Big America is back

About two years ago, McDonalds Japan offered, for a limited-time, four original burgers that were collectively known as “Big America“.
Individually they were the “Texas Burger“, “New York Burger“, “California Burger” and the “Hawaiian Burger“.

Click here to read the post that I wrote about them.

Then, about one year ago, “Big America” returned to Japan with four new original burgers. These four were called “Big America 2” as a group.
They consisted of the “Texas 2 Burger“, “Idaho Burger“, “Miami Burger” and the “Manhattan Burger“.

The “Texas 2 Burger” and “Miami Burger” were, by far, the best of the eight “Big America” burgers, in my opinion.

Click here to read the post that I wrote about “Big America 2”.

And now McDonalds Japan is offering, for a limited time, the third set of “Big America” burgers.

The first one being offered is the “Grand Canyon Burger“. It’s available now at only two McDonalds locations in Tokyo…but it will available all over Japan from 2011 December 26 until 2012 January 4th.

Then, they’ll be selling the “Las Vegas Burger” starting in late January (2012).

Then, in mid-February (2012), the “Broadway Burger” will be on the menu.

And finally, starting in early March (2012), the “Beverly Hills Burger” will be available.

Some other limited-time menu items coming to McDonalds in Japan include:

"Blueberry Cream-cheese Pie" (starting 2012 Jan 4)	"Creamy Ranch" McNugget sauce (starting 2012 Jan 4)
"Maple Custard Pie" (starting early Feb 2012)	"Spicy Buffalo (Wing)" Chicken McNugget sauce (starting early Feb 2012)
"American-Cherry" Milkshake (starting early March 2012)	"Sweet and Sour" Chicken McNugget sauce (starting early 2012)

What unique menu items does McDonalds offer in your area?

A Happy New ポテト

With the way the economy currently is, when people in Japan eat at fast-food places, it’s because they’re cheaper (more than the speed of the service or any other reason).

In Japan, the fast-food place that understands this best seems to be McDonalds. (I think this is the reason Wendy’s left Japan after thirty years here…because their prices were higher).

Right now, McDonalds Japan is running a 「福めくりポテト」 (“Lucky Decal Fries“) campaign.

If you buy a large-size French Fries, you’ll find a decal on the fries package. When you peel it off, the decal is a coupon that can be used to get a free hamburger, 「シャカシャカチキン」 (“Shaka-shaka” chicken), or a small Coca-Cola.

The decal will specify which of the three items you’ve won (you can’t choose from the three…it’s printed on the coupon which one it can be redeemed for), and the offer expires on 2010 February 28.

Every decal is a winner. So, if you play, you will get either a hamburger, chicken, or cola for free.

Also, if you buy a set-meal that comes with a medium French Fries, you can change them to a large Fries (so you can get a 「福めくりポテト」 (“Lucky Decal Fries“) campaign decal) for only an extra ¥40.

Big America

McDonalds Japan will be offering four new versions of their “Quarter Pounder” burger starting next month.
Only one of the new burgers will be available at a time though.

All four of the new burgers are known as “Big America burgers. And individually they are: “Texas Burger“, “New York Burger“, “California Burger“, and “Hawaiian Burger“.

The first of the four that will be available is the “Texas Burger“. It will be available starting on 2010 January 15.
It has bacon and BBQ sauce.

Next will be the “New York Burger“. It will go on sale in early February 2010.
It’ll be like a BLT meets a Quarter Pounder“…bacon, lettuce and tomato on the burger.

Then in late February 2010, the “California Burger” will be the one available.
It’ll have Monterrey Jack cheese.

And finally, in March 2010, the “Hawaiian Burger” will be on the menu.
It’ll have a egg and is called a Hawaiian Loco-moco style burger.

On the McDonalds Japan website, visitors an click a button if they intend to try all four of the Big America burgers. When I checked the site, it said that “105,423 people will try all four burgers“.

To me, none of them sound all that special. I don’t think I’ll buy any of them.
How about you? Which of them sounds good to you? Would you try all four?

Are these burgers available at McDonalds in your country…or is it only in Japan?

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Anyways, the Xmas decorations went down yesterday in Japan and were replaced with the traditional Japanese New Years decorations.

New Years is Japan’s biggest holiday.

Here’s a New Years window display at a store that my family and I went to today.

And while we were out, we passed a little league baseball game near the river:

Fastfood Summer Campaigns

Today was a beautiful clear day, and the sounds of 蝉 (cicadas) could be heard…but it was also very hot and humid!

