Twentythree

Pikachu, the original starter trio, and one more old-school Pokémon are getting ready to warm fans’ hearts and satisfy your sweet cravings.

We recently found out that McDonald’s is going to be offering Happy Meals with crossover Hello Kitty/Godzilla figures later this month at its branches in the U.S., and while we’re obviously happy that people will have their burger and adorable toy needs covered, there is still one critical culinary component missing: dessert. Thankfully, after having your appetite whetted for adorable Japanese pop culture tie-ins, you can continue right on to Krispy Kreme, which has revealed that it’ll soon start selling Pokémon donuts in the U.S.

Offered as part of the ongoing 30th anniversary celebration of the Pokémon franchise, Krispy Kreme will be baking up a half-dozen different themed treats, starting with, naturally, a Pikachu donut featuring vanilla icing and a lemon cream filling.

All three of the Gen 1 starters are here too, Bulbasaur’s donut is the simplest, essentially one of Krispy Kreme’s flagship Original Glazed donuts enhanced with colorful vanilla icing and “leaves” made of frosting.

The Charmander donut gets caramel icing and a toasted marshmallow filling as a nod to the Fire-type’s powers.

Squirtle’s is the most elaborate-looking of the three starters’ donuts, with a swirl of cotton candy-flavor buttercream and sanding sugar.

The above-listed quartet often serve as ambassadors for the Pokémon franchise as a whole, and when there’s room for one more in a collection, the nod often goes to Eevee or whichever Pocket Monster species is having a moment, like Snorlax or Ditto are right now with their prominent roles in Pokémon Sleep and Pokémon Pokopia. However, Krispy Kreme has instead recruited Jigglypuff, who serves as the inspiration for a strawberry buttercream-topped donut with strawberry cookie crumbles.

Finally, rounding out the lineup of a half-dozen Pokémon donuts is an Original Glazed cosplaying as a Poké Ball thanks to vanilla and chocolate icing plus a whole bunch of crimson sprinkles.

Each of the species-specific Pokémon donuts also comes with a little paper decoration of its associated Pokémon. They’ll also be gracing the cups of Krispy Kreme’s donut holes…

…and Pokémon-theming will be showing up on Krispy Kreme boxes as well.

Krispy Kreme’s Pokémon donuts go on sale in the U.S. on August 18, the exact same day as McDonald’s Sanrio/kaiju Happy Meals.

Source, images: Krispy Kreme
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Spoiler alert: Your taste buds aren’t ready for this convenience store katsu.

One of the great things about convenience stores is their wide variety of hot food, giving us a simple way to pick up a snack that’s easy to eat while on the go. Not all the hot food is that easy to eat, though, as we recently found out when we stumbled upon 7-Eleven’s “Super Spicy! Taiwan Mince Cutlet”, which practically burnt the taste buds off our tongue with a level of spiciness we weren’t expecting.

Things started off easy, as we spotted the fried cutlet in the hot food display and were instantly drawn to its fiery red appearance. As ardent spice lovers who’ve rarely been challenged by self-proclaimed “super spicy” products before, we casually picked one up to find out how mild it would be, but when we took a bite we immediately swallowed our pride.

From that very first bite, it felt like a flame had been ignited on the tip of our tongue, and the fire quickly spread to cover the entire palate, burning with an intensity that never let up. Surprisingly, it wasn’t just the fried coating that delivered the spicy hit, as the heat came from inside the minced-meat filling as well, giving us double the burn, for twice as long.

▼ Amidst the pain, our taste buds battled against the heat to assess the flavour, because for us, that’s the true marker for a really good hot product.

As it turns out, the flavour was one of the highlights – the filling contained a generous amount of juicy meat, with garlic chives adding an extra element of taste to make the whole thing even more delicious. Perhaps because of the minced meat and garlic chives, the cutlet had a vaguely gyoza-like flavour. Either way, both the taste and the heat were excellent, especially when combined with the wonderfully crispy coating, which crunched satisfyingly between the teeth with every bite.

