Colonel Sanders Loves to Play Dress-Up in Japan!

We all know that Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) has that iconic mascot, who is Colonel Sanders. Some outlets even have a statue of the man displayed at their entrance.

My first encounter of the Colonel Sanders statue playing dress-up in Japan, was at one of the KFC branches in Kyoto.

I was walking past and did a double take, as the statue was decked out in a Japanese outfit, complete with a sword.

My next encounter was in Tenjin, Fukuoka and this time he was all prepared to celebrate Halloween!

Next was during the Sendai Tanabata Festival「仙台七夕まつり」, which is an annual event held from August 6-8 and I found the man dressed to celebrate the festivities, complete with a colourful festival streamer and a festival fan, which is a popular accessory for most people during the summer months.

The staff at this Sendai branch seem to move the statue around! Some days he’s found along the shopping arcade (see above), but on other days he can be found just outside the entrance to the store, with a slight variation to his overall look.

Why do I get the feeling that he went a little overboard with his merrymaking, as his cheeks were flushed and he had a necktie wrapped across his forehead?

I’m still on the lookout for more of the Colonel with his variations in outfits. Have you come across any interesting ones?

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post. I just found it amusing and decided to compile all my encounters to-date.

Sakura Japanese Sake KitKat「キットカット 桜日本酒」

Many KitKat fans will know that Japan has over the years introduced many different flavours of this chocolate covered wafer biscuit and this year, the Sakura Japanese Sake KitKat was released for the cherry blossom season.

I managed to get my hands on a packet containing 12 individually wrapped mini bars.

As soon as you open the packaging, you will be greeted by a strong smell of sake, with a slightly floral accent.

Upon unwrapping, you will find the wafers covered in a pink coating of white chocolate. Somehow I felt that the taste of sake wasn’t as strong as their previous sake versions and this one tasted more like cherry.

As these KitKats contain 0.07 percent alcohol content, they are deemed to be unsuitable for children and also people who are alcohol intolerant.

Although this flavour is only available for a limited period, you may still be able to find it at some of the shops in Japan. I did see some at the Don Quijote store in Nagasaki City on 29th April and there are also several online stores that may still have some in stock.

Enoki-Tei Honten「えの木てい 本店」

Enoki-Tei Honten「えの木てい 本店」 is a cafe that resides in the former residence of an American public prosecutor in the early 1900s. This house was built in 1927 and designed by Japanese architect Yoshizo Asaka, who also constructed Bluff No. 234, which is located nearby.

There is an outdoor dining area, that welcomes those who want to bring their fur kids along.

We stepped into the house and at first glance, it looked we had the place all to ourselves. The cafe is located on the first floor and there is a takeout corner on the second floor.

Since this door on the left was labelled as the “Tea Room”, we decided to open the door to take a peek… (even the door knob looks like it is from another era)

Upon entering, we found a quaint and cozy interior with beautiful antique furniture. Seating is limited and most of the tables were already occupied when we arrived, so we were thankful to be able to secure one of the few remaining available tables.

Looking around the room, we found that there was even a fireplace!

Menu:

A cake set is available on the menu and this is usually cheaper than if you order a slice of cake and drink separately. I wanted to try some of the rose-themed drinks, but they weren’t included in the set, so we ordered ala carte instead.

One of the cakes that we tried was the “Opera”, a delightful coffee buttercream sandwich layered with an almond chocolate ganache.

Paired this with a cup of Rose Coffee, an unimaginable combination but it works! It was an interesting experience to be sipping coffee with the fragrance of roses.

Next was a yummy Rose Lychee Cake, which combines both rose and lychee flavours in a framboise mousse.

Washed this down with some Rose Lemonade, a drink that is especially refreshing on a hot summer’s day!

Time seems to pass slowly in this Tea Room, which invokes a feeling of nostalgia.

If you are visiting Yokohama, Japan, do check out this cafe, which remains one of the few original Western-style buildings in the Yamate area.

