Kit Kats
I recently learned that there are over 200 kinds of Kit Kats in Japan. I had already bought a few different flavours when we passed by Japan last time, and I thought surely I would be given tons of opportunity to buy a ton more this time. To my surprise, they were not as common as I thought they would be. I didn't see any unique flavours in convenient stores or super markets, but almost only at souvenir shops.
I was able to buy 3 flavours of Kit Kats during this trip, they are Wa-Ichigo (Japanese Strawberry), Mount Fuji Strawberry Cheesecake, and Raspberry. On my previous trips, I've bought Red Bean, Strawberry, Sakura Macha (Cherry Green Tea), and Dark Chocolate.
Giant Osaka Castle Cake
Our flight to Osaka was actually the first ever direct flight between Vancouver and Osaka for Air Canada Rouge, and because of that, they had set up a buffet, 2 sushi cupcake carts, and an amazing looking giant Osaka Castle Cake display at our gate. Unfortunately, because we waited until the last 10 minutes before we went to our gate, we did not get a chance to taste any food, nor the Osaka Castle cupcakes. We did, however, managed to grab 2 overly sweet sushi cupcakes before we boarded the plane. Lesson learned!
Hello Kitty Tea House in Kyoto
I knew there was a Hello Kitty Pop Up Café in Laforet in Shibuya but that was done a few months ago, so I tried really hard to look for an alternative. To my surprise, more popped out for Korea and Taiwan than for Japan. Finally I was able to find a Hello Kitty Tea House in Kyoto and immediately decided to go.
We actually went directly after my Maiko makeover appointment as it is almost right across the street, which is situated between Kiomizu Dera and Gion, near Sannanzaka, right next door to the Ghibli Studio store. The weather was perfectly cloudy and I was exhausted from the photo shoot. We had to wait for about 10 minutes before we were led into the tea house, which wasn't as bad as I thought, given that we went on a holiday.
It was too cute!
Everything had Hello Kitty on it including the napkins and coasters. They even placed giant Hello Kitties on empty seats so guests feel like they're having tea with Kitty herself! I ordered the Hello Kitty Matcha Latte and a Manju, and Keith ordered a delicately decorated Hello Kitty Parfait.
Pablo Cheese Tart
There were always crazy long lines for Pablo in Osaka no matter where we went. They make more than just Cheese Tarts but the Cheese Tarts are what people are lining up for. These Pablo Cheese Tarts are ¥780 each, and comes in 2 styles: "Rare" and "Medium", with the Rare style having a softer inside.
We tried both the Rare and Medium styles (of course) and also tried their Golden Brulee Cheese Pudding. These magical creamy goodies are not nearly as sweet as cheese cakes in Canada, and we both really loved that fact.
Fuji Shibazakura Limited Edition Cookies
We got these from the Shibazakura Festival near Mount Fuji. They are cherry flavoured cookies with cherry blossom and white chocolate coating. They are pretty delicious, and tastes kind of like shortbread.
Strong Macha Cake Sandwich
Keith wasn't a big fan of these because it actually has quite a strong matcha taste and he's still getting used to the flavour (it literally says "strong matcha" on the cover). I, on the other hand, absolutely loved them. They are little round cakes with cream in the middle, all matcha flavoured. Maybe because I don't really like my cakes too sweet, I literally ate these all day!
Shizuoka Specialty Steamed Cake - Strawberry Flavour
These little fluffy balls of heaven are a Shizuoka specialty. They come in many flavours but we only got a small box of strawberry ones on our way to Mount Fuji. Big mistake, as they were phenomenal! These are steamed strawberry cakes with custard in the centre. They kind of look like a small muffin (with out the muffin top) and just melts in your mouth. They are Keiths favorite and totally justified.
Hiroshima / Miyajima Specialty Iron Pressed Cakes - Variety Filling
Nearly all the vendors sold these on Miyajima Island. They are iron pressed cakes, shaped in a maple leaf, that come in a variety of flavours. We bought a package that included custard, chocolate, lemon, and chestnut flavours.
Grocery Store Sweets
Before we came back to Canada we visited the grocery store "Life" and bought about a million things to try or bring back. These were some of the snacks/sweets we bought.
Starting from the top left corner are cake rolls dipped in a matcha white chocolate kind of coating. Then in the top centre are avocado cream cheese bite size tortilla chips. The green package on the right contains small pieces of Baumkuchen, a layered log cake that is usually extremely amazing but for some reason this brand doesn't last long at all and completely dried up by the time we got back to Canada.
In the very centre is a Kobe specialty pudding cake, it is extremely moist and soft and tastes a bit caramelly. The package to the left is dried squid (salty), which is something I ate on a regular basis when I was in Taiwan. It came also be seen at the bottom right corner. The last 2, starting on the bottom left, are Japanese style pineapple and peach flavoured macaroons, and konnyaku jelly.
We also bought my favorite waffles of all time, the 7-11 brand Belgian waffles, as well as some Hokkaido cheese cakes that were just a bit to moist and bland for me.
Our Beverage Run at the local Super(-market)
The same night we went to "Life" we also bought a variety of drinks that were just too special to ignore.
Starting from the left, is an extremely thick and the most delicious mango and peach cocktail I've ever had. Then a cola flavoured alcoholic drink. Third from the left is a Calpis soda alcoholic drink, followed by the Belgium Hoegaarden beer. Then, it is a jar of organic apple jam, which I have yet to try, and a big cup of pudding (my favorite)! Lastly, we bought a carton of Hokkaido milk, which we compared with another cheaper branch, and even did a blind taste test on (I liked the cheaper brand better).
Speaking of milk, Keith and I are both lactose intolerant. In Canada, even if we add Lactaid we still sometimes get upset stomachs. But in Japan, not only do they have the creamiest and milkiest milk in the whole world, our stomachs handle them completely fine. I definitely recommend trying Japanese milk when you go to Japan. Though it may be an unusual choice to local specialty to try, it will be totally worth it (oh, also ice cream).
Hanging out at home after dinner going through some of these snacks were some of my greatest memories from this trip, because, not only is chilling out in an air conditioned room after a long sweaty day eating snacks in bed one of the greatest joys in the world, I had the most amazing company as well. #livingthedream!
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