One word, convenience. Over the years, Japanese fast food chains have come out with some of the most (theoretically) delicious as well as most expensive fast food items money can buy. While “fast food expensive” is going to be a lot less than “Batman expensive” I think you’ll all agree that these expensive fast food items are, well, very expensive for fast food. Plus, your butler deserves a day off once in a while, right?

Let’s go through some of these gastronomical fast food dishes. They’re sure to make your wallet thinner and your stomach thicker.

The Quattro Prestige

Cost: ￥3900 (~$40)
Where: Domino’s

If it has the word “prestige” you know that it’s probably pretty good (and expensive). The Quattro Prestige pizza has four segments, all with a different “I’m-a-super-rich-dbag” toppings:

1. Snow Crab And Shrimp Gratin
2. Mangalitsa Pork With Bordeaux Sauce
3. Fresh Mozzarella And Beef Stew
4. Margherita (boo, how boring)

I’ve come across some other similar variations as well, including things with truffles, jumbo shrimp, Iberico Ham, and more. You can get the quarters as single pizzas as well, though if you’re going to go all out, go all out on one pizza. Your stomach will surely thank you.

Lobster Surf n’ Turf Burger, Premium Caviar & Lobster Sandwich

Cost: ￥1280 (~$13)
Where: Wendy’s

For what you’re getting, ~$13 isn’t all that much. There were two burgers being offered:

1. Lobster Surf n’ Turf
2. Premium Caviar & Lobster

Not sure why they have to specify that the caviar is premium (what about the lobster?). I suppose they would be missing out on that huge caviar connoisseur market if they didn’t mention that additional selling point. If a sandwich/burger isn’t enough for you (or if you aren’t into those things), Wendy’s also offered a salad at the same time, combining the best of both worlds.

Garden Sensation Salad With Lobster & Caviar

Cost: ￥1580 (~$16)
Where: Wendy’s

From what I hear, the Garden Sensations Salad is a regular thing at Wendy’s. Now take that and add lobster and caviar to the mix. This is what I imagine rich people doing to their fast food salads anyways, so it all makes sense to me. I wonder if I’d just eat the toppings, though. Everything else just looks so un-premium to me.

Kobe Beef Steak Pizza

Cost: ￥5800 (~$60)
Where: Domino’s

Kobe beef is one of the most delicious beefs in the world. The cows are massaged, fed beer, and live the most amazing life a cow could ever live before getting slaughtered to become Domino’s pizza toppings. Excellent Beef + terrible pizza dough? Sounds like a recipe for people picking off the toppings (you can give the dough and cheese to that weird kid who only can eat cheese pizza, at least).

The large is 5800 yen, and the medium is 4800 yen. Me? I’d rather get a $50 kobe beef steak, I think. That’s really the only part I’m here for anyways, Domino’s.

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Tenderloin Beef Truffle Sauce Burger

Cost: ￥1129 (~$11)
Where: Lotteria

While I’m more of a MOS Burger guy myself, Lotteria can be pretty good too. This burger definitely makes me lean over the “which-fast-food-is-my-favorite?” fence a little bit. Anything with truffle sauce is going to be a winner, and the price tag isn’t Kobe Beef Pizza level, at the very least.

Their selling point is that the luxury meat coming from the cows to this burger exists in only 3% of the cow, making it especially premium and rare. To me it looks pretty plain but I’m sure the taste speaks for itself. Sign me up.

Matsuzaka Hamburger Steak Burger

Cost: ￥1800 (~$18)
Where: Lotteria

Not to be outdone by… themselves… Loterria does the Matsuzaka Hamburger Steak Burger once every year on November 29 (more on that in a sec). The meat is supposedly a “wonderful hamburger” and for the price and occasion, I should hope so. You see, November 29 is “good meat day.” How did they come up with that? Let’s take a look:

November 29 = 11/29

11 is the い and い of いち. It also coincidentally looks like “ii”.

“ii” is the romaji for いい, which means “good”

29 in Japanese, if you read them separately as numbers, is 二(に) and 九(く). That equals にく (niku)

Niku means meat (肉) in Japanese.

