WTF? Bizarre Japanese Food & Drinks

We like to think of ourselves as food adventurers, right up until somebody offers octopus ice cream. Then suddenly we have questions. This collection revisits 12 food and drink finds from the original 2009 feature, ranging from unusual flavor combinations to packaging that deserves a second look.

There’s an important distinction, though: unfamiliar doesn’t automatically mean bizarre. Some entries are ordinary Japanese dishes, some are regional specialties, and others are novelty products or drinks found elsewhere in Asia. Consider this a curious tasting list rather than a claim that everyone in Japan eats the same things—or that every historical product is still available.

1. Wasabi Beer

A cold beer with a wasabi connection sounds like something invented to start an argument at the table. It’s a documented offering, though: a Japanese government feature on wasabi production mentions wasabi beer among the foods and drinks available at a wasabi farm. Recipes and intensity can vary, so don’t assume every version delivers the same sinus-clearing experience as a spoonful of the condiment.

2. Octopus Ice Cream

The original list featured octopus ice cream, putting seafood somewhere many readers would expect chocolate chips. The exact historical product and its current availability haven’t been confirmed, so this shouldn’t be read as a recommendation for a particular shop. Also, red bean ice cream doesn’t need to be the punchline here: sweet beans are an established dessert ingredient. Octopus is the combination that prompted this particular double take.

3. Okonomiyaki: Japanese Savory Pancakes

Okonomiyaki deserves a correction rather than a warning label. It’s a familiar savory dish, often involving cabbage, batter, and ingredients such as pork or seafood, finished with sauce and other toppings. The Japan National Tourism Organization’s guide explains the distinction between mixed Kansai-style versions and layered Hiroshima-style versions, which commonly include noodles. Calling it a pancake helps explain the cooking format; expecting a sweet breakfast pancake will send you in the wrong direction.

4. Cubic Watermelons

The square shape comes from growing the fruit inside a shaped container, not from discovering an unusually cooperative watermelon variety. The famous ornamental examples from Zentsuji are harvested before ripening and aren’t intended as ordinary eating melons. Nippon TV’s reporting makes that distinction clear. They’re a striking display item, but the original price and dollar conversion shouldn’t be treated as a current shopping guide.

5. Canned Bread

Bread in a can sounds like a packaging joke until you consider emergency supplies. Pan Akimoto explains that the 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake helped motivate its development of long-life canned bread. Its process bakes bread inside the can, making shelf-stable bread a practical product rather than simply an eccentric souvenir. Storage life depends on the particular product, so check the label instead of applying one blanket expiry period.

6. BM Coffee

This entry originally depended on an English-language joke about the letters “BM” on a coffee package. The exact product, manufacturer, and explanation of the initials haven’t been verified. There’s no basis here for suggesting the contents were anything unpleasant. Sometimes the unusual part of a food photograph is simply how a brand name reads to someone in another language. The packaging joke should stay separate from any claim about ingredients.

7. Collon Snacks

The brand is Collon, rather than “Colon.” Glico describes the snack as bite-sized crispy rolls with a soft cream filling. That’s considerably less mysterious than the original spelling suggested. Different flavors and regional assortments exist, but the basic proposition is familiar: a crisp outer layer and something sweet inside. This is another entry where the name attracted more attention than the actual food.

8. Placenta 10000 Jelly Drink

Historical coverage described Placenta 10000 as a peach-flavored jelly drink containing pig-derived placenta ingredients. It was promoted in the beauty-product category, but marketing claims aren’t proof that drinking it improves health or appearance. The original article’s casual “apparently it’s healthy” description has therefore been removed. This is a historical product reference: its current formula, availability, and labeling haven’t been verified.

9. Natto

Natto is fermented soybeans, recognizable for its aroma and sticky, stringy texture. It’s an everyday food rather than a novelty manufactured to surprise visitors. Japan’s tourism organization includes it among familiar food options, while noting that accompanying sauces may contain fish stock. Whether you enjoy it is a matter of taste. Describing the texture gives a new eater more useful information than assuming everyone outside Japan dislikes it.

10. Tamagogani: Dried Crabs

Tamagogani are small dried crabs eaten whole, shell included. A documented packaged-snack review describes a version seasoned with sugar, starch, soy sauce, and mirin. The original article called them hermit crabs, but the species in that particular package hasn’t been established here. “Small dried crabs” is the more defensible description. Expect the whole-crab appearance to be the first thing you notice.

11. Basil Seed Drink

Dark seeds suspended in a drink can look surprising if you haven’t encountered the texture before. Basil-seed beverages aren’t uniquely Japanese, however: Thai manufacturers also produce them in fruit flavors. They belong here as a drink included in the original roundup, rather than evidence of an exclusively Japanese custom. Think of it as a beverage with an extra textural element, not something suspicious swimming in the bottle.

12. Wasp Crackers

Wasp-containing rice crackers are real, but they shouldn’t be presented as something everyone in Japan routinely eats. A firsthand SoraNews24 report examined the crackers and placed them in the context of localized insect-eating traditions. The insects are visible in the finished snack, making this a particularly direct encounter with its ingredients. They’re certainly memorable; that doesn’t make them representative of an entire country’s snack cupboard.

The most interesting part of this list isn’t deciding which item looks strangest. It’s discovering what each one actually is. A novelty flavor, a useful preservation method, an ordinary regional meal, and an unfamiliar brand name tell very different stories. Some might still push your comfort zone. At least now you know which questions to ask before taking a bite.