▼ However, there was one thing that eluded us: what exactly makes it “Taiwan”?

We weren’t sure what the “Taiwan” in “Taiwan Mince Cutlet” was referring to, but after checking 7-Eleven Japan’s official site, we learned that the filling is “Taiwan Minchi” (“Taiwan Mince”) a spicy seasoned minced meat originating in Nagoya. So, in the end, the “Taiwan” in the name refers to the spicy and savoury minced meat filling used in dishes like Taiwan ramen from Nagoya’s famous Misen restaurant.

That’s also why it’s called a “minchi cutlet” rather than “menchi katsu”, which is the usual term for a Japanese-style minced-meat cutlet. It’s also the reason why the filling contains garlic chives, which you don’t normally find in a Japanese-style menchi katsu.

What started out as a chance encounter turned into an exciting journey of discovery, as we not only found out that the cutlet was hotter than any other convenience-store hot food we can remember trying, but also that its name pays homage to the “Taiwan” mince associated with Nagoya’s famed local food culture.

Priced at 189 yen (US$1.18), the Super Spicy! Taiwan Mince Cutlet really does live up to its name, so be sure to stop by your local 7-Eleven soon if you’re game enough to try it, as it’s only available for a limited time.

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Anime’s growing international popularity is affecting name choices overseas.

Popular storytelling tropes and traditions mean there’s often a degree of overlap among anime protagonists, but the characters that leave the deepest impressions tend to bring their traits together in some singular way that makes them stand out from the pack. So while, for example, anime has plenty of hot-blooded martial artist heroes, there’s only one Naruto, right?

Except, actually, in Indonesia, there are well over 100 Narutos. And no, this isn’t the result of somehow amplifying the power of bunshin/shadow cloning techniques, but part of a trend of actual people in Indonesia having the name of anime characters.

Earlier this month, Indonesia’s Directorate General of Population and Civil Registration (a.k.a. Dukcapil), part of the Ministry of Home Affairs, released its latest census data and found a surprising number of residents whose names clearly come from the anime/manga world. The most common anime name among the people of Indonesia is Uzumaki, with 190 people using Naruto’s surname as their name, while another 157 Indonesian residents are named Naruto. Hailing from the same series, the Dukcapil found 158 Sasukes and 152 Uchihas, creating totals of 347 people who owe their name to “Naruto Uzumaki” and 310 to “Sasuke Uchiha.” The census also turned up 60 people named after Boruto, Naruto’s son and star of his own sequel spinoff.

Doraemon also had a strong showing for inspiring names, with 181 people named Nobita, after the series’ lead human character. There are also 16 people in Indonesia named Doraemon, and another 8 share the name of Nobita’s wealthy associate Suneo.

Pirate saga One Piece’s popularity has resulted in 79 people named Luffy and 37 named Usopp. 65 people are named Shinchan, as in the titular tyke of Crayon Shin-chan, and Indonesia is also home to 23 people named Inuyasha.

To be clear, these tallies aren’t for people who use the anime character names as a professional name, nickname, or alias. The census counted official, legally registered names, meaning that any passports, driver’s licenses, or other official forms of ID issued to these people really will list their name as “Naruto” or “Inuyasha.”

The publicly released census data doesn’t seem to account for whether or not the people with these names are native Indonesians, but it’s unlikely that many of them are ethnically Japanese foreign residents. Naruto isn’t really a name that’s used in Japan, and Uzumaki is an incredibly rare family name, with estimates that there are fewer than a dozen Uzumakis in all of Japan. Sasuke is an actual given name, but one that’s very old-fashioned (we’re talking “immediately calls up images of ninja from hundreds of years ago” old-fashioned), and Uchiha doesn’t appear to be an actual surname name. The closest name out of those listed above that you’d be likely find an actual Japanese person with would be “Shin,” but even then, no Japanese person would make the affectionately diminutive suffix “-chan” part of their legal name.

Taking all that into consideration, it appears that these names really are the result of anime’s popularity in Indonesia, and with the medium’s global fanbase continuing to grow, we might be seeing even more anime names in the real world in years to come.