Address:
Enoki-Tei Honten「えの木てい 本店」
89-6 Yamatecho, Naka Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 231-0862, Japan.
[Map]

Telephone: 045-623-2288

Opening Hours: 11am – 7pm

Getting There:
About a 10min walk from the Motomachi-Chukagai Station (Minato-mirai Line). Take exit 6 for the America Yama Park「アメリカ山公園」.

POMPADOUR「ポンパドウル」 – home of the best Curry Bun in Yokohama

Pompadour「ポンパドウル」 is a popular bakery chain, which has its roots in Yokohama, Japan and has over the years opened many branches across the country. Within Yokohama itself, you can find many of its outlets scattered across the city, but I decided to go check out the shop where it all started from.

This very first store was opened in 1969 along the Motomachi shopping street, about 5 minutes away on foot from Japan’s largest Chinatown.

There were many varieties of breads and pastries that were available, but one will need multiple trips to the bakery in order to try them all.

These were some of the items that I had bought… (you can tell which are the most popular items from the half-empty trays)

Rare Cheese Lemon Pie – this had a flaky pastry with a nice citrusy flavour.

Mochi Cheese Bun and Camembert Cream Cheese Bun – I had bought one of each and found the mochi cheese bun had a chewy texture, with a light cheese flavour.

Camembert Cream Cheese Bun – this was quite enjoyable, as I love cream cheese and have a strong preference for Camembert, so it was somewhat of a comfort food.

Yokosuka Navy Curry Bun – it took me 2 visits to the bakery before I managed to buy this bun! On my first attempt to purchase this, it wasn’t available at the time I was there and I was told that the next batch of buns would only be out of the oven 40 minutes later, but unfortunately I had an appointment to get to and couldn’t wait, so I went back again on another day. On my way out, I overheard other customers (local Japanese), who were also enquiring about the availability of this curry bun, so I concluded that it must really be popular!

Japanese curry is said to have originated from Yokosuka’s Navy curry and the curry in these buns was made using the navy’s recipe. Its ingredients include wheat, milk, egg, soybean, beef, pork, chicken, banana and apple.

Thankfully I managed to purchase the curry buns on my second visit, although half of the tray’s contents had already been sold!

This fried curry bun was very tasty and the bread still retained its crispiness even after it had cooled down. I will definitely buy several more of these buns when I visit Japan again.

Address:
POMPADOUR 元町本店
171, Motomachi, Naka-ku, Yokohama, Japan.
〒231-0861 神奈川県横浜市中区元町4-171
ポンパドウルビル1階

Telephone: 045-681-3956

Opening Hours: 9:00 – 20:00 / Café: 9:00 – 18:00 (last order 17:30)

Getting There:
7 min walk from Ishikawacho Station (JR Keihin Tohoku Line / Negishi Line) – Motomachi Exit
7 min walk from Motomachi Chukagai Station (Minato Mirai Line) – Motomachi Exit

Elephant-shaped Ice Cream at Zou-no-Hana Cafe「象の鼻カフェ」

Located along Yokohama’s waterfront between Yamashita Park and the Red Brick Warehouses, Zou-no-Hana Park was the site where Commodore Perry landed on his second visit to Japan from the United States on 31st March 1854. Yokohama was subsequently selected as one of five main ports in the Treaty of Amity and Commerce between Japan and the United States in 1859 and this area became the port of Yokohama.

Zou-no-Hana Cafe「象の鼻カフェ」 resides at Zou-no-Hana terrace, which was named after the original dykes constructed along this waterfront that resembled the shape of an elephant’s nose (in the Japanese language, ‘zou’ means elephant and ‘hana’ means nose).

My never-ending quest for cute food led me to this cafe, as it serves elephant-shaped ice cream!

Attempting to cool off from the summer heat, I couldn’t help ordering a cup of non-alcoholic Mojito (¥500), but was too thirsty and thus had already drunk more than half of it, before I remembered to take a picture!

However, the main highlight of my visit to this cafe was this Zou-no-hana Soft Cream「ゾウノハナソフトクリーム」costing ¥400.

