Twentythree

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’s easier to eat and drink if you’re got a table, isn’t it? However, with public transportation being the primary way of getting around in Japan, lugging a standard folding table to the park isn’t really an option. However, it turns out there’s a handy, convenient, and extremely affordable alternative.

We actually bought this 487-yen (US$3.15) Folding Cardboard Table a while back, through Amazon Japan, while putting together a disaster preparedness kit. It says right there on the packaging, though, that it’s perfect for outdoor events like cherry blossom parties, and since we’ve got a bunch of those coming up in the very near future, we decided to test the table out at home first to see if it really works as well as advertised.

Folded up, it measures roughly 26 by 36 centimeters (10.2 x 14.2 inches), making it compact enough to easily slide into a moderately sized backpack or tote bag, but once it’s put together the tabletop is a more expansive 34.5 by 51.2 centimeters. Being made of cardboard it’s light too, weighing just 420 grams (14.8 ounces).

After removing the wrapping we saw that the entire thing consists of just three parts: the tabletop (which folds in half), the base, and one additional piece. To assemble it, you actually start by unfolding the tabletop and placing it on the ground, upside down. Then you unfold the base so that it crisscrosses like shown in the photo below, and slide in into the tabletop’s notches.

The base has two notches in it too, at corners of its central diamond…

…and this is where you insert the third piece, which acts as extra bracing.

Once you’ve done that, all that’s left is to flip your table over!

The whole process takes literally just a few seconds, and the tabletop is actually rather steady, with no significant wobbling when we tried jiggling it with our hand.

However, because the table is so light, it could get blown around if you’re outside with it on a particularly windy day. There’s an easy solution to that, though, and it’s something you’ll no doubt be planning to do: put stuff on it, which will help weigh it down.

According to the manufacturer, the Foldable Cardboard Table can support five kilograms (11 pounds) of weight, and with a standard-sized can of beer or soda weighing around 370 grams, that means you should be able to put 13 of them on there. Unfortunately, we didn’t have quite that much liquid refreshment stockpiled for our test, but the table did handle two cans, plus a bottle of wine, with no problem in structural integrity or stability.

So yeah, this thing should work perfectly for a cherry blossom party. While you can’t fit an entire opulent feast on top of it, it’s big enough to accommodate you and a couple buddies.

In addition to the low cost and light weight, the cardboard construction also means that if you’re picnicking with kids, you can let them doodle or put stickers on it, and if/when the table reaches the end of its service life, you can put it out with your other recyclables on trash day. And should you need more space, in addition to a single table for 487 yen, Amazon Japan is also selling a bundle of two for 974 here.

Photos ©SoraNews24
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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 of fact, it’s not even the same as the teriyaki burger they sold last week.

That’s because Mos Burger is using a new recipe for its teriyaki burger as of March 18. This is actually the seventh generation of the Mos teriyaki burger, and its first update since four years ago.

▼ A sign announcing the new teriyaki burger, with an excited “Renewal!” (リニューアル), which is used in Japanese to describe renovations and reformulations

With Mos’ reputation for excellent quality, the idea of a new teriyaki burger was both intriguing and worrying. On the one hand, the chain has a strong track record of cooking up tasty chow, but on the other, with their teriyaki burger already being a hit, you could argue this is a case of a company trying to fix something that’s not broken. Still, Mos said that it has “updated the flavor” of its teriyaki sauce “to fit with the current times.” Slightly more specifically, they said that the new teriyaki sauce has “a gentle sweetness within a sauce packed with rich umami flavor that leads to a clean finish.”

Drawing taste-test duties this time around was our Japanese-language reporter P.K. Sanjun. Since there was no overlap between the availability of the new and old sandwiches, P.K. headed to Mos Burger for one last old-teriyaki burger dinner on March 17, then hit the chain up again the next day to try the new version.

Appearance-wise, the new Mos teriyaki burger, which at 470 yen (US$3) us 10 yen more than its predecessor, keeps the same overall look: nice fluffy bun, crisp lettuce with a dollop of mayo mixed with teriyaki sauce, and a teriyaki-slathered patty.

Having securely input the flavor of the old teriyaki burger into the part of his brain for food memories the night before, P.K. took a bite of the new version…and it tasted very good!