Definitely summer in Japan.

Alot of people like to eat spicy food in the summer. Supposedly it helps cool you off.
Whether or not that’s true, I’m not sure…but I like spicy food (especially with beer! 🙂 ).

Many fast-food chains in Japan are offering special items on the menu for the summer only. Alot of those items are spicy.

I already mentioned Lotteria‘s new burger (and special money-back guarantee) in an earlier post (Click here to see it.)

◆ McDonalds Japan is offering a 「ヨーグルト味 McShake」 (“Yogurt flavor McShake“) for only ¥100.

「ヨーグルト味 (Yogurt Flavored) McShake」

◆ McDonalds Japan also has Spicy Juicy Chicken sandwiches. They offer two flavors 「ブラック・ペッパー」 (Black Pepper) and 「赤とうがらし」 (Red Chili).

Spicy Juicy Chicken (Black Pepper or Red Chili)

◆ MOS Burger has a campaign that says: 「夏はチキンとスパイスだ！！」 (“Summer is chicken and spice!!”).
They’re offering two spicy chicken sandwiches this summer too. 「ホットチキンバーガー」 (“Hot Chicken Burger“) with salsa, and 「カレーチキンバーガー」 (“Curry Chicken Burger“).

MOS Burger's "Hot Chicken Burger" & "Chili Chicken Burger"

◆ Wendy’s Japan is also offering two chicken sandwiches this summer. One is 「和風」 (“Japanese style”) and the other is 「洋風」 (“Western style”). Their campaign poster says: 「ふたつの夏チキン、PLEASE!」 (“Two (types of) summer chicken, please!).
The “Japanese” sandwich is 「おろしチキンサンド」 (“Grated Radish Chicken Sandwich“) and the “Western” one is 「サルサチキンサンド」 (“Salsa Chicken Sandwich“).

"Japanese" or "Western" style chicken sandwiches. Which would you choose?

◆ Burger King has introduced the Angry Whopper to Japan in time for the summer. I heard that Burger King in the U.S. already had this burger…but the Japanese one is a bit different—customized to Japanese tastes. For example, the U.S. version has bacon and the Japanese version doesn’t…and U.S. one and the Japanese one have different sauces from each other.

This burger has ハラペーニョ (jalapeno peppers) and you can choose how many jalapeno peppers you want on the burger…from level one which has four peppers up to level five with twenty peppers!

Burger King Japan's "Angry Whopper"

Burger King America's "Angry Whopper"

マックでＤＳ

マックドナルド (McDonalds Japan) has started a new tie-in with Nintendo.

It’s 「マックでＤＳ」 (“Mac De DS“)…which means “(Nintendo) DS at McDonalds”.

If you’re in Japan, and you or your kids have a Nintendo DS, bring it with you on your next visit to マックドナルド (McDonalds)…and you (or your kids) will be able to play games that are available only while you’re inside a マックドナルド (McDonalds) in Japan, download マックドナルド (McDonalds) coupons and “Pokemon” characters and things like that.

I haven’t been to マックドナルド (McDonalds) recently, so I’ve haven’t tried this yet…but the next time that my kids go to McDonalds (either with us or with their friends), they’ll probably bring along their “DS” to try this service out.

ゲゲゲの鬼太郎ハッピーセット

「マックドナルド」 (McDonalds Japan) is currently offering 「ゲゲゲの鬼太郎」 (Ge-ge-ge-no-Kitarou) toys with their 「ハッピーセット」 (“Happy Set” (Kids Meal)).

「ゲゲゲの鬼太郎」 (Ge-ge-ge-no-Kitarou) is a Japanese アニメ (anime cartoon) that I like.

鬼太郎＆目玉オヤジ

The artist and creator of the 「ゲゲゲの鬼太郎」 (Ge-ge-ge-no-Kitarou) cartoon is 水木しげる (Shigeru Mizuki).

水木しげる (Shigeru Mizuki) was interested in Japanese 妖怪 (ghouls) since his childhood.
Many of the characters he draws are inspired by traditional Japanese ghosts and ghouls (just as the West has Dracula, Frankenstein’s monster, etc…Japan has their own monsters).

Ukiyoe picture of a Japanese 妖怪 (monster).

水木しげる (Shigeru Mizuki) was left-handed, and drew all of his art with his left-hand, of course…but he was in the Japanese Army during WW2 and he lost his left arm during an Allied air raid. So he taught himself to draw using his right-hand!

