Wagashi

Photo by 松岡明芳

Wagashi (わがし) refers to any number of traditional Japanese confectionary. Emphasis is usually as much on the presentation of wagashi as it is the flavour; great care is given to both.
Examples of wagashi include mochi (sweetened ground rice paste) and derived recipes, Yōkan (jellied azuki bean paste), dango (a form of cooked mochi) and taiyaki (anko paste in a grilled batter, shaped like a fish).
Wagashi is usually served with tea, green tea being the ubiquitous form of tea in Japan, and in particular with matcha used in tea ceremonies.

Photo by Gothamist

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Koala's March

Koala's March (コアラのマーチ) is a type of Japanese confectionary.

Photo from: Jappleng

They are a biscuit filled with sweet flavoured cream. A number of different flavours exist with the most commonly available outside of Japan being chocolate, double chocolate, strawberry and milk but in Japan more unusual flavours such as honey, banana and pancake are available.

The biscuits are really kawaii, with lots of differently-posed little koalas - it seems almost too sad to eat them...almost!

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Pocky

If you're not familiar with Pocky already, I recommend you take a trip to your local Asian store (unless you're in Asia, in which case just your regular store!) and try some out. They're essentially straightened-out pretzels, dipped in chocolate with one end kept coating-free to prevent sticky fingers. Efficient! Made by Glico, they're also sold as Mikado in other countries such as the UK.

There are a great many flavours, with more being added seemingly with every season. There are also a good number of similar treats from other brands such as Meiji Lucky Stick, Pretz and Toppo, but Pocky really rule the roost in this area. It's become almost a generic term, such as Hoover or Corn Flakes.

The obvious flavours such as chocolate, milk, coffee etc are complimented by the slightly more left-field additions of, for example, pumpkin, cream cheese, pizza, soy bean, and many, many more.

Glico have also bolstered their Pocky stable with such wonderful inventions as Dessert Pocky (thicker Pocky in which the stick is hollowed and filled as well as coated) and Giant Pocky (go on, guess what makes Giant Pocky different...).

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Vending Machines

What website about Japan would be complete without mentioning the ubiquitous vending machines?

They are quite literally everywhere in Tokyo - if there's not one in front of you there's probably one just around the corner. In fact Japan on the whole has one vending machine for every twenty three people.

A number of things can be purchased from vending machines including icecream, cigarettes, bananas, alcohol, eggs and even sex toys! However the most popular by far are snacks and drinks.

Cleverly Tokyo's drink vending machines can serve both hot and cold drinks depending on the season and buyers preference.

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