However, it didn’t taste very different. He could perceive a little extra sweetness in the sauce, but not so much as to majorly shift the balance of the flavor profile, and he might have only been able to notice it because he was specifically looking for it, since Mos had said that “gentle sweetness” was going to be the biggest difference between the new teriyaki sauce and the old recipe’s. Being the biggest difference, though, doesn’t automatically make something a big difference, and P.K. thinks that many people, unless they’re also armed with prior knowledge that Mos has changed its teriyaki sauce, probably won’t notice that anything has changed.

However, this isn’t a criticism. Like we mentioned earlier, the old Mos Burger teriyaki burger was already awesome, and it’s hard to imagine how they could have strayed from its recipe very far without making the results worse. At the same time, P.K. isn’t upset that Mos Burger has made a subtle shift in its sauce. That kind of incremental evolution may not be the most dramatic way to update your menu, but it’s just the sort of fine-tuning that makes Mos Burger one of the most reliably satisfying burger options Japan has, and with a final verdict of “Yep, new Mos teriyaki burger tastes pretty much like the old one: delicious,” the last part is really what counts.

Photos © SoraNews24
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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 people praising their functionality and sturdy, spiral-bound design. Another fan of the Rollbahn is Studio Ghibli, who previously teamed up with the brand to produce a series of notebooks featuring Ghibli designs, and now they’re giving us a new Ghibli Rollbahn featuring the castle from Howl’s Moving Castle.

The wheezing, whirring, four-legged castle is a character in its own right, so it’s wonderful to see it joining the Rollbahn notebook series for the very first time. The colours chosen for the design are as spellbinding as the mysterious castle, with a beautiful pink-to-blue gradation resembling twilight, and the castle drawn in dark lines to convey the profound sense of weight and grandeur of the artwork.

▼ Rollbahn’s German branding remains on the Ghibli notebook series – a familiar touch that will delight stationery fans.

With Ghibli director Hayao Miyazaki being an aviation enthusiast – “Ghibli” itself comes from the nickname for the WWII Caproni Ca.309 aircraft and the wind that it was named after – this tie-up with the Rollbahn or “Runway” brand makes a lot of sense, and the phrases on the front cover of the notebooks are equally inspiring.

“Ferne Reisen machen weise” translates as “Faraway journeys make you wise“, while “Die Propeller drehen sich” means “The propellers are turning“, and Das Flugzeug gewinnt an Höhe” means “The plane is gaining altitude“.

▼ Reisen bedeutet Leben means “Travel is life“.

There may not be a more experienced traveller in Ghibli’s books than Howl’s Castle, who can travel not only through space but also time, making this a perfect collaboration. Whether you’re travelling or writing at home or in the office, this notebook acts as a beautiful companion, with easy-to-write-on, smudge-proof pages and clear plastic storage pockets at the back for storing sticky notes or small memos.

The Howl’s Moving Castle Rollbahn Pocket Memo measures 14 x 18 x 1.5 centimetres, (5.5 x 7 x 0.6 inches) and can be purchased at Donguri Kyowakoku stores and online, priced at 1,320 yen (US$8.29).

Source, images: Donguri Kyowakoku
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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 candidates, we’ve put together a list of 10 sakura festivals, nighttime light-up events, and other unforgettable cherry blossom experiences you can have in Tokyo this spring.

1. Chidorigafuchi Imperial Palace Sakura Festival
March 5-April 22
Website

Always a highlight of sakura season in the capital, we’ve talked about this one before, but we’d be remiss if we didnt include a reminder. This section of the moat that surrounds the Imperial Palace is lined with cherry trees that are illuminated after sundown, in a central location that makes it easily accessible for some hanami (cherry blossom-viewing) on the way home from work or following an afternoon of sightseeing. This year’s festivities include live musical performances and an extra dash of cuteness from Rilakkuma, but the highlight of the festival period will always be seeing the flowers from one of the rental rowboats.

2. Meguro River cruises
March 23-April 12
Website

The sidewalks along the Meguro River near Naka Meguro Station have become one of Tokyo’s most popular, and crowded, downtown sakura destinations in recent years. If you’d like to admire the trees instead of focusing your attention on weaving through the crowds, hour-long riverboat cruises that give you a central view of the 800-some cherry blossom trees will be taking place during the peak season, with tickets available online here.