He has drawn many WW2 cartoons and pictures…and many 妖怪 (ghouls) cartoons. He is most famous for his 「ゲゲゲの鬼太郎」 (Ge-ge-ge-no-Kitarou) comics.

In Japan, you can find 「ゲゲゲの鬼太郎」 (Ge-ge-ge-no-Kitarou) マンガ (comics), アニメ (cartoons), 映画 (movies), T-shirts, toys, postcards, cell-phone straps, etc…

The story of 「ゲゲゲの鬼太郎」 (Ge-ge-ge-no-Kitarou) is about the main character 「鬼太郎」 (Kitaro) who is a 妖怪 (ghoul) with one eye and an assortment of powers who helps protect humans from evil 妖怪 (ghouls).

He is joined by his father 「目玉オヤジ」 (Medama-oyaji), who is basically just an eye-ball with a small body, and a group of friends who include 猫娘 (Neko-musume (Cat-Girl)), and ねずみ男 (Nezumi-Otoko (Rat-man)).

It’s a fun show. The cartoon is on Sunday mornings at 9:00 (although I seldom watch the cartoon…I did see both of the live-action movies with my family at the theaters).

All of my kids are too old for the McDonalds 「ハッピーセット」 (“Happy Set“) so I probably won’t get any of these characters, though.

Japanese McDonalds

マックドナルド (McDonald’s) fast-food restaurants has stores around the world.
No matter which store you go into, the menu is basically the same. Some items, though, are customized for individual countries.
For example, I’ve heard that McDonald’s in India doesn’t serve beef burgers (pork or chicken instead), in Germany they serve beer 🙂  (some fast-food restaurants in Japan, such as Freshness Burger and First Kitchen serve beer…but not マックドナルド (McDonald’s Japan)), and in the Philippines they have spaghetti on the menu.

マックドナルド (McDonald’s) in Japan has many unique items on the menu, too.
Some are “limited time only“…such as the Lettuce Pepper Burger that was on the menu a few years ago. I really like that burger…but unfortunately, they don’t serve it currently.

New items on the menu at マックドナルド (McDonald’s Japan) include:

The 「マックホットドッグ」 (McHotDog) and 「マックホットドッグ・メガソーセージ」 (Mega Sausage McHotDog), which are breakfast items and only available until 10:30AM.

「マックホットドッグ」 (McHotDog) and 「マックホットドッグ・メガソーセージ」 (Mega Sausage McHotDog)

The 「チーズカツバーガー」 (Cheese Cutlet Burger), which is a cheese-filled pork cutlet sandwich.

「チーズカツバーガー」 (Cheese Cutlet Burger)

マックドナルド (McDonald’s Japan) has the regular “Cookies & Chocolate McFlurry” and “Oreo McFlurry” ice cream dessert.
But they also have the 「マックフルーリー抹茶＆オレオクッキー」 (“Green Tea & Oreo Cookies McFlurry“).

「マックフルーリー抹茶＆オレオクッキー」 (Green Tea & Oreo McFlurry)

The 「えびフィレオ」 (Shrimp Filet-o Burger):

「えびフィレオ」 (Shrimp Filet-o Burger)

「シャカシャカチキン」 (Shaka Shaka Chicken) is a chicken filet in a bag that you add spice powder (chili or black pepper) and shake the bag to mix the spice (“Shaka Shaka” is a Japanese onomatopoeia for shaking):

Besides cola, milk, coffee and orange juice, etc マックドナルド (McDonald’s Japan) sells 爽健美茶 (Blended Tea):

「爽健美茶」 (Blended Tea)

マックドナルド (McDonald’s Japan) also has a ¥100 and ¥120 (about US $0.99 and US $1.19) menus which includes hamburger for ¥100, cheeseburger for ¥120, ice cream cone for ¥100, Shaka Shaka Chicken for ¥100, milk shakes for ¥100…and the 「マックポーク」 (McPork sandwich) for ¥100:

「マックポーク」 (McPork) ¥100 (US$0.99)

And All-You-Can-Drink coffee is also only ¥120

If you visit a マックドナルド (McDonald’s) in Japan, you’ll be sure to notice people looking at their cell-phones while they’re waiting in line and when they get to the cashier, they might show their cell-phone to the person behind the counter. This is because マックドナルド (McDonald’s) in Japan offers weekly cell-phone coupons.

Have you ever tried any of these items at a マックドナルド (McDonald’s) in Japan? Does McDonald’s offer unusual menu items where you live?

BTW, I wrote a post last November when マックドナルド (McDonald’s Japan) introduced the Quarter Pounder Burger.
Click here to see it.

