Foreign bank cards to be widely accepted in Japan

One of the biggest problems I had when I first got here to Japan (and even as a tourist) was the lack of ATMs that accept foreign/international cards. I would usually have to track down a CITIBANK somewhere to take out some cash.
All thats about to change on July 11th. Sevenbank will place these International ATMs in most of their 7-11 convenience stores across Japan.

http://www.sevenbank.co.jp/intlcard/service2.html

Tuna shortage?!?

Say it isn't so!
I've been hearing some rumors for some time now, but according to this NY Times article "Waiter, theres Deer in my Sushi", it seems that tuna may slowly disappear from the menus of Japan.
Just when I finally got over my issues of seafood, and found a special place in my heart for Tuna, it seems that love may be short-lived.
Ok, maybe going a little overboard, but I must say this is bad news. I've tried horse and whale meat...RAW here in Japan already, and would rather prefer raw tuna with my rice anyday.

Another Visit to the King.

Yesterday I snapped and did something I never would have imagined ever doing in my life. I waited on line for about an hour at Burger King in Shinjuku. Its been a couple weeks since the first one opened in Shinjuku, and now that there's a second one in Ikebukuro, I figured that the lines must have gotten much shorter. Unfortunately it wasn't the case. However, I wasnt about to turn around and leave this time around. The whopper has been latched onto my mind the past two weeks with no signs of letting go. Its been over a year and a half since I last had a whopper or a chicken sandwich from BK back in NYC. There was a point in my life when I used to get BK -at least- twice a week, so you can imagine how much I enjoyed and missed them. The whopper tasted exactly the same as what I had in the States. The chicken sandwich unfortunately was a bit dry and tasteless. They really didnt use much mayonaise on the chicken sandwich either (just a small smear of it), which I guess is a step in a healthier direction, but definitely was missed. Another thing that is missed is the Onion Rings, which are completely missing off the menu. Hopefully the powers that be will put them on the menu soon.

A Taste of Seasons and An Appetite for Trends

I get the feeling that the Japanese can't get enough of trying new flavors. As an Japanese American, I must admit there is a little bit of that in me as well, and therefore one of my favorite aspects of Japanese product marketing is the seasonal, limited-time food and drink items. However short lived that particular flavor may last, it seems to fill their stores with an endless parade of flavors and packaging.
I recently became hooked on Strawberry Cheerio ice cream bars. These bars consisted of chocolate coated strawberry ice-cream, a solid chocolate slab in the center and frozen chips of strawberry crunches. Unfortunately within a few weeks it disappeared only to be replaced by a chocolate and mint Cheerio ice cream bar. (Which I guess is considered the "cool" summer flavor.)
You'll notice alot of food products going through similar cycles throughout the year. Some products that do exceptionally well may become more of a full-time item.
Sodas and other beverages seem to offer variations almost every other week. On June 12th Pepsi rolled out a Cucumber Pepsi. Although it is questionable whether this will be a full time seller, I for one actually liked it. A friend and I agreed that it almost seems like a lighter, less sweeter version of Mountain Dew, which coincidentally saw a remarketing and repackaging about the same week Pepsi Cucumber was introduced. Coincidence...? I think not. Up until that week, Mountain Dew was pretty much confined to random vending machines packaged in cans at sporadic locations throughout Japan. Now it finds itself positioned right by Pepsi Cucumber. I'm thinking maybe Pepsi found this a good time to push Mountain Dew back into the public eye. - But then again, who am I to say.
Kit-Kats are another example of a snack product that sees constant variations.I just tried a lemon kit-kat where instead of chocolate, there is a creamy lemon flavored coating. It actually tasted pretty damn good. I find that my interest in these seasonal food products keep my pockets empty of spare change. I think I can safely admit that the marketing teams of these products defintely have me in their clutches.
On a somewhat random note, according to a co-worker, a few years ago kit-kats won a special place with young students studying for college entrance exams. The word "katsu" means WIN in Japan, and the similar sounding "Kats" of Kit-Kats gives the impression that the consumption of said snack is power booster/luck booster of some sort; if not by sugar content, by the power of what Japanese call "o-majinai" (a good luck ritual, charm). Similarly, the popular fried, breaded pork dish known as Tonkatsu seems to have the same meaning in the hearts of Japanese. A friend of mine once insisted that we have tonkatsu for lunch on the day of his interview. He got the job.

The Return of the King

After hiding out for over 5 years from the Japanese burger landscape, the American hamburger chain Burger King has recently returned. On Friday, June 8th, throngs of loyal subjects waited in line for 30-50 minutes to get a taste of the flame-broiled whopper at the new store in Nishi-Shinjuku.

This is the chain's second shot at the Japanese market. Back in 2001, BK left the Japanese market citing the reason that they could not offer an inexpensive menu back then to compete with the cheap fast food trend going on at the time. Times have changed however and with the rise of "gourmet" (expensive) burger joints popping up everywhere and the Japanese economy looking better, they are ready to claim their throne. The Japanese Burger King chain is now aiming for the "better" burger market going head-to-head with other higher-end Japanese burger establishments such as Freshness Burger and MOS Burger; instead of playing against the cheaper burger places like Lotteria, First Kitchen and McDonalds. (On an interesting note, Lotte the company that owns Lotteria will now manage the Burger King chains here in Japan.)

On Friday, the opening day, I went to BK hungry for a Whopper but upon seeing the line, decided to visit another day. Judging from the push from mass media these past couple days regarding the return of BK, I have a feeling the lines may not die down for a while.

Fireworks fire off the summer season at Yokohama

It seems summer has officially arrived. The first hanabi (fireworks) display of the season were fired up at Minato Mirai in Yokohama (about 30 minutes from Shibuya/Tokyo area) this past Saturday evening (06/02/07) with the aid of laser lights and music at the 26th 横浜開港祭 Yokohama Kaikosai Port Opening Festival.* Hanabi are a big part of Japanese summers, as are the colorful yukata (Japanese summer robes), beaches (Shirohama Beach at the Southern tip of the Izu Peninsula, Shizuoka-ken is my favorite), constant humming of the semi (cicadas) and the drenching humidity.

Although fireworks seem to happen all throughout the summer in Japan, back home in the States (in this case New York), fireworks only happen on couple occasions; with the main event being the annual Macy's Fourth of July Spectacular on Independence day. Grucci, a Long Island (New York) based fireworks company, is the main name when it comes to firework displays back in the States, but I've got a feeling those guys could probably pick up a pyrotechnic trick or two out here in Japan.

*The Ports of Yokohama were opened for trade with the outside world in 1859 and was the "origin of modernization" in Japan. June 2nd, 2009 will mark the 150th anniversary of the historical event and the city is currently setting the stage for that big date. I'm sure hanabi will be huge part of the action then as well.
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