3. Ueno Park Sakura Festa
Website
March 14-April 5

The most famous cherry blossom spot in Tokyo has weeks’ worth of food and live musical performances lined up, with everything from piano and jazz saxophone to idol groups and DJs. A portion of food sale proceeds will also be donated to Tohoku revitalization projects, as 2026 marks 15 years since the earthquake and tsunami that devastated parts of northeastern Japan.

4. Sumida River cruises
Website

Compared to the inner-city simplicity of the Naka Meguro cruises, Sumida’s cruises offer a more old-school, but also opulent, experience. Traditional yakatabune pleasure boats make their way up and down the waterway at the eastern edge of downtown, serving multi-course meals while letting you take in the sights of not only the cherry blossoms in bloom, but also landmark architecture such as the Tokyo Skytree.

5. Gotenyama Sakura Festival
March 27-April 5
Website

The Gotenyama garden has been a popular hanami venue since the Edo period, and hundreds of years later, it still hosts a cherry blossom festival. This year, for extra retro atmosphere, a thousand lanterns will be on display, and there will also be special workshops for making traditional Japanese handicrafts and live-demonstrations of ukiyo-e painting..

6. Sakura Fes Nihonbashi
March 18-April 5
Website

Nihonbashi is very much a high-rent district of Tokyo, and for the Sakura Fes the neighborhood’s fancy restaurants and luxury hotel eateries set up food stalls where you can get a taste of the high life without having to make a reservation. Between March 18 and 21, and again from April 3 to 5, the festivities overlap with the Nihonbashi Parfait Fes, so if you love both sakura and sweets, you’ll want to time your visit accordingly.

7. Roppongi Hills Spring Festival
April 3-5
Website

For most of the year, Roppongi Hills is a high-end shopping center that also draws visitors to its movie theater and art galleries. Many of the surrounding hillside streets and the center’s Mori Garden are surrounded by cherry blossom trees, though, and gourmet food stalls, music, and even kabuki performances are all part of the Roppongi Hills Spring Festival.

8. Ark Hills Sakura Festival
March 27-29
Website

The boughs of the sakura tress on either side of a kilometer (3,280-foot) long street in this posh neighborhood form a breathtaking tunnel of otherworldly beauty. You will still feel the earthy desire to eat delicious food, though, and so food stalls from local restaurants will be waiting in the nearby Karayan Plaza during the festival, as will musical performers.

9. Hotel New Otani
February 27-April 26
Website

This luxury hotel’s garden, which is open to guests and non-guests alike, boasts 19 different varieties of cherry blossom trees, with strategically placed lighting to help their colors really pop against the night sky, not that the garden is any slouch in the daylight. And if you are splurging for a room, guests can also upgrade their stay to include a rickshaw tour of sakura-lined streets in the surrounding neighborhood.

10. Rokugien Nighttime Light-up
March 18-24
Website

One of Tokyo’s most famous gardens, Rokugien usually closes at sundown. For a few special days during sakura season, though, there’s separate-ticket after-dark admission, when the grounds, and especially the weeping cherry blossom tree that’s a symbol of Rokugien itself, take on a whole new kind of beauty.

Meanwhile, if you’re looking not for downtown sakura events, but something a bit more under-the-radar this sakura season, we can help you with that too.

Source: PR Times (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9), @Press
Top image: PR Times
Insert images: PR Times (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9), @Press
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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 traditional pancake-like sweet.

▼ Dorayaki commonly contain a traditional red bean paste filling.

Image: Pakutaso

Dorayaki have the same chewy texture as pancakes, so the mouthfeel of the two new “Dora Matcha” doughnuts promises to be a very unique experience. The flavour is said to be premium quality too, as all the doughnuts contain Uji matcha from Gion Tsujiri, a famous 152-year old company based in Uji, Kyoto, Japan’s premier matcha-producing region.

Mister Donut’s classic “Pon de Ring” doughnut will also be getting an Uji matcha makeover for the new release, so let’s take a closer look at all the new doughnuts in the collection.

▼ Matcha Dora Matcha Coarse Red Bean Paste and Whipped Cream (334 yen [US$2.09] takeout; 341 yen eat-in)

Like all the doughnuts in the range, the dough here has been kneaded with Gion Tsujiri’s widely acclaimed Uji matcha. Sandwiched inside is a delicious mound of Hokkaido red bean paste – red beans from Hokkaido are highly rated – with a generous amount of Uji matcha whipped cream and brown sugar syrup on top for mouthfuls of traditional flavour.

