When you step on the streets of Japan, you’ll find Japanese konbinis ( コンビニ) littered almost everywhere you go! The shortened version of konbiniensu sutoru, or “convenience store” in English, the konbini is unlike the regular retail stores you’ll find in the US. Konbinis have wifi, they offer multiple services, they can print government documents, and they even offer emergency apparel like shirts and underwear. There are so many reasons why the Japanese konbini is so great (which you can read about in our blog, What Makes The Konbini Next Level).
At the end of the day, though, the best thing about the konbini is the food! Unlike convenience stores in the West, which focus on instant food, slushies, and meals drenched heavily in oil, konbinis offer a wide selection of healthier snacks and fresh food options. There’s also the fact that Japan practices shun (eating food when they’re in season), meaning that there are a ton of seasonal treats for customers to look forward to in konbinis!
Wondering what konbini snacks you should look out for when you head to Japan this year? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Pack your bags and don’t forget to bring along your chopsticks, because we’re going to munch on the yummiest Japanese treats you can find at the konbini!
1. Onigiri
Also known as omusubi or nigirimeshi, onigiri are Japanese rice balls made from white rice squeezed into triangular or cylindrical shapes. Onigiri are the perfect konbini snacks because not only are they made as a quick meal, but they're especially filling too! While the simplest onigiri comes as a plain shio (salt), you can find other interesting rice balls like yaki onigiri, which is basted in soy sauce and grilled till the perfect crust forms on the outside.
Onigiri can also have fillings! Traditionally, Japanese rice balls have sour or salty fillings like umeboshi (pickled plum) or mentaiko (pollock roe), but you can find all sorts of onigiri fillings in the konbini. There's tuna mayo onigiri, salmon cream cheese onigiri, grilled chicken onigiri, fried shrimp mayo onigiri, wakame seaweed onigiri, bulgogi beef onigiri - you've just got to try it all!
Sometimes you can even find premium onigiri in the konbini with fillings like juicy ikura (red caviar) or quality grilled salmon. If you're lucky, you can also find limited-edition rice balls like Lawson's "Devil's Onigiri" filled with tempura batter and green seaweed. For the health-conscious snacker, there are also veggie onigiri mixed with things like edamame, seaweed, barley, and other veggies.
2. Bento
You've probably already seen and heard about bento boxes from Japanese movies and anime shows, but if you haven't, then you should know that bentos are pre-made boxed meals. Though they're typically made at home, you can get pre-made bento boxes at the konbini.
In the konbini bento box, you'll find a staple of carbs (though it's almost always rice, you can also find noodles), protein, pickled vegetables, and a side dish. The classic bento box has rice, grilled fish, pickled veggies, and sometimes sides like tamagoyaki (Japanese rolled omelet). In the konbini, you can also find bento boxes with special viands like tonkatsu (pork cutlet), karaage (fried chicken), or meatballs.
3. Konbini Meals
First up, we have donburi or Japanese rice bowls. The konbini offers a ton of different donburi for you to choose from. There's gyudon, a rice bowl topped with thinly cut beef simmered in sweet and savory soy sauce. Oyakodon is a special rice bowl that's topped with chicken and egg, mixed with a similar glaze as gyudon. You can also get tendon, which is a rice bowl topped with tempura, and katsudon, which is a pork cutlet bowl.
If you want something lighter, you can always try for makizushi or sushi rolls. Though these rolls are pretty popular Japanese food in the US, they’re not as common in Japan. Some konbini stores might have them, though, and they’re pretty handy to eat. There are many different types of makizushi that you can try out, like tuna, natto (fermented soybeans), and salmon roe.
Of course, another popular konbini meal is sushi. Though it won’t be as good as sushi that you buy at an actual restaurant, konbini sushi is pretty good to eat too! Konbini sushi is always kept fresh, and you can enjoy it at your convenience. In konbinis, you can find the usual sushi like tuna, salmon, shrimp, and cod roe.
4. Sandwiches
Convenience stores around the world may typically have sandwiches, but Japanese konbinis usually take sandos (the Japanese word for sandwiches) to the next level. The bread of each sando is soft and never soggy, the fillings aren't too dry or too moist, and each sandwich is compact enough so that it isn't messy to eat.
