Meiji

21.5-square foot, 272,200-yen build-it-yourself chocolate castle set released in Japan【Photos】

A dessert fit for a king, queen, and several other members of the royal family.

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How do other flavors of ice cream rice compare to Meiji’s matcha ice cream rice recipe?

Sometimes we just don’t know when to quit in the name of strange cooking experiments.

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Make matcha ice cream rice in your rice cooker with this easy recipe from Meiji

A surprising new way to enjoy green tea ice cream.

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How to make edible slime with just two ingredients

This easy food hack from Japan is just waiting to go viral.

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Why do kids in Japan use those large leathery “randoseru” school bags?

A trend a century and a half in the making.

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The trailer for the fourth live-action Rurouni Kenshin film has dropped!

Many believe these films are the best live-action adaptations of a beloved manga/anime series to exist.

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New Japanese kimono-style hakama roomwear comes with men’s styles for summer

Slip-on designs make it easy to swish around the house like a traditional schoolgirl or a cool, modern-day samurai.

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Delicious AND guilt free – the launch of Apollo yoghurt

Meiji’s new venture into the treat universe is surprisingly low in calories!

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Rivalry between mushrooms and bamboo shoots in Japan as people vote for their favourite chocolate

Jun Matsumoto from boy band group Arashi is leading the new campaign.

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Japanese artists fall in love with new chocolate…for its anime-friendly packaging  【Photos】

From Sailor Moon to Pokémon and even the cast of Final Fantasy XV, this chocolate box is proving to be the perfect canvas for all sorts of different characters.

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Merchant shipping posters invoke romance and wonder of Japan’s Meiji, Taisho and Showa eras

There was a time when sumo wrestlers and kimono-clad ladies made shipping companies look beautiful.

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Chocolate thief writes adorable apology note to sister after failed attempt to cover up his crime

A cautionary tale as old as time unfolded into an epic saga of crime and redemption in the Japanese Twitterverse recently, when a young boy’s inability to control himself around his sister’s chocolate stash ended in the kid embarking on a heist-like caper to replace the chocolate bar he couldn’t help but munch on before his sister noticed.

When the boy’s less-than-masterful plan failed, though, he resorted to writing this adorable apology letter.

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Fascinating Meiji-era candy ad claims to help you get fat, get sex appeal

Nintendo, Suntory, Mitsubishi… what do they all have in common? Well, they’re all companies established during the Meiji period (1868 – 1912) that are still thriving today. Call it nepotism if you like, but companies are often handed down from father to son, which is why Japan has more old companies than anywhere else in the world.

Confectionery company Asadaame is another one of these Meiji-era companies. Established in 1887, they’re still selling candy to this day. And recently an advertisement for their candy was discovered that dates back from those early days – and shows some very different attitudes towards physical standards of attractiveness

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Itadakimasu! A brief history of the evolution of Japanese school lunches

In the 22nd year of the Meiji era (aka 1889), the very first Japanese kyūshoku (school lunch) was served up at an elementary school in Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture. Although the first menu was very simply prepared, it provided the growing children with an important source of nourishment that not all of them could receive at home.

Fast-forward to 2015–Japanese schoolchildren (and their teachers!) continue to eat school lunches every day, as opposed to children in many other countries who bring their lunches from home. If you’re working in a Japanese school, you should already be familiar with the daily feeling of either excitement or disappointment when you see the lunch menu for the day. But just consider this–would you rather eat the types of lunches served today, or those that were served 100 years ago? Read on to learn about the evolution of Japanese school lunches and decide for yourself!

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From samurai to waterfalls: Some of the best places online to check out old photos of Japan

If you’re anything like us, you love old stuff from Japan. The temples, shrines, centuries-old festivals, and museums are some of our favorite things to check out when we have free time. There’s just something absolutely captivating about all the relics of the past that live on in Japan–but they’re just not quite as good as time travel! Come on, scientists, we want to hang out with Nobunaga! Well, while we’re waiting for Doc Brown to get back with the DeLorean, we can still at least look at old photos of Japan.

Though you might think there aren’t many–after all, it wasn’t like the samurai were running around with smartphones, snapping selfies–it turns out that there may be quite a few more than we realized! After a few hours clicking around the Internet, we’ve come up with our six favorite sites for finding old photos of Japan. Be sure to check them out and see what life was like over a hundred years ago!

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Video proves 19th century samurai and Japanese ladies have elegance all wrapped up

Have you ever looked at the current crop of Johnny’s and female idol groups streaming out of Japan and thought that their high energy hair styles and in-your-face costumes were a little genki for your tastes? Have you ever wondered, “what would they look like as samurai or geisha?” Look no further than this video showcasing the style and class of the 19th century!

Take a look at the video after the jump and see what the rest of the world thinks of Japan’s stoic idols.

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Sushi-Flavored Meiji Curl Snacks From Thailand Only Taste Like Seaweed

It looks like Thailand is coming out with all the cool foods this week. First it was the McGrilled Chicken Curry Rice at McDonald’s (hurry on over, it’s only sold for a limited time), now we found bags of sushi-flavored Meiji Curl snacks in a Thai convenience store.

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