boxed lunch burger, but not for its menu

New item seeks to put four food categories in your hand all at once.In 1987, Japanese fast food chain Mos Burger debuted the rice burger, swapping out the classic hamburger bun for a pair of lightly grilled discs of rice. By combining the joys of hamburgers and rice, Mos made something doubly pleasing to Japanese palates, and rice burgers have been part of their menu ever since. But now Mos is reaching new levels of multilayering its culinary appeal, with the introduction of something that combi

Are 500-yen noodles at Akihabara Ramen Center a great find or cheap miss?

We leave this ramen joint half happy, half less than satisfied. Akihabara is world-famous for being a city within a city that’s bursting at the seams with electronics, maid cafes, and anything related to anime, videogames and manga. However, in recent years, this bustling Tokyo neighbourhood has earned a reputation for something else as well: good ramen.Now you can find a large number of old and new noodle joints drawing crowds of hungry diners in between their shopping sprees, but how do

Awesome Ghibli Howl’s Moving Castle figure is also a puzzle and an organizer[Photos]

Anime fortress is ready to make the move into your home, but you’ll need to set aside a half-day or so to build it.Howl’s Moving Castle is a multi-functional place. As shown in the Studio Ghibli anime film it shares its name with, it’s a home, a fortress, and a mode of transportation.So it’s fitting that the Howl’s Moving Castle for your home that we’re looking at today isn’t limited to a single role either, as it’s an awesome decoration, a challenging puzzle, and a cleverly convenient organizer

Why you should be adding Calpis to your beer in Japan

A trendy way to enjoy beer in Japan.There’s been a lot of buzz online in Japan recently, about how adding Calpis to beer tastes good. Proponents say the sweet drink helps to balance out the bitterness of beer, transforming it into a well-balanced Japanese beer cocktail that’s very easy to drink.As beer lovers who actually enjoy its bitter flavour profile, we wondered whether this was a trend we could get on board with, so we went straight out to the supermarket and picked up a bottle

New cherry blossom party picnic essential: This super-handy folding cardboard table

This might be the perfect hanami table.With sakura season officially underway and full bloom coming to many parts of Japan over the next two weeks, it’s time to start finalizing hanami (cherry blossom-viewing) party plans. The classic, and many would say still the best, way to enjoy the cherry blossoms is to head to a park, find a spot under the sakura trees, and enjoy a leisurely day of relaxing, snacking, and drinking, either soft drinks or alcoholic beverages, under the pink petals.Ah, but it

Japan’s Mos Burger discontinues old teriyaki burger and rolls out new recipe, but is it as good?

Japan’s favorite domestic burger chain, the one that introduced the teriyaki burger to the country, launches seventh-generation sandwich.Mos Burger is Japan’s favorite domestic hamburger chain, and not only was it the creator of the rice burger, it was also the first chain in Japan to sell teriyaki burgers. Mos’ teriyaki burger made its debut in May of 1973, but while it’s been on the menu ever since, the teriyaki burger it serves today isn’t the same as the one it sold 53 years ago. As a mater

Studio Ghibli unveils new Rollbahn notebook in honour of Howl’s Moving Castle

Anime castle steps into the spotlight with a new release that will delight Japanese stationery enthusiasts.If you’re a fan of Japanese stationery, then you’ll known the name Rollbahn. While the name is German for “runway” and German phrases are used in its branding, Rollbahn is actually a popular stationery brand by Delfonics, and is designed and made in Japan.Rollbahn notebooks have become something of a cult item with locals and overseas buyers in recent years, with peo

10 awesome Tokyo cherry blossom festivals and experiences for this year’s sakura season

There’s never a shortage of cool stuff to do in Tokyo, and that goes double for when the cherry blossoms are in bloom.Tokyo is Japan’s biggest city, and if you’re in the capital during sakura season, you’re spoiled for choice in terms of places to see the cherry blossoms. But with so many spots to choose from, yet only so many days that the short-lived flowers will be in bloom, you’ll have to make some tough decisions about which to hit up before time’s up.So to help you narrow down your list of

ConferenceSource Offers Clients A Customized Service That Exceeds Their Meeting And Conference Needs

Golden, Colorado, Feb. 09, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Certified National Women’s Business Enterprise, ConferenceSource, takes pride in providing each of its clients with a customized scope of services, ...

Mister Donut wows matcha lovers in Japan with new Dora Matcha doughnuts

Like a sweet fusion between doughnuts and dorayaki pancakes, this is an Uji matcha experience you need to try while in Japan.Matcha lovers will want to mark their calendars for 25 March this year, as that’s the day when Japan’s top doughnut chain, Mister Donut, releases its new “Uji Matcha Donut Series“.This delightfully green range consists of five matcha doughnuts, two of which are said to be new varieties with an extra fluffy and chewy texture inspired by dorayaki, a t

Nine amazing off-the-beaten-path cherry blossom spots in Japan for yaezakura and shidarezakura

Yes, Japan’s most famous sakura spots and species draw big crowds for good reasons, but they’re not all that cherry blossom season has to offer.Going out to see cherry blossoms is one of the most quintessential Japanese springtime activities, but fighting crowds is also often another. That’s because the blossoms only bloom for a short period of time, and so pretty much the whole country concentrates its visits to the most famous parks and gardens with near-identical timing.To be fair, Japan’s to

Stunning central Japan wisteria festival is like a purple fantasy straight out of a Ghibli movie

Move over, sakura. Purple is the new pink.The cherry blossom season is poised to start throughout the country, with some places already seeing the flowers start to bloom. However, while cherry blossoms often make the headlines, they’re not the only seasonal flowers that Japan has to offer. In fact, I much prefer it when the wisterias start to blossom, when you can stroll beneath a canopy of cascading purple flowers.There are numerous wisteria festivals across the country, but the Owari Tsushima