This comprised of Hokkaido Milk ice cream, shaped to look like an elephant’s head, with chocolate chips for its eyes and disc-shaped waffle wafers for its ears.

Too cute, but I had to devour it before it started to turn into a milkshake!

Overall, this cafe is a nice and quiet place to chill if you want to take a break from your explorations of the town.

Address:
Zou-no-Hana Cafe「象の鼻カフェ」
1-1 Kaigandori, Naka Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 231-0002, Japan.
〒231-0002 神奈川県横浜市中区海岸通1丁目 象の鼻テラス内
Located at Zou-no-Hana Terrace in Zou-no-Hana Park.
[Map]

TEL:  045-680-5677

Getting There:
3-5min walk from Nihon-Odori Station. Follow the directions for Osanbashi Pier「大桟橋ふ頭」.

(Only in Summer) Refreshing Bear-shaped Shaved Ice at Japanese Ice Ouca「ジャパニーズアイス櫻花」

Summer is my second least favourite season, but funnily enough, I found myself melting under the sweltering heat of Tokyo’s summer this year! Always on the lookout for kawaii (i.e. cute) themed food and also in search of something to cool me down, I managed to find a place which satisfied both criteria!

Japanese Ice Ouca「ジャパニーズアイス櫻花」 typically sells ice cream throughout the year, but in summer, they also offer shaved ice desserts (kakigori) on their menu.

These were no ordinary looking kakigori and they were shaped like bears’ heads and aptly named as “Bear Kakigori“「くまちゃんかき氷」! Various flavours were available and I was in a dilemma as to which one I should order, as I wanted to try everything!

Still undecided, I then asked the guy at the counter to recommend me a flavour, since it was my first time there. He told me that both the white one (milk) and the green one (matcha) were good. After some quick deliberation (‘cos there was a queue behind me), I decided to go with Shirokuma (literally translated as “white bear”), which was milk flavoured shaved ice with a scoop of milk ice cream for its snout. You can choose whether to have a “small mouth”, “large mouth” or “big mouth” and this will determine the scoop size of the ice cream for the bear’s snout. I went with the “small mouth”, as I had just finished lunch and wasn’t sure if I could finish the dessert if I went overboard with my order.

Seating is quite limited at this shop and as it is usually packed with customers, the only seat I could get was a bench outside the shop, which meant that I had to eat fast before the ice started to melt under the heat!

I do have to say that this bowl of shaved ice is just too cute to be eaten! However, it was really refreshing and tasted great! Apricot was used for the ears and the eyes and nose were actually black beans!

Do give this a try if you visit Tokyo during summer!

Address:
Japanese Ice Ouca「ジャパニーズアイス櫻花」
〒150-0013 東京都渋谷区恵比寿1-6-6 土田ビル1F
1F, Ebisu, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, 150-0013, Japan.
[Map]

Tel: 03-5449-0037

E-mail: info@ice-ouca.com

Opening Hours:
Spring & Summer (March to October)   11:00～23:30 (last order at 23:00)
Autumn & Winter (November to February)   12:00～23:00 (last order at 22:45)

Getting There:
3-min walk from Ebisu station (both JR and Tokyo Metro lines).

Amazing Burgers at DELI FU CIOUS in Tokyo!

Deli fu cious is a Japanese-style fish burger joint that prepares and cooks each of their burgers upon ordering, so as to ensure the freshness of the food. The eatery’s name is a cheeky combination of the words “delicious” and “f*cking”, thus with a name like that, they definitely need to uphold a higher standard and quality of the food being served.

Upon arrival, place your order at the window outside the shop and make your payment at the same time.

Food Menu: (they do have some other options if you don’t like fish)

As the place was full when we arrived, after we had placed our orders, we were told to sit and wait at the bench outside the restaurant and they would inform us when there were seats available.

Killed some time whilst waiting, by taking some pictures of the shop’s exterior. Noticed that the restaurant’s sign is shaped like a fish and there is also a fish motif hanging at the door.