Source: Jiji, Yomiuri Shimbun, International Business Times, Myoji Yurai.net (1, 2)
Photos ©SoraNews24
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A beautiful homage to the true stories of customers and staff at Starbucks Japan.

It’s been 30 years since Starbucks opened in Japan, and since then the chain has grown to include 2,100 stores across all 47 prefectures, with approximately 60,000 staff serving nearly 1 million customers every day.

Those are big numbers for a 30-year-old business, and to celebrate these three decades in Japan, the chain has released a tear-jerking new video that looks back at the many small moments and connections that have taken place at its stores over the years.

Starbucks says around 3 billion “hellos” and “thank yous” have been exchanged between customers and employees across its stores, and this new video pays homage to those exchanges, depicting moments of happiness and sadness that Starbucks learned about through interviews with staff and stories and comments submitted by customers.

Titled “Starbucks 30th Anniversary Brand Movie”, the video was released on 12 August, and displays a distinctive hand-crafted style inspired by the handwritten chalkboards associated with Starbucks stores.

▼ Take a look at the video below, and remember to keep some tissues handy!

From a daughter who grows up all too fast before her father’s eyes to the student who fails her entrance exam, and the elderly couple who are no longer able to enjoy each other’s company at Starbucks, this video really knows how to pull on the heartstrings. The message the chain wants to convey through the video is that Starbucks staff are always looking out for their customers, supporting them with smiles… and a little something to drink.

Helping to make the tears flow is an original song by singer-songwriter Anri Kumaki. Kumaki composed the music and provided the vocals while director Shinya Nakajima (a recipient of many awards including the Cannes Lions Grand Prix) wrote the lyrics based on the stories he heard while working on the project.

▼ Anri Kumaki

▼ Shinya Nakajima

Providing the art is award-winning art director Hidehito Yagi and his team, who spent every day drawing as part of what he described as a challenging but enjoyable process.

▼ Hidehito Yagi

▼ You can see both directors working on the project in the behind-the-scenes making-of video below.

So next time you step into a Starbucks in Japan, take heart in knowing that your story helps to contribute to the history of the chain. Whether you’re there for a happy occasion or to seek out some solace on a tough day, Starbucks wants all its customers to know that their stories, however small, are part of the story of Starbucks Japan.

Source, images: Press release
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Sanrio’s kaiju crossover gives one cute character two extra heads, plus gives one character often overlooked in Japan some time in the spotlight.

Godzilla and Hello Kitty are on the highest tier of international stardom for Japanese pop culture icons. Long before the current global otaku and kawaii culture booms, the kaiju king and Sanrio queen were winning the hearts of fans far beyond their home country

So it’s understandable that McDonald’s America would be very happy to have either of them as a promotional partner. The burger chain is going one step farther, though, and instead of just Godzilla Happy Meals or Hello Kitty Happy Meals, they’re going to be offering Happy Meals with Godzilla and Hello Kitty together!

cosplaying right into our hearts. Hello Kitty and Friends x Godzilla Happy Meal out 8.18. pic.twitter.com/toTfyzcQ3k

— McDonald's (@McDonalds) August 12, 2026

Arriving later this month are the brand-new Hello Kitty and Friends x Godzilla Happy Meals, which McDonald’s is billing as “cute meets kaiju.” The toys will consist of eight different team-ups between a Sanrio character and a giant monster, with the pairings being:
● Hello Kitty x Godzilla
● Kuromi x Mechagodzilla
● My Melody x Mothra
● Pompompurin x Gigan
● Cinnamoroll x Destoroyah
● Badtz-Maru x Rodan
● Kero Kero Keroppi x King Ghidorah
● Chococat x Space Godzilla

There seems to be some fun logic between some of those team-ups, such as the gentle and considerate My Melody being paired with motherly Mothra, the always-assertive Kuromi with hubris-born Mechagodzilla, and the repeating aspect of Kero Kero Keroppi’s name dovetailing with the three-headed anatomy of King Ghidorah. Chococat’s inclusion in the lineup might seem like a surprise, but while the character often gets lost in the Sanrio swarm in Japan, he placed third among U.S. voters in this year’s Sanrio Character Poll, so his apparently sizable fandom in the States likely played a role in getting him a spot in the collaboration.