There are many different kinds of sando for you to try in the konbini. There's the egg salad sandwich, which legendary food critic Anthony Bourdain complimented as "unnatural, inexplicable, and delicious" with its pillowy soft egg fillings. Shrimp cutlet & tartare sandwich is also a popular option in konbinis - the crispy shrimp combines perfectly with tare tare sauce. One of the newer sandwich options in Japanese konbinis is the cream cheese and basil chicken sandwich, which offers a great balance of carbs, protein, and veggies.
Did you know that Japanese sandwiches can also be sweet? A seasonal offering in Japan, you can find ichigo sando or strawberry cream sandwiches in konbini during spring. Imagine biting into a sandwich filled with fresh strawberry slices and rich cream. During Valentine's, you can also find limited-edition versions of the ichigo sandwich, which adds tasty custard to the mix.
Another super tasty sweet sandwich that you can try is the fruit sando which combines assorted fruits with bread and cream. There's also adzuki cream sando, which offers a center made of red bean paste and supple whipped cream. If you time your trip to Japan right, you can find other limited-edition sandwiches like peaches n cream during the summer and the pumpkin pie sandwiches that come out during autumn.
5. Konbini Bread
Another staple treat in Japanese konbinis is bread. The most popular konbini bread would be anpan, a soft bread roll with a center made of red bean paste. Next up would be melon pan, a sweet bread with a soft, fluffy interior and a cookie-dough crust. There's also cream bread, which can be found in packs of 4 or 5. Though chocolate cream and vanilla are staples, you can also find seasonal flavors like sweet potato, pumpkin, and more.
If you're looking for something more savory, konbinis also offer items like curry bread, deep-fried buns filled with curry. There's also yakisoba bread, one of the more bizarre bread items. It pairs together bread, a carb, with fried noodles, another carb. That's what makes it a great snack if you're extra hungry!
6. Konbini Oden
A wintertime specialty, oden is a type of nabemono or Japanese one-pot dish that's made up of different ingredients like boiled eggs, konjac jelly, daikon radish, and processed meats, that are simmered in a light soy-flavored dashi broth. In the konbini, oden is kept close to the cashier, where you can scoop up the items you want with a bit of broth in a takeaway bowl.
Some of the popular oden ingredients in the konbini are tamago or egg, shiritaki noodles, daikon radishes, and fish cakes. You can also find other interesting oden treats like ganmo, a vegetable-laden, deep-fried tofu fritter. Gobomaki is another interesting ingredient - it's boiled burdock root wrapped in surimi or processed fish paste. You can also try meats like tsukune, a chicken meatball that's often cooked on a skewer.
6. Wagashi
Even though wagashi are typically known as traditional Japanese desserts, you can actually find some of these special treats in konbinis! In the chiller, you can find wagashi like dorayaki, a pancake sandwich with a filling made of adzuki paste. There's also yokan, a jelly-like sweet made from red bean paste, sugar, and agar powder.
Made out of glutinous rice flour, mochi is also a wagashi that's a konbini staple. Subtly sweet and oh-so-chewy, konbini mochi can have fillings like ice cream or red bean paste. If you're lucky, you can find special mochi like ichigo daifuku, which has a center made of red bean paste and a whole strawberry in it. It's usually available during sakura season in spring!
Konbinis have also been offering modern takes on wagashi, bringing traditional Japanese sweets into the 21st century. Family Mart has wagashi like the "Extra Thick Dorayaki Burger," which features a pancake sandwich with a generous center made of strawberry mouse/ matcha mouse and red bean paste.
Family Mart also released a line of wagashi in collaboration with the kawaii cats, Mofusand. The konbini chain decided to create special cat-themed Japanese desserts, including dorayaki, parfaits, and special biscuits. 711 also has a special treat called the "Meow Parfait." This ice cream cup has layers of vanilla and strawberry ice cream topped with a pink paw print. The small paw beans are pink dango (sweet rice cakes) while the big one is a large strawberry cream daifuku.