Therefore: いいにく day is “good meat.”

Since it’s a day, it’s “Good Meat Day.”

I like that bun, too. 11/29 seems like a good day to me.

Foie Gras Rossini Burger

Cost: ￥1280 (~$13)
Where: Wendy’s

While foie gras is illegal in parts of the US now, Japan certainly isn’t shy about eating things that are controversial. The foie gras burger by Wendy’s is one of those examples. Not only is there foie gras paté on the burger, but there are truffles as well. This is about as rich as it gets and was one of the first of several ridiculous premium Wendy’s burgers to hit Japan. As they’re trying to get a foothold in the very competitive Japanese fast food scene, they wanted to stand out and well… I think they did (and continue to do) a pretty good job.

Iberico Bacon Burger

Cost: ￥980 (~$10)
Where: Wendy’s

This has the word bacon in it, so I’m sold right from the beginning (did somebody say bacon?). Iberico is a specifically premium and thick cut bacon that looks incredibly delicious, though I’ve never had it myself. While regular bacon on burgers looks good, this looks a lot better than any bacon I’ve ever seen in the fast food scene. Of course, you’re going to have to pay the price… a price that isn’t all that bad, all things considered.

Takumi Burger

Cost: ￥1000 (~$10)
Where: MOS Burger

The Takumi Burger (匠味/artisan flavor) was a series of burgers by MOS Burger that included Tasmanian beef patties plus ten toppings (some of which were: sliced avocado, grated wasabi, and other seasonal ingredients). I’m always a fan of MOS burger burgers, so when they make something good I’m guessing it’s quite good. I’ll definitely be looking out for this one in the future to pop up again.

Quarter Pounder Jewelry

Cost: ￥1000 (~$10)
Where: McDonalds

For the first time ever, McDonalds has put out a 1,000 yen burger in Japan (and possibly the most expensive McDonalds burger ever in the world).  This “jewelry” series is, I’m guessing, supposed to make the burgers seem more valuable. Unlike some jewelry, though, these burgers are only limited item and certainly not forever. If you’re in Japan right now, this is the one and only premium fast food item from this list that you could possibly buy, so pay close attention to the dates. You’ve missed “Gold Ring,” but “Black Diamond” and “Ruby Spark” are yet to come. I’d recommend getting in line right now.

The flavors are:

• Gold Ring: Pineapple, thick cut bacon, quarter pound patty, Monterey Jack cheese,, BBQ sauce, and 10 different spices.
• Black Diamond: Truffle sauce, quarter pound patty, grilled mushrooms, and melted cheese.
• Ruby Spark: 5 slices of chorizo, avocado, quarter pound patty, pepper jack cheese.

Based off the names, I was hoping they’d contain some very illegal Pokémon meat, but I’ll manage somehow. If the current level of fanciness isn’t enough, apparently there was one Mcdonalds that gussied up some special seating just for people who ordered the 1000 yen meal:

I guess some McDonalds didn’t think you were getting enough value for your 1000 yen meal. Just you wait, this will become so popular that they have to get rid of the 100 yen menu section and replace it with the 1000 yen menu section. One can dream, anyways.

Which of the three do you want inside of you most?

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Sadly, almost all of these items were only temporary, meaning you’d be hard pressed to find any of these right now. That being said, the future is bright! Wendy’s can’t seem to stop with their ridiculous PR-inducing premium food items and now even McDonalds is in the mix. The other fast food chains will surely do something again at some point as well. It’s not a matter of “if,” it’s a matter of “when.”

If I could rent out my time machine to you so that you could go back and eat just one of these items what would it be? For me I think it would have to be the Matsuzaka Hamburger Steak Burger because, well, I don’t know. That meat just looks so good and different from the rest (not to mention the bun as well). How about you? Anyone else holding out for a future special ￥4000 panda ear truffle burger from McDonalds?

And then there’s Japanese junk food.