McDonald’s says that these characters will be “cosplaying right into our hearts,” implying that these are meant to be kigurumi/one-piece costumes of kaiju that the Sanrio characters are wearing. However, Keroppi Ghidorah having three heads suggests the possibility that the Sanrio characters are fusing with their partner kaiju, and this video of Kitty Godzilla approaching a defenseless Happy Meal freighter has an unmistakably sinister tone to it that makes one wonder if she’s becoming influenced by the kaiju’s destructive tendencies.

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▼ Will shipping companies need to summon Archfiend Hello Kitty to protect their cargo from this new threat?

The Hello Kitty and Friends x Godzilla Happy Meals are scheduled to go on sale at U.S. McDonald’s locations on August 18, with no word yet as to whether they’ll be available in Japan.

Source, top image: Twitter/@McDonalds
Insert images: Instagram/mcdonalds
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Just a short train ride from Tokyo and you’ll be left addicted to delicious skewers slathered in a fiery miso sauce.

Japan has a lot of lists of “Three Great…”, from beautiful sceneries to shrines at the bottom of a flight of stairs, but there is also a list for yakitori (literally “grilled chicken”). These humble skewers of chicken meat, often found at festivals, roadside stalls, or at pubs, may not be your first thought for ranking a food nationally, but there are three cities in the country that are known to outshine the rest: Muroran in Hokkaido, Imabari in Ehime, and Higashimatsuyama in Saitama. Although one of them has a surprising twist in that they are not made from chicken at all.

With both Hokkaido and Ehime being on different islands to Tokyo, they’re not exactly somewhere you can pop over in order to sample their delights, but Saitama is different. Just a short train ride from the capital on the Tobu Tojo line, you’ll soon come to the city of Higashimatsuyama, which stands out for its unique culinary identity rooted in postwar history.

▼ Higashimatsuyama Station Building

The tradition began in 1956, when the founder of the yakitori store Daimatsuya opened a shop in the area. At the time, pork kashira (meat from a pig’s temple and cheek) was rarely utilized in Japanese cooking, but by grilling this tender yet chewy pork and pairing it with a spicy miso sauce, it proved to be a massive hit with the locals. The original owner shared the kashira recipe with local vendors, establishing this unique dish as a core element of local food culture.

▼ Heading to Saitamaya‘s Higashimatsuyama Ekimae store, we were excited to finally give it a try for ourselves.

Looking at the menu, three types of lunch sets were available, and while we were also curious about the Secret Miso Fried Chicken Set, we couldn’t exactly satisfy ourselves with fried chicken after coming all of this way.

So, we ordered the Higashimatsuyama specialty Yakitori-ju Set, costing 1,200 yen (US$7.54). To go along with it, we also splurged on a lunch drink, costing an extra 100 yen, and the Gokutoro Liver (680 yen) we spotted on the menu posted on the wall; it just looked so delicious we couldn’t help ourselves.

▼ The first to arrive was the liver, looking fresh and faintly tinged with pink.

Throwing a bite into our mouth, it had a sublime melt-in-your-mouth texture that is to be expected of something called “toro” (the Japanese culinary term for something rich and tender).

Then came the Yakitori-ju, a heavy box set that comes with miso soup, pickles, and a small side dish. There are four skewers: Kashira, Negima (chicken and green onion), Tsukune (chicken meatballs), and Eggplant.

While the Negima, Tsukune, and Eggplant looked positively delectable, it was the Kashira that we were most interested in sinking our teeth into.

The meat offers a firm texture, satisfying chew, and rich umami that differs completely from chicken, complemented by the fiery punch of the miso sauce for an addictive combination.

Unlike traditional local eateries, where kashira skewers are served continuously until diners ask the chef to stop, more modern establishments like Saitamaya offer standard menu ordering, so if you’re looking to try some kashira for yourselves, you’ll need to plan in advance what sort of experience you’re looking for. Now, we just need to find an excuse to make our way to Hokkaido and Ehime.

