5 Japan Food Trends To Look Out for This Summer
Chocolate, strawberry and cherry blossom are taking a break in favor of more citrusy, tropical, summer tastes. Lemon is always in, with an increased wealth of options to choose from in summer. There’s also the refreshing chocomint flavor that has become a summer mainstay in Japan. In addition to these classics, there are also limited-edition summer flavors popping up.
Convenience stores’ shelves are a surefire way to get your hands on whatever flavors are trending this season, as well as the big food and beverage franchises. Afternoon tea spreads are also seasonal and small cafés and cake shops often keep up too. Here are some summer food trends in Japan that we recommend.
Melon Mania
Aside from the melon aroma and shape of the iconic melon pan, the beloved melon fruit is a summer luxury item in Japan. The prices of special breeds of melons are newsworthy information every summer. This year, a pair of Yubari melons were already auctioned off for ¥3 million in Sapporo. But the price and types of melons are many and so are the flavor options.
This summer, Starbucks is leading the charge with its The Melon of Melon Frappuccino, launched on June 1 and available until July 12. This is part of a green theme for summer and it’s a pun on the Japanese phrase “Yori, dori, midori” meaning “being spoilt for choice.” Along with the melon frappuccino, Starbucks also offers matcha and kiwi sweets.
The popular sweets chain Ginza Cozy Corner offers melon fruit sandwiches, melon parfaits and melon cakes this summer. Shiseido Parlor Ginza has a melon parfait, along with a strawberry one and a cherry one.
At the higher end, Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo Otemachi already started a melon-themed afternoon tea. Hotel New Otani Tokyo is showcasing melon as part of its summer afternoon tea, along with matcha and chocolate, served at the Garden Lounge. Both are available until June 30. If you miss out on those two, Cafe & Dining ZelkovA has its very own melon-licious afternoon tea campaign running until early September.
Even face masks are going down the melon flavor route. The manufacturer Tomigen is selling face masks with melon, mint and peach fragrances. Read More...