You may think that junk food is junk food, no matter where it’s made and sold, but the Japanese do it a little differently. Soda, candy, fast food and other junk food might not have been invented in Japan, but the Japanese have been able to put their own twist on these low-end foods.

A lot of these foods are only available seasonally or for some limited time so when they’re gone, they’re gone for good. Here’s a roundup of some of 2012′s most enticing, disgusting, weird, and delicious Japanese junk food.

Fast Food

Japan is a great place for fast food. Aside from Japanese-style street food that’s ready to go in a jiffy, there’s also home-grown Japanese fast food chains (which we’ve written about before) and American chains.

These American chains usually offer food in Japan that you won’t be able to find anywhere else.

KFC’s Bacon Potato Fritter

It’s pretty surprising that KFC Japan would offer a dish more American than its American counterpart, but then you haven’t seen the Bacon Potato Fritter. Full of all of the heart-stopping cholesterol-filled goodness that we Americans hold near and dear.

Domino’s Prestige Quattro

Pizza pricing is usually a race ot the bottom — get three medium pizzas for $15! Two large pizzas for $20! Add another pizza for $5!

But Domino Japan’s Prestige Quattro isn’t cheap. In fact, the gourmet pizza that has crab, shrimp, and Mangalitsa pork, is $50.

Burger King

After a six year hiatus in Japan, Burger King has returned to the country with a vengeance. It seems like every other week I’m hearing about some new, novelty product from Burger King Japan that’s unavailable anywhere else.

Black Burger

Even though a black burger looks like it was left in the oven for too long, it’s only colored by bamboo charcoal and squid ink. Fortunately though, the flavor of neither of those are very prominent in the burger, so just close your eyes and imagine you’re eating a Whopper.

Pumpkin Burger

As we wrote about earlier, Halloween is quickly becoming an absurdly commercial holiday in Japan. To cash in on that, Burger King Japan released a burger with kabocha pumpkin slices. Nothing says Halloween like fast food!

Candy

Coffee Gum

This year, Suntory’s Boss Coffee celebrated its 20^th anniversary by collaborating with various other Japanese companies, including Lotte, who created the unholy abomination that is Boss Special Coffee Gum. I thought gum was supposed to make your breath smell good?

Soda

In Japan, it seems like you can’t walk more than a block without passing handfuls of vending machines stocked with some of the most delicious and delectable sodas you’ve ever seen. The availability of these sodas means that it’s even more important to stand out among the crowd.

Espressoda

The linguistic genius at Suntory who came up with the portmanteau “Espressoda” should be given a raise, a corner office, and a bonus. Unfortunately, the beverage itself isn’t as genius as the name. Eryk from This Japanese Life reviewed it for us and gave us this verdict: “The result is a kind of a totally unsweetened root beer . . . Not awful, but unpleasantly confusing. Would not drink again.”

Pepsi

Pepsi, more than other western soft drink companies, really seems to get the Japanese market. Instead of pushing things like Mountain Dew that do well in the US, Pepsi has adapted to Japan’s tastes and comes up with seasonal and novelty products.

Salty Watermelon Pepsi

Eryk from This Japanese Life also reveiwed this oddball summer selection from Pepsi for us in a guest post earlier this year. The verdict? “[I]t’s a liquified watermelon Jolly Rancher with seltzer . . . Too sweet. Would not drink again.”

Pepsi Special

Pepsi Special helps you poop.

Well, kind of. It’s marketed as a fat-blocking soda but in reality, it’s chock-full of of dextrin, a soluble fiber. The theory is that you won’t gain any weight because all of the food you eat basically passes right through you. Bon appétit

Pepsi White

The yet-to-be-released Pepsi White is a special winter variation of the cola. It’s white, has snow people on the label, and tastes like mandarin oranges, a seasonal favorite.

And that was just this year. Who knows what these Japanese alchemists have in store for us next year!