Restaurant information
Saitamaya Higashimatsuyama Ekimae-ten / さいたまや 東松山駅前店
Address: Saitama-ken, Higashimatsuyama-shi, Yakyu-cho 1-chome 13-15 Sakura-biru 1F
埼玉県東松山市箭弓町1丁目13-15 さくらビル1F
Open: 12:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m. (last order 8:30 p.m.), Takeout 11:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m.
Website

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Minnajima combines remote-island beauty with main-island-stay convenience.

It’s a long way to Okinawa from most parts of the rest of Japan. Getting there from Tokyo, for example, requires you to first go to Haneda Airport, get through all your check-in procedures, fly for about two and a half hours to Naha, Okinawa’s capital city, and then, after you land, make your way to the beach.

This had us in a bit of a quandary on our recent trip to Okinawa. The prefecture’s best beaches are on its outer islands, but getting to them tacks yet another time and energy-consuming segment onto the total journey, so we were thinking of maybe just making do with the coastal options on Okinawa’s main island, which are still nicer than the beaches in most other parts of Japan.

But then we took another look at the map and noticed Minnajima Island.

▼ Minnajima Island

Minnajima is only about 15 minutes by boat from Toguchi Port in the town of Motobu on Okinawa’s main island. We heard, though, that it’s in a whole other class in terms of beach beauty, and so we headed to the port to catch a 10:30 a.m. ferry to see the place for ourselves.

We booked our tickets as part of a package through marine sports/tour company Mermaid, paying 4,500 yen (US$29) for round-trip ferry fare, lunch, and beach umbrella rental, all of which turned out to be things we were happy to have sorted out ahead of time. The same tour is priced at 3,500 yen for kids ages 6 to 11 and 500 yen for children 5 and younger (although that youngest age bracket doesn’t include lunch).

Almost every seat on the ferry was full, but the ship departed right on schedule, and as we drew closer to the Minnajima dock…

…the ocean transitioned to a brilliant blue. The color was so dazzling it reminded us of a tropical cocktail, and not only was the water’s hue breathtaking, but its clarity was too.

At the beach, the tour’s partner staff asked us where we’d like our beach umbrellas set up, and then planted them in the sand for us.

Even if you’re not ordinarily the sort of person who uses a parasol at the beach, we’d recommend one here. While there are lockers and shower facilities, there aren’t really any shade-providing structures or vegetation. Without an umbrella, you’re going to be in direct sunlight pretty much nonstop, and the sunlight is definitely strong here in midsummer.

And again, we can’t stress enough how incredible the water is here. Sometimes when looking at photos posted online of Okinawa beaches, it’s hard to imagine there isn’t some serious filter and color-processing going on, but this really is how Minnajima looks.

As for why booking a package day-trip that includes lunch is a smart idea, there are very few restaurant options on the island, and if you bring your own food, you’ll have to store and carry home all of your own trash, as there are no trash receptacles at the beach. Our package provided us with Okinawa soba noodles at a cafe up the street from the beach, and even the walk there featured great scenery, such as a field of sugarcane.

▼ Our Japanese-language reporter Ahiruneko and his daughter having lunch after hitting the beach

Our boat back to the main island left at 3:30 p.m., and while it might have been nice to stay longer and take the 4:30 ferry instead, we still got to spend close to five hours on Minnajima, and it was time very well spent.

In a way, Minnajima represents the best of both worlds when traveling in Okinawa. Obviously, it’s not deserted during the peak summer travel season, but it was significantly less crowded than the main island’s major beaches. It lets you experience a more unique, and beautiful, part of Okinawa Prefecture’s coastline, but its day-trip-doable status still lets you have the convenience, larger selection of hotels, and larger amount of free time that comes from staying on the main island. Just be sure, if you’re headed to Okinawa, to watch out for the new luggage check-in rules at Haneda Airport.

Related: Mermaid
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