Something interesting you might notice in Osaka... (Video)

If the embed isn't working, click the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waKjUC-wCfc

It's just like Lewis Black was talking about with starbucks, except it's REAL.

Japanese Cheetos

Who doesn't know what Cheetos are?

The puffed crispy strips of delightful nuclear orange cheesy powdery goodness, every kid in America has had a cheeto before. And everyone knows exactly how they taste. Salty crunchy, and artificially cheesy.

But alas, perhaps in an attempt to market to different tastes, cheetos, do exist here, but they taste different.

That's right, they taste different.

And no, I don't mean they sell "roasted corn" flavor here and Cheese flavor there (which they do). I mean that A cheese flavored cheeto from Japan tastes COMPLETELY different from a Cheeto from America.

I mean dang they aren't even the same color!

But Alas, as I mentioned before, they have other flavors besides cheese. Perhaps one of the most shocking is "Coffee Nougat flavor". Tirol, a chocolate company, teamed up with Cheetos to make this "collaborative effort"

Aka, a chocolate covered cheeto.

I am an adventurer, and so when I noticed the package labeled "Tirol x Cheetos", I simply HAD to purchase it.

Ohhhhh delightful.

Upon opening the package I was surprised to find that the cheeto itself was rather... boring looking. It almost looked like it just had Dusty Chocolate powder on it.

I mean really Fritos, what a lame looking snack!

But how'd it turn out?? That's the important question!

Kinda tasty actually. Think chocolate pretzel, but more crunchy, less salty, and a bit of coffee on the coating. Also Chocolate. And a cheeto. Wow.

Super surreal though. What a ridiculous snack.


...


What the... soy flour mochi flavored chocolate covered?? TIROL YOU MONSTERS!!!

(I wish there was a better translation for that...)

Kit Kats （キットカット）

I think pretty much everyone on the planet loves Kit Kats. They're crispy, chocolatey, small, delicious, easy to find and carry, and sharable. If you don't like Kit Kats, well... I'm sorry. Something is wrong with you. I'm not biased, I just think most people agree with me on this one.

So, imagine, if you will, one of the quintessential candies on this earth.

Part two to this wonderful equation is Japan: which is a land of extremes of course. All the proof you need is Ganguro girls:


GOODNESS that is a lot of makeup! If you took a photo of a geisha in negative is what I'm saying.

Thus, in the land of Japan, why would anyone ever stop at just one good thing? Why not make it EXTREME??

I imagine the conversation went like:
"Psh, Kit Kats are so BORING, why don't we try to hype up the flavor more?"

Modern Japanese candy production, then, has come to a point where, for any flavor of anything you can dream of, there exists a Kit Kat flavored like it.

When I say "any" ladies and gentlemen, I don't merely mean fruits and sweets. I mean even things that, to the unassuming observer, are grotesque and odd, and off-putting.

Seriously.... come now. A few flavors I've seen:

Rose

Lemon Vinegar

Soy Sauce

Why yes, this is very real. And very wild, even by most Japanese people's standards. But obviously someone is consuming them. Including myself. Wowwie.

Actually, for my own curiosity, a week into staying here I bought "Hokkaido Roasted Corn" flavored Kit Kats:

Despite what you may think... quite tasty.

So what have we learned today?

Er... not much. Japanese Kit Kats are crazy. But with an open mind, a lot of them end up being pretty delightful.