Starbucks Sakura

I’m not much of a Starbucks Coffee drinker. Well, actually, that’s an understatement…I never patronize Starbucks.

I tried it once and I don’t see the appeal. It was like overpriced hot chocolate to me. Too sweet! And definitely too expensive!

Do you like Starbucks? The world’s busiest Starbucks is in 渋谷 (Shibuya, Tokyo). But, personally, I like 「ドトール・コーヒー」 (Doutor Coffee) or even McDonalds‘s coffee better. To me, that’s real coffee.

But I walked past a Starbucks yesterday and noticed that they’re having a 「SAKURA シリーズ」 (Sakura (Cherry Ｂlossom) Series).

Starbucks's 「SAKURA シリーズ 2009」

It’s Sakura flavored scones and desserts, and pink coffee cups and coffee pots.

It’s not for me. I’d never buy any of that stuff. But if you want more info about it, click here to visit Starbucks Japan‘s website (mostly in 日本語 (Japanese) only).

Western Stores in Tokyo

Many overseas companies want to open shops in Japan.
The Japanese market is very lucrative…for companies that prove to be popular here. But the Japanese consumer is very finicky. Companies that don’t meet Japanese expectations are doomed to fail.

For example, the American donut company, Dunkin’ Donuts, is popular in America. But when they opened stores in Japan, the Japanese people found their donuts too sweet…and Dunkin’ Donuts was  unable to stay in Japan.

On the other hand, the less-sweet American donut chain Mister Donuts is very popular in Japan. (Ironically, Mister Donuts isn’t very popular in America).

Krispy Kreme Donuts set up shops in Tokyo recently, too.

Some American chains have been bought by a Japanese company and were brought here by their new Japanese owners. For example, the convenience store chain 7-Eleven was bought by the Japanese department store Ito-Yokado. (A couple years ago Ito-Yokado changed the signs on their department stores to reflect their connection with the popular convenience store they own…their signs now say “Seven & i Holdings” on the Ito-Yokado stores.)

7-Eleven (and other convenience stores) are very popular in Japan. Japan is a small country, but there are almost twice as many 7-Eleven stores here than in all of the U.S., Canada, and Mexico combined!

Convenience stores in Japan are very different from their counterparts in America. Japanese convenience stores are great!

7 & i Holdings, the Japanese company that owns 7-Eleven also owns the restaurant chain Denny’s. Denny’s in Japan have a different menu than Denny’s in America. I like Denny’s Japan better (but that may be because I’ve been in Japan for awhile now, and I’m more used to Japanese style food).

デニーズ・レストラン「セブン＆アイ HLDGS」 (Denny

The American bakery Vie de France is in Japan, too. But it’s not American anymore either…Yamazaki Bread owns this company. I like Vie de France. Their bread is excellent.

Of course, American fast-food chains are here…

ケンタッキー (KFC) in Japan.

I have wrote a post about Domino’s Pizza in Japan. Click here to see it.

I like Subway sandwich shop, alot. The Japanese Subway sandwich shop. The menu is much better at Subway Japan than the U.S. branches.

There are Japanese fast-food restaurants, too.  These include MOS Burger, First Kitchen, and Freshness Burger (which has beer on the menu! 🙂 ). Occasionally you can still find a  Dom-Dom Burger, and there used to be a chain called Love Hamburger. Love Hamburger went out-of -business about 12 years ago and the U.S. chain Burger King bought all of the Love Burger shops and opened Burger King in Japan in the late ’90s…but they made the ill-fated decision to offer only a limited menu to test the Japanese market. That didn’t go over well and soon they went out-of-business in Japan, too.

But recently, Burger King decided to re-try the Japanese market…and I guess they learned from their past mistakes—they seem to be doing well in Japan now.

There are also branches of Sizzler, Outback, and Tony Romas in Japan.

All of these foreign companies that have stores in Tokyo (How many of these have stores in your town? Do you shop at any of these?):

"The Body Shop" in Tokyo	"Godiva Chocolate" in Tokyo
	Toys "Я" Us

There are other foreign companies here, too…but you get the idea.

All of these foreign companies have to keep on their toes and provide the service and products that the Japanese expect…and for each of these foreign stores in Japan, there are Japanese companies that provide similar products that they have to compete with.  But if the effort is worth it…Japan is the most profitable market for most of these companies.

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Anyways, today is Valentine’s Day.
My wife and daughters made delicious chocolate for me. ♥
(Click here to read a post I wrote about Valentines Day in Japan).

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