Enjoy the things you can afford
Brand: Fujiya & YBC Cost: 130 yen Found at: Family Mart After the first chocolate, I thought to myself, “Ah, yes - just another gimmick to sell chocolates.” The second chocolate confirmed my suspicions: the chips were not nearly salty enough to be truly delicious. The third chocolate, eaten in the interest of fairness,... Continue Reading →
Brand: Jun Chocolate Cost: 108 yen Found at: Daiso Shonen Knife is a Japanese all-girl punk band formed in 1981 that sings about food. It’s not the only thing they sing about, but it is a major feature in their discography with such hits as “I Wanna Eat Cookies” and “Ramen Rock.” From the... Continue Reading →
Brand: Calbee Cost: 152 yen Found at: Lawson If you took a potato, sliced it into French-fry sized quadrants, rubbed those quadrants vigorously in your armpits, and then freeze-dried them, you would have a rough approximation of the Grand Jagabee’s truffle salt chips. They are not horrific, but they certainly provide that pungent, truffle trademark... Continue Reading →
Brand: Pringles Cost: 131 yen Found At: Mini Stop When it comes to Japanese flavored chips, these smoked cheese Pringles are pretty tame. To be fair, they are exactly as advertised – smoky and cheesy. The taste is similar to what you would get if you mixed some liquid smoke into some powdered cheese and... Continue Reading →
Brand: Yamayoshi Cost: Emil forgot (130-140 yen) Found At: Family Mart Emil always manages to find the best potato chips. I never see him do it, either. I will go to the bathroom or get in the shower, and when I come back, it is as if a bag has miraculously appeared in his hand.... Continue Reading →
Brand: Calbee Cost: 160 yen Found At: Lawson When I lived in China, we would use any excuse to go get hot pot. Birthdays, holidays, business dinners, visiting friends, Tuesdays - whatever the occasion, we would all load into a taxi cab in search of spicy food. We went to hole-in-the-wall family joints that would... Continue Reading →
Brand: YBC Cost: 216 yen Found At: “For Passengers” Kiosk at Nagoya Shinkansen Station Literally just pringles that smell like fish. That's it. 200 yen and a "Shinkansen Exclusive" label and these are just pringles that smell like fish. They got me.
Brand: YBC Cost: 260 yen Found At: “For Passengers” Kiosk at Nagoya Shinkansen Station This is how the other half lives - this is the Tokaido Shinkansen Exclusive. These are not the haphazard, basic chips of the Lawson’s or the Family Mart or the 7-11, these are the Mercedes of chips, made for the businessman... Continue Reading →
Brand: Fujisafu Cost: >200 yen Found At: Cainz This snack combines the delicate taste of sweet potato, the hardy flavor of new cardboard, and the consistency of crunchy packing peanuts. I can only imagine that, after a long day of laboratory research in the search for biodegradable packing materials, there was some sort of accident.... Continue Reading →
Brand: Fujisafu Cost >200 yen (I don't remember) Found At: Cainz I have had a bad relationship with okra since a bulk seafood gumbo incident in my childhood. It is somehow spiny and slimy and bitter, and I have yet to have my “come to Jesus moment” with this staple of southern cooking. I will... Continue Reading →
The Little Food Blog 