Want to eat like a big kid, only with more grace and style? This restaurant in Kyoto offers a “Kids’ Special – for Adults”! Naturally we had to go and scoff—er, try—it for ourselves…
Evie Nyan
Born and raised in the UK, Evie escaped to Tokyo as an exchange student six years ago. Since then, she has been a Co-ordinator for International Relations in Kyoto, a translator of electronic manuals in Osaka, and a video game translator in London. Her hobbies include scouring second hand software shops for unlocalised retro games, drinking umeshu, and napping under the kotatsu. Her dream is to open a combination English teashop/bookshop/cat cafe in Tokyo.
Posted by Evie Nyan (Page 7)
Have you heard of Japanese illustrator and social media sticker creator Kanahei yet? She’s behind one of the most popular sticker collections on the LINE app, and now her cute critters are set to adorn dishes in their very own theme cafe in Tokyo!
Beyond silly mistakes like wearing toilet slippers on tatami or forgetting to add “san” to someone’s name, what other things do foreigners unknowingly do to reduce their chances of living happily in Japan?
Our favourite family of Munchkin cats (and a dog!) do battle with a motorised duelling Yoda in this adorable video!
An amazing scale model artist has created a rideable steampunk mecha for a Sylvanian Family doll, out of… a tub of chewing gum?!
Drunken revellers, rejoice! This festive season you can snooze past your train stop all you like—the rescue bus has got you covered!
Our reporter recently got his uvula lasered off to attempt to cure his chronic snoring. Did it work?
Our reporters made pigs of themselves at Marugo, a pork cutlet restaurant featured in the 2016 Tokyo Michelin Guide.
When a reporter for popular social news site BuzzFeed ate at Ramen Jiro recently, Japan’s netizens had plenty to say about it!
In terms of pronunciation Japanese is surprisingly easy to get to grips with, but some words can be real tongue-tanglers! Here are 10 of the worst!
According to Twitter in Japan, there are four main “personality types” when it comes to girlfriends: cat, dog, gorilla or penguin. Say what?!
Want to wear Hello Kitty accessories and still be taken seriously? In Japan you can. Here’s why.
I recently visited several areas of the Miyagi coastline decimated by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. This is what I saw.
Love Japan? Want to learn Japanese? Check out RocketNews24’s six fundamental top tips for learning Japanese!
In Japan, a recent trending Twitter hashtag, #don’tbelievegirlswhentheysay has people talking. Do any of these sound familiar to you?
Working at RocketNews24 sort of desensitizes you to craziness, but even we were surprised when we found out our two new coworkers are gigantic eight-foot-tall teddy bears. Things just got weirder as we heard the story of how they found their way to our office, but hey, it’s not like we mind having two new cuddly heartthrobs to share our workspace with!
Despite Japan’s relative safety, abundance of delicious food, fascinating culture, and friendly people, the country still lags behind as a tourist destination for foreign travellers. So the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games are the perfect opportunity for Japan to show off its famed omotenashi hospitality to the droves of foreign visitors who’ll be pouring into Tokyo to spectate.
As foreigners who’ve been living in Japan for a while, we think we might have some pretty good ideas about certain things Japan could do in order to make things a little easier on this influx of foreign guests…
Speakers of certain languages sometimes get a leg-up when learning Japanese. For example, Japanese includes Chinese characters, which means Chinese speakers can often get the gist of a text even if they don’t understand the grammar. Similarly, Korean speakers might find that Japanese grammar is kinda similar to theirs. And we native English speakers get a huge helping hand from the hundreds of English loan words that have been adopted into modern Japanese.
But sometimes, these loan words aren’t really our friends at all. Instead, they’re what’s known as false friends – words that sound similar in two languages yet have a completely different meaning. In co-opting English words into Japanese, sometimes our crafty Nihonjin pals have assigned our words to things that actually mean something totally different. It’s almost like they’re trying to trick us!
Join us for a quick primer on some Japanese loanwords you might have heard before, and what they really mean!
During our Women in Japan series, we discussed some of the powerful reasons to be a woman in Japan. From a Westernised viewpoint, it’s sometimes hard to accept the fact that, while Japan is still very much a patriarchal society, many women (not all, but many) here don’t actually want to be out there smashing glass ceilings and “leaning in” at the office when instead they could be doing things that women were traditionally appreciated for in Japan, namely cooking, housekeeping and raising the kids.
