YumSugar

Would You Eat Burger King's Windows 7 Whopper?

YumSugar — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 16:15:00 -0700

Last month, many of you said you'd chomp down on Red Robin's Wise Guy Burger, which includes not only a burger patty, but also mozzarella sticks and pepperoni slices. But what would you do if faced with Burger King Japan's Windows 7 Whopper?

To promote the new operating system, the limited-edition burger - available for seven days only - includes seven beef patties for the cost of ¥777 (about $8.50). Could you tackle this tall order?

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Sideways Is Back, in Japanese Form

YumSugar — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 16:00:18 -0700

If you were stoked to hear about the release of The Ramen Girl, wait until you hear about the next big foodie flick. Oh, wait - you may have already seen it. Twentieth Century Fox is creating a Japanese version of Sideways, the Oscar-nominated comedy about four friends road-tripping through California wine country that became a runaway hit in 2005.

Given wine's increasing popularity in Japan, Fuji TV, one of Japan's biggest film producers, thought the movie would be an ideal candidate for a remake. But for its new film, tentatively also called Sideways, the company made changes to the storyline.Rather than drinking their way through Santa Barbara wine country, the group meanders through Napa Valley, a wine region that is better-known among the Japanese. The movie's two main male characters - named Michio and Daisuke, not Miles and Jack - drive up to Napa Valley from Los Angeles. “You can’t do a road trip in California without going over the Golden Gate Bridge,” said the director of the remake, Cellin Gluck.

At first, Napa Valley vintners were not too enthusiastic about the film, given that the original's Merlot-bashing lines led to a plummet in sales of the varietal. However, the new feature doesn't knock varietals of any kind and successfully managed to shoot at local restaurants, as well as winemakers such as Frog's Leap, Beringer, and Chandon.

I'd never have guessed that the Japanese would remake a movie like Sideways, with its focus on a specialized West Coast winemaking region, but I can see how the comedy has universal appeal. Do you like the concept, or should Fox have simply dubbed the original?

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Brittany Murphy Starring in Ramen Film

YumSugar — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 09:00:59 -0800

One week from this Saturday, I'm going to cancel any plans and clear my schedule. Why, you might ask? Because that's the release date of The Ramen Girl, a new movie starring Brittany Murphy.

The independent movie, produced by media8, follows a young American woman (Murphy) who moves to Tokyo for her boyfriend. Upon getting dumped, she decides her life's calling is to make noodles, and seeks the guidance of a stern but wise master ramen chef. To see the trailer, read more.

I thought this was a joke - some sort of spoof - before coming to the realization that it's simply the most random movie ever to be made. Brittany Murphy? In a movie about ramen? Her lines couldn't be more cliché: "I want to cook ramen. I want to make people happy the way you do . . . There's something about the Japanese and making the perfect bowl of soup. It's kind of beautiful." It also looks to be the campiest, least convincing movie of all time. Yet somehow, if only for the food porn aspect, I'm unabashedly excited to see this movie.

One thing's for sure: I'm not going to watch this movie without having a bowl of ramen afterward. Check out the trailer below. Will you be watching The Ramen Girl?

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1,000 People Hired to Line Up For Quarter Pounders in Japan

YumSugar — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 03:00:00 -0800

Last week, McDonald's made headlines when roughly 15,000 Osaka residents lined up for the opening of the Midosuji Suomachi Quarter Pounder only store in Chuo-ku, Osaka. But now, the number one fast food chain is admitting that around 1,000 people were hired and compensated to line up outside of the store.

"We didn't ask the company to make the people line up," explained a spokesperson for McDonald's Japan. "We didn't intentionally do it."

McDonald's maintains that it hired the marketing company to conduct research on the hamburger, and that the marketing company requested part-time workers from a staffing company, describing the duties as "Easy work, just waiting in line to buy a new product and eating it."

The so-called customers included the first 20 to 30 people in line who waited for the store to open beginning at midnight the night before, and these hires were paid 1,000 yen, or approximately $11 an hour, to wait in line.

All things considered, the Quarter Pounder store did exceedingly well. Excluding those paid to queue for the burger, the shop managed to draw in 14,000 customers on opening day. Does this marketing effort seem outrageous to you?

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Love Garlic? Love Chocolate? Why Not Try Garlic Chocolate?

YumSugar — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 13:43:19 -0800

Lisa at TokyoMango tipped us off to the latest trend in Japanese candy. The Japanese have become known for their interesting flavor combos, and this time a company in Aomori, one of Japan's top garlic-producing regions, is combining garlic and chocolate.

Their product is called "black garlic chocolate" and it is a piece of fermented black garlic, covered with chocolate and sprinkled in cocoa powder. A garlic truffle if you will. The black garlic is said to have a sweet-and-sour, prune-like taste.

Although Japan is usually the first to create such offbeat flavors, this is not the first time I've heard of chocolate and garlic. The folks at the Gilroy Garlic Festival have been doing this for years. However this may be the first time I've heard of fermented prune-like garlic. You know I'd love to try a piece? How about you?

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Yummy Link: Kit Kat Lucky Littles

YumSugar — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 05:37:11 -0800

While the US candy market is busy shoving caffeine into its products, the Japanese market is busy making their products cuter. This time it's Kit Kat Lucky Littles, which is a bit like Kit Kat Bites, only cuter and cherry blossom colored. - Japan Marketing News

Japan's New Snack: Strawberry Cheetos

YumSugar — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 07:28:11 -0800

When I think of Cheetos, I think of crunchy cheesy goodness that turns your fingers bright orange. I do not think of strawberry or chocolate. However, the folks at Frito-Lay in Japan apparently do. These Strawberry Cheetos have just hit the shelves in Tokyo. I think they sound a bit intriguing, they're essential plain cheetos with a strawberry frosting. I'm pretty sure there isn't a cheese flavoring, although fruit and cheese go well together so I wouldn't be surprised if it was.

Oh and if you're wondering why strawberry and not chocolate? Well, it's simple, they already have a chocolate version.

So what do you think? Would you try these?

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Chocolate-Covered Strawberries Are Great, But Why Not Chocolate-Infused Strawberries?

YumSugar — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 12:18:31 -0800

A lot of you agreed that we didn't really need a grape-apple hybrid. However, what do you think of a strawberry-chocolate hybrid? Tokyo-based Fresh Functional Food Composite (FCOM) is using infusion technology to create white-chocolate strawberries and chocolate currants. They first freeze dry the fruit, thus removing any water, and infuse it with chocolate. The company has also previously tested out the technology by infusing apples with red wine.

It all sounds pretty crazy to me - can't I just have strawberries and chocolate? - yet I know I'd give it a try if I saw them on the shelves.

If you're skeptical about the whole thing I should also mention that the company is considering using the technology to infuse food with various nutrients and vitamins.

Now the real question is, will these ever hit the American market?

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Would You Drink This Curry Soda?

YumSugar — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 06:01:18 -0800

I found this Japanese curry flavored lemonade soda over at Tokyo Times and I want to know, would you give it a try? It sounds like it could be awful, but I can't wait to see what it tastes like!

Yummy Link: Ice Cream City

YumSugar — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 06:27:11 -0800

Oh please tell me that they're opening up a food theme park called Ice Cream City here in my neighborhood! Pretty please! - Cooking with Amy