Starting 19 July Fuji TV will be holding the “Odaiba Shintairiku” event featuring live performances from various artists along with other attractions.

Among these attractions is Izakaya Eguzairu, a bar and grill featuring dishes designed by the members of the top pop group Exile. While much of the menu is standard fare such as Hiro’s spaghetti or Aran Shirahama’s chicken and rice, it’s the dish dreamt up by vocalist Takahiro that has everyone saying “I want to eat Takahiro’s banana” online.

We sent our reporter Nakano-san in to get to the bottom of Takahiro’s Chocolate Banana.

In hindsight Nakano might not have been the best choice. Our reporter realized this himself after noticing that he was the only middle-aged man in a long line made up largely of young women outside Izakaya Eguzairu. This was a sneak preview of the restaurant before the opening of Odaiba Shintairiku, and on a weekday to boot, but scores of women came out from the buzz generated online.

Although Nakano and these women were from very different walks of life, on this day they would share a common goal: to wrap their lips around Takahiro’s Chocolate Banana. Because of the sheer number of patrons, Nakano found himself waiting dozens of minutes before he could enter.

After ordering it was still several minutes’ wait for Takahiro’s Chocolate Banana to come, but eventually it did. As the plate slowly descended onto his table the banana revealed itself.

It was both thicker and blacker than he expected and sat atop a bed of chocolate sprinkles with a cup of condensed milk on the side. Nakano felt reluctant to drizzle the condensed milk onto Takahiro’s banana but ultimately decided it was necessary to get the full experience.

The condensed milk added a whole new dimension of gooey sweetness to the dessert. The banana, chocolate, and milk all melted together inside his mouth for a delectable experience. It was as if all of Takahiro’s sweetness exploded in his mouth and slid down his throat. When it was all finished, Nakano felt both satisfied and wanting more.

He glanced around the restaurant and saw all of the other women happily stuffing their mouths with Takahiro’s Chocolate Banana. Nakano couldn’t help but think that this guy was both a musical and culinary genius to satisfy men and women, young and old.

So if you’re in the Odaiba area, perhaps to check out a performance at Odaiba Shintairiku, don’t forget to stop by Izakaya Eguzairu and gobble up Takahiro’s Chocolate Banana. He’d sure appreciate it.

Source: Izakaya Eguzairu
Original article by Nakano

▼ Atsushi may have won in the ranking of Japan’s greatest singers, but when it comes to memorable foods his fried rice and soup was woefully inadequate.

[ Read in Japanese ]