At the entrance, you can find a door mat with the pattern of a fish sandwiched between two buns. This same logo is also imprinted onto the top of their burgers.

We discovered that they seem to make customers dine by batches – i.e. once all the seats have been filled, the rest of the customers need to wait (queue) outside until they allow you to enter. Even if some diners had already left the restaurant, the staff will actually wait for all the diners to vacate the premises, before they let you in (i.e. the next group). Thus, please be considerate whilst dining here and don’t hog the seats for too long, otherwise you will hold up the rest of the customers who are waiting outside for their turn to dine here.

Our timing seemed to be just right, as we were first in line (i.e. in next group to dine) and whilst waiting, a queue had already started to form behind us. When we were eventually seated, we found that the seating capacity was rather limited – i.e. only about 8 seats.

Drinks were served first and we had ordered some Italian sodas.

Finally, the main courses arrived and they were really good!!

昆布〆フィッシュバーガー
KOBUZIME FISH BURGER
和風出汁豆腐ソース
¥1,000 (+税)

This fish burger had a fresh and tasty fish patty, topped with an interesting tofu sauce, with veggies and some Japanese pickled radish. Pickled ginger is also served on the side.

カニクリームコロッケバーガー
CRAB CREAM CROQUETTE BURGER
ハニーマスタードソース
（※カニみそ入りも選択可＋￥300）
¥1,200 (+税)

As you can see from the top of the burger, the same fish logo, that we saw on the floor mat earlier, is imprinted onto the bun.

I had ordered the Crab Cream Croquette “Special” Burger (by topping up an additional 300 yen), which gave me the kani miso version and it was a strong seafood flavour bomb! To those who are unfamiliar with this, kani miso also known as crab miso, crab paste, crab butter, or crab innards. It may sound disgusting, but it’s actually really creamy and full of umami! This was my first time eating a croquette made with this ingredient and it was definitely an interesting gastronomic experience!

The croquette was topped with some honey mustard sauce and some pickled ginger was also served on the side, to cleanse your palate.

コールスロー
COLESLAW
自家製無添加ドレッシング
¥300 (+税)

As we wanted a balanced meal, we decided to order some coleslaw, which came with a special house dressing, but this was a letdown for us as it was just a simple bowl of raw veggies and a thousand island dressing. Nothing interesting as compared to the excitement of biting into the burgers.

Verdict:
Overall, I would definitely recommend the burgers, which are of good quality and made with fresh ingredients! Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough stomach to try the other burgers on their menu, but I’ll definitely be back again the next time I visit Tokyo!

Address:
Deli fu cious
1-9-13 Higashiyama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan.
〒153-0043 東京都目黒区東山1-9-13
[Map]

Opening Hours: 12:00～21:00
Closed on Wednesdays.

Telephone: 03-6874-0412

E-mail: info@delifucious.com

Getting There:
8-min walk from Naka-Meguro station

JR East Pokemon Stamp Rally「JR東日本ポケモンスタンプラリー」

Stamp rallies seem to be popular in Japan, especially with kids (and some adults too!). This activity involves making your way to specific locations and collecting the imprint from the ink stamp found at those locations.

The East Japan Railway Company (a.k.a. JR East) seems to organise an annual Pokemon Stamp Rally event, which is usually held in summer (July-August) and there are prizes to be redeemed, if you manage to complete the specified objectives.

As my trip happened to coincide with the dates of the stamp rally, I decided to participate for the fun of it.

How to get started?
You will first need to obtain the official stamp rally pamphlet from any of the participating JR stations. Anyone can take part in this activity, as it is free (i.e. no fees required, apart from paying for your own transport to get to the various locations).

For this particular stamp rally, the first objective was to collect a minimum of 6 different stamp imprints on the pamphlet, after which you will be able to redeem a participation prize comprising of an official Stamp Rally Booklet and a Pokemon Pass Case.

There’s even an extra box on the back of the pamphlet, for a bonus stamp imprint to be obtained from any one of the two Pokemon Centres listed and you will receive a Pokemon sticker once you have gotten that box stamped.