▼ Matcha Dora Matcha Chestnut Paste Matcha Whipped Cream (345 yen takeout; 352 yen eat-in)

The collection’s second fluffy, chewy, dorayaki-esque doughnut is coated in Uji matcha chocolate and filled with chestnut paste, Uji matcha whipped cream, and a topping of candied almonds for a distinct crunchy contrast in texture.

▼ Pon de Double Uji Matcha (237 yen takeout; 242 yen eat-in)

Easing us into the Pon de Ring range is this tantalising Uji matcha chocolate-coated variety. The dough and the chocolate deliver a double dose of matcha in one doughnut, making it an irresistible treat for matcha lovers.

▼ Pon de Zaku Uji Matcha Milk Flavor (259 yen takeout; 264 yen eat-in)

This Pon de Ring is coated in white chocolate and topped with crunchy Uji matcha pieces so you can enjoy milky matcha flavours with a green tea crunch.

▼ Pon de Uji Matcha Azuki Matcha Warabi Mochi (270 yen takeout; 275 yen eat-in)

Finally, we have a filled Pon de Ring, with a centre containing Hokkaido red bean paste and gooey Uji matcha warabi mochi (a jelly-like, bracken starch confection). A dusting of powdered sugar and a dip in Uji matcha chocolate completes this treat, while bringing the delicious flavours of Japanese ingredients together.

With so many different flavours and textures in the range, we won’t be able to choose between them, so you can bet we’ll be going home with them all. They’ll only be available for a limited time though, from 25 March – Late May, and only while stocks last, so be sure to get in quick to try your favourites before they disappear from the menu like the matcha treats that have gone before them.

Source, images: PR Times unless otherwise stated
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Belgian chocolatier and Japanese confectioner are both tofu newcomers, but can their powers combine for something special?

Godiva is one of those companies that’s so famous for its flagship product that you don’t even have to mention what it is. Tell somebody “Someone gave me a box of Godiva,” for example, and they’ll immediately understand that you’re talking about chocolate.

However, in addition to making chocolate, Godiva Japan is also involved in making tofu.

The Japanese division of the Belgian chocolatier hasn’t ventured into this field all by itself, however. Instead, they’ve partnered with Fujiya…a Japanese confectionary company that also isn’t known for making tofu. However, the tofu the two companies created was so popular that all available inventories quickly sold out when it went on sale last December. With a restock finally happening, though, we were determined not to miss out this time, especially since there are now two types of Godiva tofu being sold, and so we snatched up one of each as soon as we saw them at our local supermarket.

Both of them are types of gomadofu, or sesame tofu, and first up on our taste test list is Godiva’s standard Chocolat Gomadofu. The tofu comes packaged in its own little cup, like an individual-serving pudding, but we decided to get fancy and plate it.

Doing so revealed that there are two layers to this angular yet soft treat. Flipped upside down onto a dish like this, the top section is a layer of milk chocolate cream, and underneath it is a stratum of sesame tofu with dark couverture chocolate (high cocoa butter-percentage chocolate).

We took a bite, and sure enough, this had immediate and obvious elements of gomadofu and Godiva chocolate. The texture is exactly what you’d get with sesame tofu, but the flavor is the delicious and sophisticated sweetness of Godiva chocolate. The overall effect is a little reminiscent of eating chocolate mouse, but with a more substantial consistency with a little extra enticing stickiness to it.

Thoroughly satisfied, we moved on to the new Godiva tofu flavor: sakura chocolate!

Once again, the bottom layer (once the tofu is flipped over onto a plate) is dark couverture chocolate sesame tofu. Now, though, the top is a chocolate cream enhanced with the flavor of cherry blossoms, a salty, faintly floral sweetness. We were just a little worried that Godiva and Fujiya might be pushing the envelope a little too far here, what with tofu, sesame, two kinds of chocolate, and now sakura flavor too, but it turns out that all those pieces come together in such a beautiful harmony that we were very happy we made room for during the bust sakura sweets tasting season that’s now upon us.

Both of Godiva’s chocolate tofu types are priced at 350 yen (US$2.25) and available at supermarkets across Japan. This batch is scheduled to be on sale until April 30, so we’ll definitely be picking up a few more, especially if we need to bring something special to a cherry blossom viewing party later this month.

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