"tokyo" news and stories

"Taking the international sweet tooth by storm." Surely such a phrase could only have been penned by the a PR person for an ice-cream chain.

And so it has.

This gem comes from the press release announcing Cold Stone Creamery's expansion into Mexico and Southeast Asia. I'll admit it's a better turn of phrase than "taking the international sweet tooth by cavity." Full disclosure, I've never eaten the Creamery's ice cream, I suppose I should since there's one in a mall near my house.

The Scottsdale, Ariz.-based purveyor of fresh-made ice-cream that's blended to order with mix-ins on, you guessed it, a cold stone, started scooping up international markets back in 2005, when it opened its first overseas store in Tokyo. Since then Coldstone has opened 22 more stores throughout Japan, Korea, China and Taiwan.

Its first Mexican store will open in September. There's been no word yet as to whether the Creamery stores South of the Border will forgo the signature stone slab in favor of a gigantic molcajete y tejolote to mix the ingredients with the ice cream. The company's next international markets will be Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia. I don't think it's gonna happen, but I'd love to see the Creamery's Southeast Asian stores use young coconut, jackfruit and some of the brightly colored gelatinous squiggles that are a staple of the region's frozen confections.

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I must admit that I've never really understood or enjoyed mochi, the Japanese glutinous rice cakes that are traditionally given as gifts on New Year's Day. Though I am a big fan of the hilarious mochi scene in Tampopo. But I'm ready to cast aside my aversion to the sticky rice cakes after seeing this image of rows of perfectly formed mochi arrayed like some kind of eerie alien gem stones. I'd even fly to Tokyo to visit the Takashimaya department store where this glamour shot was taken. [via Tastespotting]

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MSN has posted a list of the top 10 cities for foodies, as determined by a travel site. The cities chosen are all over the globe, picked for a combination of unique dishes, celebrity chefs and all-around good cuisine. Barcelona, Brussels, Lyon and Rome were lauded for their long standing traditions, while Las Vegas and New York were included for having just about everything. While San Francisco did get a nod for its non-Asian cuisine, it seems to have been selected mainly on the availability of good Chinese food. Asian flavors are what put Tokyo, Vancouver and Hanoi on the list, too.

It appears that the definition of a foodie as someone who is willing (and possibly desperate) to eat anything has been put into play with this list, as along with Asian flair, Hanoi was picked for "unusual delicacies like dog or snake," including "fried snake skin, snake spring rolls, snake soup, and minced snake dumpling." Weird meats are all well and good, but to plan a whole trip around them seems a bit extreme.

Nevertheless, their list includes:

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A restaurant in Tokyo has introduced the world's first fast food sweets. These aren't your usual deep fried apple pies and chocolate chip cookies, either. This restaurant offers sweets that are made to look like traditional fast food offerings, from hamburgers to french fries. At first glance, a Mamido's Burger hamburger looks quite ordinary, but the taste reveals something entirely different. The "bun" is made of sponge cake and the "patty" is actually a molded chocolate cream. Their version of a breaded fish burger features a patty made from bananas and what looks like a side order of french fries, pictured above, are deep fried slices of custard cream.

Young people and women are generally the target market for sweets and confections in Japan, but the shop is proving to be popular with men, as well. According to the owner, a man who might be embarrassed to be seen eating a slice of cake, can walk along looking as though he is enjoying a burger!

[Via Fast Food News]