Tokyo Banana facts for kids
Tokyo Banana (pronounced Toh-kyoh Bah-nah-nah) is a super popular Japanese snack! It's a soft, banana-shaped sponge cake filled with a creamy custard. Think of it as a special souvenir sweet from Tokyo, Japan's exciting capital city. A company called Grapestone Co. makes and sells these yummy treats.
Tokyo Bananas come in many different flavors, and each one is usually wrapped individually. The most famous one is called Tokyo Banana Miitsuketa (Mee-ee-tsoo-keh-tah), which means "found it!" This original flavor has a smooth banana custard cream inside. The cream is made from real banana puree, and the sponge cake is steamed after baking to make it extra soft and fluffy.
These delightful cakes are made in a factory in Tokorozawa, Saitama. You can find Tokyo Bananas in many stores across Tokyo and at major airports in Japan, making them a perfect gift or snack for travelers.
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A Sweet History
The original Tokyo Banana Miitsuketa, with its classic banana custard flavor, first appeared in stores in 1991. Before Tokyo Banana, there were many other souvenir cakes in Tokyo. However, Tokyo Banana was special because it was the first to proudly include "Tokyo" right in its name!
By 2016, these popular cakes were selling for about 4 billion yen each year. That's a lot of Tokyo Bananas!
In April 2020, Grapestone Co. opened its first Tokyo Banana store outside of Tokyo, in the city of Osaka. This happened when fewer people were traveling, so it was a way to bring Tokyo's famous treat to more places. Then, in 2022, a brand-new main store, just for Tokyo Banana products, opened inside Tokyo Station.
Exploring Tokyo Banana Flavors
Tokyo Banana offers many exciting flavors and types of sweets! Here are some of the most popular ones:
The Original Miitsuketa
- Tokyo Banana Miitsuketa: This is the classic! It's a banana-shaped cake with creamy banana custard inside a fluffy sponge. It's best to eat it within 7 days, but keeping it in the fridge can make it last a little longer.
Other Delicious Varieties
- Tokyo Banana Miitsuketa caramel flavour: This special cake has a caramel banana custard cream. It's wrapped in a sponge cake that's also caramel-colored and flavored. It first came out in 2011 to celebrate 20 years of Tokyo Banana!
- Tokyo Choco Banana: Imagine banana cream tucked inside a chocolate cake! In the summer, from mid-May to mid-September, this flavor changes to a refreshing banana mint called "Summer Choco."
- Tokyo Banana Pie: This treat is made from layers of banana-flavored biscuit dough and pastry, folded together to create a delicious pie.
- Fresh Cream Puff: A yummy cream puff filled with both regular cream and banana custard.
- Tokyo Banana Raisin Sandwich: This snack features a delicious raisin-flavored banana filling sandwiched between two banana-scented cookies.
- Wagashi Tokyo Banana: Wagashi are traditional Japanese sweets. This version of Tokyo Banana has a banana anko (a sweet red bean paste) inside a soft, moist outer layer.
- Moist Baumkuchen: Baumkuchen is a special layered cake. This Tokyo Banana version has three layers of cake mixture baked together to be wonderfully moist.
Past Favorites
Over the years, Tokyo Banana has also offered some limited-edition or discontinued products that fans loved:
- Tokyo Banana Kuro Bei: This cake had a rich banana custard wrapped in a slightly bitter cocoa sponge cake.
- Chocolate Pie: A chocolate pastry with many delicate layers, flavored with cocoa.
- Moist Baumkuchen: This layered cake combined two flavors: chocolate banana and muscovado (a type of brown sugar) mixture.
- Dorayaki: A classic Japanese dessert with two soft sponge cake slices and a sweet red bean jam filling in the middle.
More to Explore