I was glad to have completed the minimum requirement and managed to redeem the Stamp Rally Booklet and a cute Pokemon Pass Case with a Pikachu and Eevee motif.

The Pokemon Pass Case is actually a ticket holder, so it is handy for train journeys as you can slot your train tickets into this pass case and sling it around your neck for easy access during your train commute.

After obtaining the official stamp rally booklet, I soon realised that if I wanted to get the entire collection of stamp imprints, this meant that I had to re-trace my steps to collect the initial 6 stamp imprints that I had previously collected on that pamphlet, to get them stamped into my booklet! Ugghh…

Filling this stamp booklet is trickier than the pamphlet, as you will need to ensure that you stamp against the correct box that corresponds to the train station at which you found the stamp. This may pose a bit of a challenge for those who can’t read Japanese, but you can always try to match the Kanji characters of the train station names or match against the pictures of the Pokemon.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to re-trace all my earlier steps, so I ended up filling only four boxes in my stamp booklet.

In order to complete the entire stamp rally, there are a total of 55 pit stops which you will need to travel to in order to collect all the stamp imprints! This map shows you which Pokemon stamp motifs can be found at which JR stations.

Photo: JR East

Hardworking participants will be rewarded with a specially designed Pokemon Vinyl Bag upon completion of the entire booklet.

Prizes can be redeemed at the locations indicated with ゴール (meaning “Goal” or final destination) on the map.

Unfortunately, my vacation in Japan only lasted for a week and thus I did not manage to complete my collection of stamps, but it was a fun side activity during my train travels!

If you are planning a trip to Japan (Tokyo, Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures) during the summer months, you may want to check if JR East has any similar stamp rallies scheduled, which coincide with your visit and do consider participating in one as an optional side activity.

More details on JR East’s Pokemon Stamp Rally can be found at the following link (the page is refreshed every year, with details of the latest event):
http://www.jreast.co.jp/pokemon-rally/

Toripy「トリピー」: Tottori Prefecture’s mascot

Tottori Prefecture「鳥取県」 is well-known for its pears, which they name as 20th century pears「二十世紀梨」 and thus it’s not surprising that its mascot has incorporated some pear elements.

Toripy「トリピー」 first appeared in 1997, as a mascot at the Yume Minato Expo「夢みなと博覧会」 and since then he has been a tourism mascot for Tottori Prefecture (in case you’re wondering why I used “he”, that because according to his biodata, this mascot is of the masculine gender).

He is part pear and part bird, but please don’t ask me to attempt to guess what kind of creature that makes him. Regardless, I do think he is cute!

(photo of Toripy and a tourism official taken at the Japan Rail Cafe, when they visited Singapore as part of a Tottori promotional event)

Hagi no Tsuki「萩の月」- A Sendai Specialty

If you are familiar with the Chinese tradition of eating mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival, Japan has a different version of mooncake called “Hagi no Tsuki”「萩の月」. This Sendai specialty was inspired by the autumnal moon (“tsuki” in Japanese) dominating the night sky, over the field of Miyagino covered with bush clover (“hagi”) blossoms.

This is packaged in boxes containing 5, 8, 12, 16, 20 and 28 cakes each.

I happened to buy a 5-piece box of these cakes during the Sendai Tanabata Festival and it came wrapped in special paper for the festival.

After unwrapping and unboxing, I found 5 smaller boxes inside!

The shape and colour of this cake looks like the full moon, but it is actually a light and fluffy sponge cake filled with a mild-flavored custard cream. Unfortunately it’s shelf life is only about 2 weeks, so if you are planning to buy this as a gift for someone, you’ll need to make a note to check on its expiry date before you purchase it!

Overall, I liked the cake as it wasn’t too sweet and was very fluffy. Definitely a must-buy if you are visiting the Sendai region!

(In case you’re wondering – I bought mine from a department store in Sendai city, but these can also be found at the shops in the JR Sendai station)