Rare Mos Burger vending machine sells items not found in restaurants

It’s Mos, Definitely.

Even if you fancy yourself an avid Mos Burger fan with your limited edition One Piece x Mos Burger hand towel and collection of all the songs released on Mos Records, you’ve probably still never heard of the Mos Burger vending machine and its unique offering of rice burgers.

Our reporter Masanuki Sunakoma only came across it by chance on the platform of Meidaimae Station on the Keio Inokashira Line in Tokyo. He wasn’t sure why Mos Burger chose to put a vending machine there of all places (though maybe the station’s proximity to one of Meiji University’s campuses was a factor) but he was drawn to it like a moth to a flame-broiled all-beef patty.

This machine exclusively sells rice burgers, which is not that strange as Mos Burger offers sandwiches that use “buns” made of tightly packed grains of rice. The four types sold were the Mos Rice Burger Yakiniku for 500 yen ($3.34), Mos Rice Burger Cheese Yakiniku for 550 yen, Mos Rice Burger Korean-style Spicy Pork for 520 yen, and Mos Rice Burger Lu Rou Fan for 550 yen.

▼ Mos Rice Burger Korean-style Spicy Pork

▼ Mos Rice Burger Lu Rou Fan

Meanwhile, at actual Mos Burger restaurants the only two types sold are the Mos Rice Burger Yakiniku and Mos Rice Burger Seafood Kakiage. The regular yakiniku-style burger is the only one sold in both places and the price difference is surprisingly small, with the store version being only 10 yen cheaper than the ones in the vending machine.

Masanuki was hoping to buy all four types to try them out, but the Yakiniku and Cheese Yakiniku ones were sold out, leaving him only the Korean-style Spicy Pork and Lu Rou Fan to taste test.

When he pressed the button to make his purchase, he heard a loud thud at the bottom of the machine, much like a drink would make. This was because the rice burgers were all frozen, meaning he would have to wait until he got home to try them (the directions say to microwave each one for three minutes at 500 watts or two and a half minutes at 600 watts). One thing to note is that they don’t come with any kind of cold pack or dry ice, so if you plan to go buy some, you should bring your own cooler bag.

Our reporter was familiar with how good Mos Burger’s rice burgers taste and couldn’t imagine any way they wouldn’t also taste great with Korean pork or lu rou fan. Sure enough, they both tasted outstanding. The Korean-style Spicy Pork was at a good level of spiciness and the Lu Rou Fan was done in a style that suits Japanese tastes.

▼ Mos Rice Burger Korean-style Spicy Pork

▼ Mos Rice Burger Lu Rou Fan

For the sake of comparison, Masanuki bought a Mos Rice Burger Seafood Kakiage from a restaurant. Understandably, the store-bought burger looked plumper and simply better than the one that was frozen and then reheated in the microwave.

▼ Left: Vending machine Mos Rice Burger, Right: Store-bought Mos Rice Burger

But when it came to taste, the vending machine ones were straight-up outstanding. If he had to rank the ones he ate that day, the best would have to be the Lu Rou Fan, followed by the Korean-style Spicy Pork, and finally, the Seafood Kakiage bought from an actual Mos Burger location.

Now that their quality was confirmed, the mystery of why Mos Burger was selling these masterpieces on a train station platform remained. Masanuki’s investigation lead him to Mos Burger’s online store, where these very sandwiches were also sold by mail order. Perhaps this vending machine was a sort of awareness-raising campaign to the fast food chain’s alternative offerings online.

If that was the case, it certainly worked for Masanuki. He was sure that he would either be visiting the vending machine again or ordering more online before too long.

Photos ©SoraNews24
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