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All-You-Can-Eat Burger King? This Is Madness, Japan.: In recognition of Burger King’s fifth year since it returned to Japan, it’s offering something unusual for a fast food restaurant: an all-you-can-eat meal. For a limited time, if you order one of its famous black burgers, you get half an hour to eat as much as humanly possible. There’s also the fact that Burger King appreviates to B’iKing, which sounds like “viking,’ which is, as you should know, an all-you-can-eat-buffet. You knew that, right?
[/threecol_two] [threecol_one_last]World’s First 3D Printing Photo Booth to Open in Japan: 3D printing has become cheaper and cheaper over the years, to the point where you can have your own at home. Or, for a limited time in Japan, you can use a 3D printing photo booth to print out miniature replicas of yourself. Narcissistic? Maybe. Cool? Definitely.

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[threecol_one]Japanese maitre d’ Shin Miyazaki wins world cup for waiters: A lot of the times being a waiter can be a low-paying, thankless job, but Shin Miyazaki has elevated his maitre d’ skills into an artform. Last week, Miyazaki won the Georges Baptiste cup in recognition for being the world’s best waiter. It’s unknown at this time how good the tip was. [via News on Japan]

Report: Pleas for Japan’s Most Infamous (and Frightening) Blogger To Stop: I feel bad for Japanese actress Aki Higashihara. She likes to blog, but seems to leave a trail of broken dreams in her wake. Not only do the Japanese suspect that she’s responsible for the failure of the Dreamcast, the appearance of parasites in McDonald’s burgers, Japan’s poor performance in the Olympics, but they suspect that she’ll keep destroying people with her blog. I, for one, would like to invite her to blog for Tofugu and see what happens.
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Rehearsal for grand reopening lights up Tokyo Station: as Tokyo Station wraps up five years of restoration work, its grand reopening has been celebrated by an elaborated, 10-minute long projected light show. The building comes alive with people and trains, all backed by a sweeping orchestral score. It’s a bit of a long video, but definitely worth it. [via Reddit][/twocol_one] [twocol_one_last]City of Izumi Elects Masked Wrestler for City Council. (JP): Sick of the same old politics as usual, the city of Izumi (in Osaka prefecture) decided to take after the US and elect a pro wrestler to office. Super Delfin a 45-year-old, longtime veteran of the Japanese pro wrestling scene, has been elected to city council after officials confirmed his identity by privately unmasking him. Super Delfin stands resolved, saying “My mask and my body are one. In order to become more familiar with Izumi, I think I’ll take on this role. I will persevere to become Izumi’s hero.”

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Japanese porn star in workbook angers Indonesian parents : Japanese porn stars seem to be a busy bunch. Just last week we covered how one Japanese porn star was calling for an end to the Japan-China disputes that have been . This week, another Japanese porn star is finding herself mired in controversy after a picture of her was published on a worksheet for Indonesian students. Even though the young starlet is fully clothed and there’s no indication whatsoever of her real-life career, one government spokesman said “There’s a subtle message in the picture that could actually infiltrate [students'] minds.” [via News On Japan][/twocol_one] [twocol_one_last]Burger King’s Black-Bun Burger: Japanese fast food chains continue to enjoy menu items that their American counterparts miss out on. This time around, it’s a burger with a black bun and black ketchup, colored with bamboo charcoal and squid ink, respectively. I’m not sure I’d be crazy about the taste of either of those, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love novelty. [via Reddit, Japan Pulse]

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Japanese Fast Food Chains In Japan

Now, when we talk about fast food chains in Japan, I don’t mean imported fast food chains like McDonalds, KFC, Burger King and so on. I’m talking about home-grown fast food, where some Japanese person was inspired by the speed, unhealthiness and cheapness of a Big Mac, and said “hey, I want to do that too, but Japanese style.”

Sometimes that means creating something that’s not-Japanese (food-wise) but then making it Japanese (style, culture, and so on-wise). Alternatively, it can also mean someone took something Japanese (food-wise) and just made it faster and cheaper. Doesn’t matter.

I’m going to go over my “favorite” (and I say “favorite” in quotes because I’m not particularly a fan of any of these places, or any fast food in general) Japanese Fast Food Chains and share the cool stuff about them. Let’s start with delicious hamburgers.