8. Konbini Snacks
You don’t want to miss out on the snacks at the konbini! Some Japanese convenience store favorites are yummy Calbee Jagabee potato sticks with their hearty crunch, Black Thunder chocolate bars littered with cocoa bits, and of course, iconic Pocky sticks. You also don't want to miss out on Kit Kats - Japan makes the best Kit Kat flavors!
If you’re after a bit of a sugary pick-me-up in Japan, the konbini also has a ton of interesting Japanese candy. There’s the juicy chewy candy, Hi-Chew, which is sort of an edible type of chewing gum (it was made because in Japan, chewing gum and spitting it out in public tends to be taboo). You can also find the viral Kororo gummy candy, known for its juiciness and its unique bouncy texture.
Like we mentioned earlier, Japan loves eating with the seasons, and that's why Japanese snack and candy companies come up with special flavors that are only available during certain seasons. When visiting Japanese konbinis, you should always keep an eye out for seasonal Japanese snacks. There are also a ton of limited-edition flavors and collab flavors that can surprise you at a konbini!
Hungry for special konbini candy? Check out Japan Candy Box. We deliver the tastiest Japanese snacks and candy straight from the konbini to your doorstep.
9. Salads and Vegetables
It's pretty easy to hit your fiber goals in Japan. Not only are most meals served with vegetable side dishes, but you can also find fresh salads in konbini. In 711, you can choose a pre-prepared salad base of vegetables and then your dressing from an assortment of sauces at the counter. From normal salad sauces like Caesar Salad Dressing to exotic dressings like Green Shiso Dressing and Japanese-style dressing, you can have tons of fun making your salad.
Besides salads, you can also find cut-up fruits that are ready to eat in the konbini. Just head to the chiller to find pre-cut fruits like melons, oranges, and pineapples that you can have as a healthy dessert. If you'd like to have a healthy drink, Japanese konbinis also let you make your own smoothie out of fresh fruits. Just pick a cup of fruit, pop it into the smoothy-maker, and you've got yourself a healthy, fiber-dense drink!
10. Konbini Ice Cream
Last but not least on our list, we have konbini ice cream. You'd be missing out on a whole lot if you didn't get yourself a few ice cream bars from the konbini in Japan. There are just so many interesting ice cream options to choose from in Japan!
First off, there's Sacre, shaved ice made with real fruit juice. Lemon is a classic Sacre flavor, but if sour isn't really your thing, you can also get white peach or mango-flavored Sacre at the konbini. Garigari-Kun is a classic Japanese popsicle that has a crunchy texture. If you're looking for ice cream sandwiches, you should try Choco Monaka Jumbo, which offers a hefty combination of vanilla ice cream, chocolate, and wafer.
Need something bite-sized? Then try Pino, vanilla ice cream morsels delicately coated in rich Japanese chocolate. For traditional ice cream treats, you can pick up an Azuki Bear, which is a solid block of red bean ice cream, and a Uji Kintoki Ba, which is matcha shaved ice with red bean paste mixed in it. You also can't go wrong with some yummy mochi ice cream!
BONUS: Konbini Drinks
We’d definitely be remiss if we left out konbini drinks in this list. It’d be odd not to pair your konbini treat with a yummy drink. Luckily, the konbini has a lot to offer in terms of drinks. There's a throng of tea options to choose from if you're on a diet. If you need to stay awake, konbinis also offer canned and freshly brewed coffee. You can also choose from a whole shelf of soda, with Calpis, Mitsuya Cider, and ramune being great choices.
Hoping to have a party at your hostel and need some adult drinks? Konbinis also have a ton of alcoholic drinks ranging from beer to highballs to canned sake and even bottles of wine. If you're looking for something to help with hangovers or other bodily problems, then you can probably check out the shelves for potions and elixers. Japan offers a ton of fun "tonics" that help with things like hangovers or help with diets.
Okay, so you're probably hungry now. Luckily, we’ve finally come to the end of our list of the tastiest must-try treats at the Japanese konbini. Which one do you want to try the most? Are you excited to try out some onigiri? Hoping to sample some unique Japanese Kit Kat? Or are you itching to pick out the weirdest konbini ice cream in the chiller? Let us know in the comments section below.