If you’re still in doubt as to exactly what Japanese women think of the gender gap in their country, this informative street interview video from YouTuber Yuta Aoki should provide some answers.
MOST POPULAR
Now
Japan has only one airport named after a samurai, so let’s check out Kochi Ryoma【Photos】
Family Mart’s Shibuya Cat Street shop hosts first-ever rescue cat photo exhibition for Cat Day
Japanese cafe serves up fruit sandwiches like nowhere else
Skyscraper sized Pokémon cards to appear in Tokyo all year long in Tocho projection mapping event
New Shinkansen luggage rules start today, set to make travel more expensive and less convenient
Rental grandma service growing in Japan, can help cook or break up with boyfriends
Mister Donut becomes Master Donut with new doughnuts no one has ever seen before
Starbucks Japan reveals second sakura cherry blossom drinkware range for 2020
The cool secret hidden in Tokyo Metro pillars at Ginza station
Ghibli’s Kiki’s Delivery Service returns to theaters with first-ever IMAX screenings and remaster
Weekly
The 10 most annoying things foreign tourists do on Japanese trains, according to locals
Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Is Sapporio’s Snow Festival awesome enough to be worth visiting even if you hate the snow? [Pics]
Japan has trams that say “sorry” while they ride around town…but why?
Tokyo Skytree turns pink for the cherry blossom season
Highest Starbucks in Japan set to open this spring in the Tokyo sky
Japan’s new “Cunte” contact lenses aren’t pronounced like you’re probably thinking they are
Shibuya Station’s Hachiko Gate and Yamanote Line stairway locations change next month
Yakuzen ramen restaurant in Tokyo is very different to a yakuza ramen restaurant
Starbucks Japan adds new sakura Frappuccino and cherry blossom drinks to the menu
Monthly
Japan’s newest Shinkansen has no seats…or passengers [Video]- Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Foreigners accounting for over 80 percent of off-course skiers needing rescue in Japan’s Hokkaido
Super-salty pizza sends six kids to the hospital in Japan, linguistics blamed
Starbucks Japan unveils new sakura Frappuccino for cherry blossom season 2026
Foreign tourists in Japan will get free Shinkansen tickets to promote regional tourism- The 10 most annoying things foreign tourists do on Japanese trains, according to locals
Take a trip to Japan’s Dododo Land, the most irritating place on Earth
Naruto and Converse team up for new line of shinobi sneakers[Photos]
Is China’s don’t-go-to-Japan warning affecting the lines at a popular Tokyo gyukatsu restaurant?
Yearly
Survey asks foreign tourists what bothered them in Japan, more than half gave same answer
Japan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
We deeply regret going into this tunnel on our walk in the mountains of Japan
Studio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home- Japan’s newest Shinkansen has no seats…or passengers [Video]
- Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Major Japanese hotel chain says reservations via overseas booking sites may not be valid
Put sesame oil in your coffee? Japanese maker says it’s the best way to start your day【Taste test】
No more using real katana for tourism activities, Japan’s National Police Agency says
RECOMMENDED STORIES
Rental grandma service growing in Japan, can help cook or break up with boyfriends
Mister Donut becomes Master Donut with new doughnuts no one has ever seen before
Starbucks Japan reveals second sakura cherry blossom drinkware range for 2020
The cool secret hidden in Tokyo Metro pillars at Ginza station
Ghibli’s Kiki’s Delivery Service returns to theaters with first-ever IMAX screenings and remaster
Arcade game coin slot capsule toys bring coin-op style to your home or office【Photos】
Sweet! Japan’s canned sour cocktails with real lemon slices inside are coming back
Sakura cherry blossoms float on breeze, land on Nara deer in perfect hanami video
Japan’s new canned chu-hai with fresh lemon slice: disappointing gimmick or drink revelation?
12 tabi split-toe sneakers to add a ninja flair to your casual everyday wear
Yakuzen ramen restaurant in Tokyo is very different to a yakuza ramen restaurant
Shibuya Station’s Hachiko Gate and Yamanote Line stairway locations change next month
-