MOS Burger (モスバーガー)

MOS Burger’s motto is “Making people happy through food.” So, if you’re depressed and eating food makes you feel better MOS Burger was, like, totally made for you. You pronounce it like “Moss” Burger, so it’s not actually a burger joint owned by a “Mo” (at least, not that I know of). Actually, the MOS stands for “Mountain Ocean Sun” … which I suppose are three things that tend to make a lot of people happy. It’s Japan’s second largest fast food franchise, only behind (you guessed it) McDonalds.

One thing I’ve noticed about MOS Burger is their burgers. They’re freakishly perfect looking, especially on the menu. Normally you see the menu and think… “okay, it’s not going to look like this in real life.”

But, when you get a MOS Burger in real life, they’re kind of suspiciously nice looking… Not perfect like the menu, for sure, but still very shapely.

Their menu includes things like Hamburgers, hot dogs, rice dishes, and (my favorite) MOS Rice Burgers, where instead of having a bun made of bread, you have a bun made of rice.

MOS Rice Burger With Kalbi

If there isn’t any rice anywhere, it’s not really Japanese. I’ve never actually had a MOS Rice Burger, but just thinking about it in my mouth makes me hungry. Looking at the other Rice Burgers, I think they’ve picked good insides that match rice well. Not all that strange when you think about it in terms of loose rice. This rice bun just makes eating it faster and more convenient. [MOS Burger's Website]

Sukiya (すき家)

Oh how I love you so, Sukiya. This place serves gyuudon (beef on rice), kind of like Yoshinoya (see below), though I’d say they do a better job at it (just my preference, Yoshinoya’s all kinds of awesome too). While they have the standard beef-bowl combination (i.e. beef, onion, ginger, rice), they also have plenty of other tasty options as well. Though they don’t look anything like this in real life, the commercial below will give you an idea.

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoEf3o292JE&feature=related']

Mmm, looks delicious, right? And, like many Japanese fast food places, Sukiya is open 24hrs a day. It’s such a perfect place to pop in at four in the morning after you’ve been working all night. Nice and warm and goes nicely with some tea.

There are over 1,000 Sukiya restaurants in Japan and some in China and Brazil as well. Their motto is “Save Time And Money.” Now there’s something (delicious) I can live by. [Sukiya's Website]

First Kitchen (ファーストキッチン)

First Kitchen, owned by Suntory (they make beer and soft drinks, mostly), is a fast food chain in Japan that is mostly concentrated around the Kanto region of Japan (that’s the prefectures around Tokyo). They serve burgers (most popular, apparently, is the Bacon Egg Burger, which sounds amazing because it has bacon in the name), fried chicken, pasta, pizza, and more.

They’re pretty standard in terms of American-Fast-Food-Turned-Japanese places go. There are interesting (but kind of normal) things like croquette burgers, shrimp burgers, and katsu burgers.

The most interesting about First Kitchen, I think, is probably its name, which, when shortened, comes out to “ファッキン” (fakkin)… They’re apparently pushing for people to use the abbreviation FK instead, because Fakkin sounds nothing like First Kitchen and a lot like some other word I can’t think of at the moment. [First Kitchen's Website]

Yoshinoya (吉野家)

You can’t write an overview of Japanese Fast Food Chains without including Yoshinoya. Yoshinoya (like Sukiya) is a gyuudon (beef bowl) place. There’s a special place in my heart for Yoshinoya – it’s fed me many-a-late-nights and also many-a-not-late-days.

Seriously highly recommend cracking an egg into your gyuudon – makes things 10x better.

There are several things that set Yoshinoya apart. First, there are some in America, so you have a chance to find it (though, I gotta say, doesn’t feel the same to me). Second, compared to other places, they’ve been around a really really long time (1899).

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1e-HPMpxdc']

One interesting thing about them is that in 2003, when Japan stopped importing American beef because of Mad Cow Disease scares, they stopped serving their beef bowls (that’s like, their main bowl! 0_o). People lined up in giant lines (that’s what Japanese people do for fun, line up) to get one last taste of wonderful beef goodness before they switched over to pork. Finally, in 2006 they were able to get American beef back again, and all of Japan celebrated (because, who wouldn’t?).

