While here in the United States we have stunt Oreos, in Japan the oddly flavored treat of choice are Kit Kats. The candies are so popular there that Nestle is building a new factory there that will do nothing but crank out Kit Kats. [More]
japan
Nintendo Sues Company Giving Real-Life Mario Kart Rides
By 2.28.17
If you’ve ever played Mario Kart and said “This would be super fun in real life, and even better in a Mario/Luigi/Bowser/Princess Peach costume,” then the good news is that someone in Japan made your dream a reality. The bad news: They didn’t get permission from Nintendo. [More]
New Airbnb Project Seeks To Boost Small Town Tourism
By 8.3.16
Airbnb is moving beyond assisting homeowners in renting out their properties, and is expanding into small town tourism with a new initiative that’s aimed at inventing new projects to draw in more hosts and renters in smaller, less-traveled communities.
[More]
Mitsubishi Admits Falsifying Fuel Data On Some Vehicles For Nearly 25 Years
By 4.26.16
Automaker Mitsubishi recently admitted to fudging fuel mileage data for more than 600,000 vehicles sold in Japan, leading to an ongoing probe by U.S. regulators. Those investigators may now have a lot more paperwork to sift through, after Mitsubishi’s latest revelation. [More]
10 Things We Learned About Who Really Made Your Subaru
By 7.28.15
The carmaker Subaru is having a great decade so far: their sales have doubled in the United States and they’re having trouble keeping up with the demand. While that’s great news for Subaru, an in-depth investigation from Reuters shows that Subaru and its suppliers have turned to some questionable but legal labor practices to keep the Foresters coming down the line. [More]
Delta Cutting Some International Flights Later This Year
By 4.16.15
If you were planning to fly Delta Air Lines for an overseas trip this holiday season, you might want to start making other plans. The airline aims to cut its international flights by about 3% during the last three months of 2015. [More]
Experimental Crocs Store In Tokyo Brings You Shoes With Drone
By 3.5.15
If you’ve always thought that shoe stores would be improved by replacing salespeople with drones, well, you’re going to have to wait a while before you can experience your dream. The technology apparently isn’t quite here yet. As a promotion for a new shoe line, Crocs has a store in Tokyo where customers tap on a pair of shoes on an iPad, and a green Crocs-branded drone fetches the item and brings it to them. [More]
Uber Must End Pilot Ride-Sharing Program In Japan
By 3.4.15
Ride-hailing app Uber does a small amount of business in Japan. Until now, their drivers have been existing drivers of taxis and private cars for hire. The company has been experimenting with a ride-sharing service in the city of Fukuoka. They thought it would get around regulations by not having passengers pay for their rides. That did not work. [More]
Taco Bell Is Heading To Japan
By 2.26.15
Will tacos, burritos and all the combinations in between work in a place where raw fish is the nation’s popular cuisine? One restaurant group in Japan seems to think so, with the announcement that it signed a franchise agreement with Yum Brands to open Taco Bell restaurants in the country. [More]
McDonald’s Customers In Japan Can Only Order Small Orders Of Fries Due To Potato Shortage
By 12.15.14
The next time you pull up to a McDonald’s drive-thru window and order a large serving of French fries, drop one on the ground for our comrades in Japan, where customers can only get small orders of fries right now. What fresh hell is this? [More]
Doritos Offers Limited-Time Christmas Tree-Shaped Chips In Japan
By 11.5.14
Do you think that seasonal snacks have gotten out of hand here in the United States? Maybe they have, but that doesn’t make a new holiday themed product from Doritos in Japan any less amazing. They’re selling soup-flavored green tortilla chips…shaped like Christmas trees. [More]
McDonald’s Japan Also Gets Into The Black Burger Game
By 10.2.14
Because there is nothing more appealing than a slab of dark gray meat on a dark gray bun, McDonald’s Japan has followed Burger King’s lead and introduced a burger that doesn’t look like anything you’d really want to eat. [More]
Cats Take Over Pizza Hut Japan, Serve Fur-Stuffed Crust And Cuteness
By 8.25.14
Do you enjoy Pizza Hut’s products, but wish they could be served up by someone with a surly, anti-customer attitude, no food service or management skills, and with a generous sprinkling of cat hair on everything? Perhaps you would enjoy the fantasy world in current Pizza Hut ads in Japan, where cats have been hired to run a Pizza Hut franchise because OH MY GOODNESS LOOK AT THE KITTY. [More]
Zombie Brands: Woolworth’s, Mister Donut, Other Iconic Brands Prosper Outside U.S.
By 2.14.14
In this day and age, when something dies it just comes back as a zombie (we imagine anyway). That’s exactly what once prosperous American brands are doing across the world. Names like Pan Am, Woolworth’s and Mister Donut easily evoke thoughts of nostalgia for Americans, but in other parts of the world the brands are alive and well. [More]
Want A Grilled Apple Burger With Cinnamon Mayonnaise? Visit Burger King Japan
By 2.6.14
There are three important features that make Burger King in Japan a very different experience: apples, booze, and couches, or ABC. Apples? Yes, Burger King has brought back their limited-time apple burgers in Japan, which feature grilled apple slices instead of tomatoes. Are they any good? [More]
You’ll Have To Go To Japan To Get Avocado and Cheese Doritos
By 10.17.13
Our site mission is to bring you the very latest in cutting-edge snack technology, and also some incidental consumer news. As part of that mission, we’re sharing the wonderful news that avocado and cheese Doritos are now officially a thing…that you can only buy in Japan. [More]
Meet The Cheeseburger With An Egg… And A Rib Patty, Shrimp Patty, And Much More
By 10.11.13
No, this is not another joke secret menu item. With at least nine different layers incorporating multiple types of meat, greens, cheeses, and an egg, this monstrosity from Japanese fast food chain Lotteria truly lives up to its name. [More]
Bizarro Snack Time: Bacon-Flavored Doritos And Pepsi-Flavored Cheetos
By 8.12.13 — Updated: 9.8.16
The world has pretty much accepted that the next Doritos Locos Tacos flavor from Taco Bell will be the chili-lime deliciousness of Flamas. That’s only because most of us didn’t know that the Frito-Lay/Yum Brands universe also contains other simultaneously amazing and horrible flavors that are only available in Japan. Like bacon Doritos and Pepsi-flavored Cheetos. [More]
