One 7-Eleven in Tokyo is advertising their seasonal products in a clever and hilarious way!
oden (Page 2)
With the Tokyo Olympic Committee (TOC) officially cutting ties with Kenjiro Sano’s much maligned emblem, one obvious question is on everyone’s lips: What does this mean for that oden poster made by the 7-Eleven in Musashikoganei, Tokyo?
Some of you may recall that this particular franchise had made a poster promoting their oden sale which bore a striking resemblance to the former Olympic emblem. After a request was made to the TOC, they had denied the poster’s commercial use and likeness to their intellectual property. However, now that the emblem will no longer be used, is the poster back in play?
We previously ran an article about Maplies, a bakery in Shinjuku that excels in the art of making cake look exactly like Chinese food, namely gyoza, ramen (salt or soy sauce), and tenshindon.
About a year has past since then and our reporter Mr. Sato had a sudden hankering for some cake that looked like egg, crab meat, and rice. He headed down to Maplies only to be shocked at what he found. The bakery had added a whole new assortment of cakes that look exactly like other foods!
Needless to say he bought one of each and brought them back to the office for a taste of pure confusion.
Between rising sales tax and the dropping value of the yen, prices are on the rise for food in Japan. That puts us in a bit of a bind, since food is one of our favorite things to buy, along with swell stuff like shelter and clothing (although if you’re a work-from-home Internet writer, you can sometimes get away without that last one).
Thankfully, we recently found a way to make a delicious, hot meal that’s also dirt cheap, by tossing the stewed vegetable contents of a pack of oden from 7-Eleven into our rice cooker.
When it comes to Japanese food, everyone and their grandmother knows the classics like sushi, noodles and tempura. But one food that always takes visitors to Japan by surprise, and which has just this month started showing up in convenience stores again, is oden. Rarely seen outside of Japan, many of the ingredients in this incredible savoury pick ‘n’ mix look almost alien to non-Japanese eyes, and so visitors are often wary of trying it for themselves.
With this in mind, today we’d like to introduce you to a handful of typicaloden ingredients, teaching you their names and telling you a little bit about each of them, so that the next time you pass a food cart or duck into a conbini and get a waft of that unmistakable aroma, you won’t be afraid to order some for yourself.
As the temperatures gradually sink into a chilly winter, convenience stores all across this great nation start to kick their oden pots into high gear. For those unacquainted with this Japanese dish, oden is basically any type of food soaked and simmered in a flavorful broth. The type of soup used varies by regions but is usually very savory.
Although not the only place to get oden, convenience stores are thought of as the first place to get it. That’s why Japan’s three biggest convenience stores – 7-Eleven, Family Mart, and Lawson – are all competing to find that perfect ingredient to simmer and sell to the hungry masses.
To help kick-off this year’s oden season in Japan, Excite News has released the five most popular oden foods at each of the big three stores. First up is Lawson!






The average age of Japan’s hikikomori shut-ins is getting older, survey shows
Studio Ghibli releases crystal glass paperweights featuring Totoro and the Catbus
Samurai Coffee: Try Edo period coffee once enjoyed by Japanese warriors
Japan’s new Pokémon jackets give you the look and powers of the Kanto starter trio
Japan enters Golden Week vacation period, survey shows one in three plan to ride it out at home
Sega opening 65th anniversary store in downtotn Tokyo with deep-cut game merch
Viral tweet suggests Japanese convenience store ripping off customers with donuts, so we investigate
Studio Ghibli releases new anime keychains that are like miniature figurines
Eating cheap sushi in a narrow building in Tokyo is an adventure for bold diners
Retro-style Evangelion T-shirts coming to Uniqlo sister brand GU[Photos]
Brand-new Square Enix Cafe to open in Tokyo…and in Los Angeles too!
New Kyoto Converse sneakers celebrate Japan with traditional kimono fabrics for your feet
Japan’s 5.3 million beautiful Hitachi Nemophila flowers are now in full bloom[Photos]
Hello Kitty is now a transforming truck robot[Photos]
Dorayaki from 89-year-old Japanese confectionery shop is one of the best sweets hidden in Tokyo
What are the worst things about living in the Japanese countryside?[Survey]
Tifa’s Final Fantasy VII bar is going to pop up in real-world Tokyo
Japan reportedly adding Japanese language skill requirement to most common foreigner work visa
Wisteria season starts early with blooming of Japan’s Great Wisteria in its beautiful garden
Pokémon and Ikea Japan cross over into each other’s worlds with collaboration events
Japan’s best conveyor belt sushi restaurant of seven years ago has now, finally, come to Tokyo
Brand-new Pokémon manhole covers coming to help the recovery of a disaster-stricken part of Japan
Japan’s awesomely beautiful Alpen Route snow corridor is now open
Injuries on stairs in Tokyo highlight an overlooked design flaw
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
Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Japan’s newest Shinkansen has no seats…or passengers [Video]
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
Sega opening 65th anniversary store in downtotn Tokyo with deep-cut game merch
Viral tweet suggests Japanese convenience store ripping off customers with donuts, so we investigate
Studio Ghibli releases new anime keychains that are like miniature figurines
Eating cheap sushi in a narrow building in Tokyo is an adventure for bold diners
Retro-style Evangelion T-shirts coming to Uniqlo sister brand GU[Photos]
Lipton releases… Pudding Milk Tea in Japan?!?
Dorayaki from 89-year-old Japanese confectionery shop is one of the best sweets hidden in Tokyo
Hayao Miyazaki’s Whisper of the Heart concept art revealed in new Ghibli illustration book
49-year-old Japanese shut-in spends weeks living with corpse of mother who died at home
Live-action Ghibli Princess Mononoke stage play tickets are now on sale
New Kyoto Converse sneakers celebrate Japan with traditional kimono fabrics for your feet
Japan’s Mister Donut Japan tries its hand at Taiwanese-style street food donuts
Tifa’s Final Fantasy VII bar is going to pop up in real-world Tokyo
Bandai cancels gacha/blind-buy system for anime cosmetics, will let fans choose what they buy