Oh, and if you go to a Yoshinoya, stack up on the ginger. It’s free and delicious. Yum. [Yoshinoya's Website]

Coco Ichiban Curry (CoCo壱番)

Like Japanese curry and want it fast? Like your curry with lots of stuff, like natto, tonkatsu, and chicken, in it? Well, have no fear, Coco Ichiban Curry is here.

Personally, I can’t get enough Japanese Curry (it’s so easy for a terrible cook such as myself to make). I only put boring things like onions, carrots, and sometimes meat in mine, though. The first time I went to Coco Ichiban I was amazed by all the options. I think I got a combination of katsu and croquette – it was giant and awesome.

There are a bunch of these in Japan as well as some others around Asia and California/Hawaii. But, if you’re looking to get a quick curry fix, Coco Ichiban is your place. Just don’t be overwhelmed by all the available options. [Coco Ichibanya's Website]

Pizza-La (ピザーラ)

Now THAT’S a crust

Pizza-La is the most successful pizza company in Japan… but when I say “Pizza” don’t think I’m talking about the stuff you’re used to. Japanese pizza has “different” ingredients. I’m not saying they’re bad… in fact, they’re delicious… but there are a lot of ingredients you probably aren’t used to.

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTP04NuIJWM']

Shrimp Mayonnaise

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8L-XuW4_-8']

Crab

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkoMcXplQMQ']

Roast Chicken, Mozzarella, & Lemon

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUgJ9hEufGU']

Bob Sapp flavored / SUPER Italian

Anyways, those sound pretty good, right? Other pizzas include Bulgogi, several things with mayo, hot dogs, and all the normal pizza things I’m not mentioning because you’ve seen it before. Their motto is “All the taste and toppings you want on a pizza, straight from our oven to your door!” and their mascot is a person with a pizza for a head. He makes good faces.

There’s just no “neutral” when it comes to Pizza-La-kun. [Pizza-La's website]

Ichiran Ramen (一蘭ラーメン)

Delicious fast-food ramen. Even though Ichiran is pretty close to fast-food status, I don’t think I’ve ever had ramen outside of Japan that’s as good as this stuff. It’s tasty – not something I’d compare with McDonalds or something like that, despite calling it “Fast Food.” Maybe it’s the nostalgia, but if I had to choose any Japanese fast-food place, this would be the one.

At Ichiran Ramen, you sit in solitude. You’re in a booth, and it’s just you and your ramen.

To buy the ramen, you don’t even have to talk to anyone either. Just go to the machine, pay there, and turn in the ticket it spits out.

You can concentrate 100% on your (awesome) ramen. If you finish your noodles but want more, just put your plate on the button in front of you and a bell will ring in the back. Someone will grab your bowl and fill it with some more noodles as long as you still have the soup to go with them, making it a pseudo-all-you-can-eat style place.

Now, I know it’s not supposed to be fun eating alone, but I think that’s because most places make you feel bad (i.e. most tables are a table for at least two, if not more people). This place is made for being alone which gets rid of the guilt and the judging. Just you and wonderful ramen.

Let’s Not Forget…

There are plenty of other Japanese Fast Food Chains that exist that I haven’t added to the list. There are probably some that I’ve totally missed (whoops) – but, here are some I didn’t really want to talk about a lot but ought to be on the list, along with a little about them.

Beard Papa’s is a dessert place, so I’m not sure if it counts as fast food, but it’s fast, and it’s food, so we’re going to include it. Their focus is cream puffs, and they’re located all over the world (most of their stores are in Japan, though). You definitely have a pretty good chance to find this place in your own country though, at least compared to some of the other Japanese fast food joints.

Becker’s is owned and operated by JR (that’s Japan Railways, the people who do a lot of the train stuff in Japan). I’m guessing they thought “hey, we got tons of people coming into our stations on trains, I bet they’re hungry for burgers” so then they just made a burger place. They’re all about freshness here, too – if a bun gets more than 1.5 hours old, they toss it (so wasteful, though!). Still, it’s pretty tasty.

