Pretz
Kit Kat
Tokyo Banana
Adorned with different animal patterns, Tokyo Banana now comes in many different flavors besides the original. The flavors include Banana Shake (flower pattern), Banana Caramel Custard Cream (giraffe pattern), Chocolate Banana Cream (jaguar pattern), Caramel (tiger pattern), and Maple (heart pattern).
The brand also carries other products such as the Strawberry sponge cake, Matcha sponge cake and a variety of cookies, biscuits, roll cakes and wafers. Check out their website for more info.
Nissin Cup Noodles
While Nissin cup noodles originated from Japan, these popular instant meals in a styrofoam cup can pretty much be found in any local convenience or supermarket in any big city. However, Japan still earns the title for the most interesting flavor sold.
These seem to be popular flavors frequently consumed by locals. The flavors are Milk Seafood (milk?!), Tom Yum Soup, Chili Tomato, Curry, and regular Seafood. The Curry one is a must-try!
Namagashi
Namagashi are tea pastries that are commonly filled with sweetened paste such as Red Bean or Sweet Potato. These make great souvenirs for those who enjoy bite-size sweetness along with their morning tea or coffee.
Above are sweet potato ones that we found in a Hakone snack shop. They were delicious and not overly sweet.
These brown ones are filled with red bean paste and were purchased from a popular stall in Asakusa, Tokyo.
Kyogashi
Kyogashi are beautifully, hand-crafted Kyoto confectioneries that are unique to Japan. Each piece is so delicately created, it’s no wonder it costs about at least 100 to 300 yen a piece to purchase.
Some come in animal shapes and would make a great souvenir for little kids.
Candy Kits
Another great souvenir for little ones are these DIY Candy Kits. Some lets you create your own gummies while other lets you make your own chocolate biscuits. These can double up as a STEM or craft toy.
We picked these up at Don Quijote for about 200 yen each.
Dried Fish and Seafood
Dried seafood is not for everyone but can be a crunchy, delicious snack if you can appreciate the taste. If you’re a fan of the ones found here in states, can you imagine how much better the ones in Japan are?
The ones above were purchased in Hakone but similar ones can also be found all over Tokyo. The dried, mini crabs were our favorite.
Rice Crackers
A common snack in Japan, rice crackers are sold in many different flavors. Like chips, they are thin and crispy but slightly more light in flavor.
Above are squid, roasted seaweed and sakura flavor rice crackers. The Kyo No Kujonegi Ebisen (roasted seaweed in the middle) ones were to die for and we found them in the food section of Porta mall in Kyoto.
Fruit Jellies
These jelly snacks were a random discovery of ours in Japan and I was obsessed with them after trying one. They come in a package of about 8 individually wrapped jelly that is meant for you to tear open and squeeze the jelly into your mouth.
These were found in Daiso for only 100 yen a bag. My favorite is the lychee flavored one.
Calbee Chips
We walked down every chips aisle we came across in Japan to seek out any unique flavors of Calbee chips (or any brand chips really) and we recommend you do the same. It’s highly unlikely you’ll come across the same flavors again anywhere else in the world. The flavors they have range from Mentaiko (Pollack Roe) Butter to Cheesy Pizza.
Ice Cream
Like the chips, the freezer section in Japan’s supermarkets are filled with wacky, unique flavors of freezing, cold yummy-ness.
Haagen-Dazs flavors in Japan include Vanilla, Rum Raisin, Triple Chocolat, Chocolate Brownie, Macadamia Nut, Vanilla Cookies Raspberry, Rare Cheesecake, Maple Custard Cookie, Green Tea, Cookies and Cream and a Tart Party variety Pack.
Everything in those fridges looked so good, it’s a bummer I can’t even take back at least one of them.
Let us know if you’ve tried and also really enjoyed any of these snacks.