Japan and Takeaway Christmas

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Details: Written by Andrea Funaro

Christmas in Japan is not a stay-at-home holiday: from refined cake design to KFC chicken buckets, consumerism gives its best on Japan's Christmas menus.

It was the '70s when a foreigner went into a Japanese KFC in Aoyama, asking for fried chicken because he couldn't find any turkey for Christmas. The store manager figured out there was money to be made and proposed to the higher ups the famous marketing campaign Kentucky for Christmas!『クリスマスにはケンタッキー』, making fried chicken Japanese families' favorite Christmas food since 1974.

Thanks to pervasive marketing campaigns and a Colonel Sanders in a Santa Claus suit, in KFC across the country long lines can be seen, as customers pick up their menu boxes reserved long before the 25^th.

There are menus for all tastes and wallets!

There are more modest options, such as the Christmas Pack: fried chicken only for 15 to 18 euro.

Then there is the Premium Series (for fast food gourmets!), a whole chicken stuffed with mushrooms, cheese and gravy: all for 39 euro (there is also a cheaper option: a single seasoned chicken leg for 7 euro).

Then, finally, the Party Barrel 「パーティバーレル」, a family sized bucket of classic chicken, a salad and a cake for 4090 yen, about 28 euro.

Today many fast food chains have followed suit, and now fried chicken can be eat for each main holiday, including New Year, in all of Japan.

If, however, you're not interested in spending your Christmas the American way, there is a 'sweet' Japanese option. The traditional dessert is the Christmas Cake 「クリスマスケーキ」 , a sugary cream and strawberry cake decorated for the occasion.

Even with desserts, you must act quickly: they must be ordered at least a few weeks before Christmas and then picked up at your bakery or combini.

A few examples:

Seven Eleven about 43€