Freshness Burger, as you can probably tell by the name, is also all about freshness. They stress the organic / fresh ingredients side of things, which is what differentiates them from the other burger fast food joints out there.

Lotteria Just another fast food burger chain – there isn’t much that differentiates it from the other places, though it tastes fine, and I’d rather go here than McDonalds (though, McDonalds Japan is kinda good).

Pepper Lunch is a “fast-steak” fast-food restaurant in Japan and Asia that has a pretty interesting cooking method. The founder, Kunio Ichinose, wanted to make a place that served high quality fast food that didn’t require a chef (cheaper and faster that way, I guess). They use metal plates that are heated to 500 degrees Fahrenheit by an electromagnetic cooker. The meat, vegetables, and other things get cooked and the customer decides when to eat them.

What Will You NomNomNom?

Now, I’m sure there are a bunch of other Japanese fast-food places I’m missing, but I’m pretty sure those are the main ones. Which ones caught your fancy? Which ones made you hungry? For me, it was definitely having to remember Ichiran Ramen and it’s deliciousness (I’m writing this at dinner time, arrghsddjkfd).

One thing I do know, though… writing this article reminds me how terrible most American fast food chains are. Where are our standards? :(

P.S. If you’re “hungry” for more, you should follow Tofugu on Twitter.
P.S. Totally full now? Hit us up on Facebook or Google+ instead.

[Header Image]

I came across this story on Flickr while looking for something completely different, which forced me to do some more searching on my own. Of course, the curse is in Wikipedia, as well as in Shane’s atypicallife, but you can read it right here as well. Possibly with a little more snarkiness. Maybe.

What/Who does the Colonel curse?

The Curse of Colonel Sanders is a curse brought down on the Japanese baseball team, the Hanshin Tigers. Starting in 1985 until now, the Hanshin Tigers have never won the Japanese baseball equivalent of the World Series (The Japan Series). Supposedly, evil Mr. Sanders is the one preventing it.

How did they get Cursed?

In 1985, Hanshin Tigers beat the Seibu Lions and won their first Japan Series. A lot of the work was done by their gaijin star, Randy Bass (who was their MVP). After the Tigers won, fans were celebrating wildly in the streets. They gathered at the Ebisubashi Bridge in Dotonbori, Osaka. For some reason (who knows why), they decided that they’d yell out the name of one of the Tigers’ players, and someone who resembles that player would jump off the bridge and into the canal. When they got to Randy Bass’ name, they didn’t have any white, bearded dude to jump into the river for them, so they took the local KFC’s Colonel Sanders statue (which can be found in front of most KFCs in Japan…don’t ask), and chucked it into the river. Because, yeah, all gaijin look alike (kind of like how all Asians look alike, right?). Look at the resemblance!

From here, the Hanshin Tigers had 18 years of bad seasons. There were a few seasons with rays of hope, but they were quickly smashed, letting the legend live on.

So, Are they still cursed?

Technically, yes. They got to the Japan Series in 2003, but then lost to the Fukuoka Hawks (Go Hawks! Ra Ra!). When they got to the Japan Series, 5300 people jumped into the canal (you see, the KFC statue was bolted down, this time), and actually one person died (sounds very cursey to me). There have been diving expeditions into the deep to recover the Colonel, but he was never found. Sounds like the Twilight Zone, to me.

What do YOU Think?

Psshh, hecks yes, I think they have a curse, though it could be my love for baseball that’s blinding all remaining bits of common sense. Maybe that’s why I still follow every Mariners game I can. How about you?

Vocab for This Article:

★野球　(yakyuu)
Baseball

★ケンタッキー　(Kentakkii)
KFC / Kentucky Fried Chicken

★ケンチキ　(Kenchiki)
KFC / Kentucky Fried Chicken

★呪い　(noroi)
Curse

★カーネルサンダースの呪い　(Kaaneru Sandaasu no noroi)
Curse of Colonel Sanders