Japan is one of the rare vending machine kingdoms in the world. As of 2022, about 2.7 million units are in use nationwide, and vending machines have become an indispensable part of daily life for Japanese people.
While vending machines in commercial facilities and train platforms usually focus on beverages such as plastic bottles and paper packs, if you walk around the city, you will find unique vending machines selling food and miscellaneous goods. This time, we focus on the gourmet vending machines that have been increasing in Tokyo in recent years! We will introduce unique vending machines unique to Japan, such as sweets and retort food products.
Increase in Food Vending Machines Amid the COVID Pandemic - Unmanned Sales of Local Souvenirs and Fresh/Frozen Food Specialty Vending Machines
In Japan, a country known for its vending machines, food vending machines have emerged amid the COVID pandemic. With face-to-face sales becoming difficult due to infection control measures and shortened business hours, attention has been drawn to food vending machines that can sell products 24 hours a day without physical contact. This has led to the appearance of frozen food vending machines, specialty stores installing their own product vending machines at their storefronts, and the creation of unmanned sales shops using vending machines.
There are also cases where fresh produce is handled, and vending machines are used for direct sales of local vegetables and fresh flowers, and at tourist spots and roadside stations, there are vending machines that sell souvenirs and local food items! Utilizing vending machines means you can buy your favorite Japanese food and products 24 hours a day, which is great, isn't it?
Enjoy the Taste of Specialty Stores 24 Hours a Day with Japan's Gourmet Vending Machines⁉
From here, we introduce a vending machine that offers exquisite sweets and retort curry that can also be used as souvenirs! It's located in a tourist area in Tokyo, so why not consider buying something when you drop by?
Shortcake Can Vending Machine: OKASHI GAKU
A fluffy sponge cake with plenty of fresh cream, topped with sweet and sour strawberries. Many people might be surprised to hear that you can buy shortcake, a representative Japanese sweet, from a vending machine. Moreover, the cake is in a can and has become a topic on social media, so you'll definitely want to see it during your visit to Japan.
The shortcake can from OKASHI GAKU, which also runs a night parfait shop, is a canned sweet that is made up of layers of fresh cream from Hokkaido, strawberry compote, fresh strawberries, and whipped cream, all arranged to create a balanced sweetness and melt-in-your-mouth texture. Another highlight is the cute sliced strawberries visible through the transparent can. When you open the can, you'll be greeted by a single red strawberry amidst the pure white cream!
By the way, when you open another popular product, the cheesecake can, a wooden bear chocolate appears from the fluffy cheese cream.
Since it's a vending machine, you can purchase it 24 hours a day, and the fact that it's canned makes it easy to carry without losing its shape. Not only does it look great in photos, but you can also enjoy the taste of a specialty sweets shop, making it truly a win-win situation. It's located in popular tourist areas in Hokkaido, Tokyo, and Osaka, so it's convenient when you suddenly want something sweet in the middle of the night!
Vending machine locations:
• Hokkaido
- In front of pâtisserie OKASHI GAKU (1F, Minami 4 Nishi 2 Building, 2-10-1, Minami 4 Nishi, Chuo-ku, Sapporo-shi, Hokkaido)
- MOYUKU SAPPORO 1F (3-20, Minami 2 Nishi, Chuo-ku, Sapporo-shi)
- In front of Risotteria.GAKUtre (20-1720-4, 4 Jo-dori, Asahikawa-shi, Hokkaido)
• Tokyo
- TOKYO Solamachi (1-1-2 Oshiage, Sumida-ku, Tokyo)
- Oshiage (3-10-10 Gyotoku, Sumida-ku, Tokyo)
- 3F of Shibuya Adores (KN Shibuya 1 Building, 13-11 Udagawacho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo)
• Osaka
- BIG STEP (1-6-14 Nishi-Shinsaibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka)
- Shinsaibashi (1-13-2 Higashi-Shinsaibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka)
Curry Retort Vending Machine: Curry Land
Located in the popular tourist area of Asakusa, Curry Land is the only local retort curry specialty store in Japan. Inside the store, more than 70 types of local retort curry from all 47 prefectures in Japan, from Hokkaido in the north to Okinawa in the south, are on display, all carefully selected by the store owner. New purchases and changes in ingredients and product content are also taken into account, so you can always encounter new curries whenever you visit. The charm of this shop is that you can encounter unusual curries that you can't find in supermarkets. Inside the store, there are curries made with Japanese Black's beef and seafood, curries with plenty of lotus root vegetables, and curries with melon puree. On the day of on-site visit, the vending machine also displayed Hokkaido Hascap Curry and Shimanto Pork with Sansho Pepper Curry.
Next to the Curry Land store, there is a "Retort Curry Vending Machine" where you can buy curry at any time of the day. The vending machine contains 15 types of curry, and when one type runs out, it is replaced with a different product, so the lineup is constantly changing.
To use the vending machine, first insert coins (up to four 100 yen coins) or a 1000 yen bill into the slot, then press the number button for the product you want to buy, and finally press the button labeled "購入" (Purchase) in Japanese.
We were able to successfully purchase two popular items among foreign tourists!
These retort curries have a long shelf life and are perfect for souvenirs. In addition to the standard ingredients such as meat and seafood, there are also curries that feature local vegetables and fruits. It might be interesting to try a curry named after a regional city that you haven't been able to visit on your trip to Japan.
- Curry Land
- Address: 2-24-7, Nishi-Asakusa, Taito-ku, Tokyo
- Business hours: 11:00～19:00
- Access: 5-minute walk from Asakusa Station on the Tsukuba Express, or a 10-minute walk from Tawaramachi Station on the Ginza Line
Extra Edition: There are still many unique vending machines in Tokyo!
From here, we will introduce unique vending machine spots that are attracting attention on SNS and the like. All of them are located in popular tourist areas, so they are perfect for travel souvenir stories!
Edible Insect vending machine found at Nakano Broadway (HAL Shop)
The sacred place of subculture, Nakano Broadway. When we covered the building where over 300 shops gather, we found an insect vending machine at the storefront of the gacha specialty store HAL Shop! Moreover, it's lined up with gacha and crane games, making quite an impact.
Looking at the menu, you could choose from different production areas (?) such as "Hiroshima Cricket", "Gunma Cricket", "Nagasaki Cricket", and there were even insect food sweets like "Giant Cricket Cookies", making it quite authentic!
The prices range from 450 yen to 1500 yen, which is a bit expensive, but it might be a good experience to try it out, following the Japanese PR phrase "How about eating insects?".
- HAL Shop
- Address: 5-52-15 Nakano, Nakano-ku, Tokyo
- Business hours: 11:00～20:00
Can you buy rare items⁉ 1000 yen vending machine King's Treasure Box
The 1000 yen vending machines that are randomly installed in various places in the Kanto area, mainly in Tokyo, are the perfect activity to determine if you are lucky that day.
A 1000 yen vending machine is a vending machine that offers the chance to win dozens of different items, from Instax cameras to drones and even small items, all for 1,000 yen per play. While the amount required per play is higher than a regular vending machine, if you're lucky, you might get something worth way more than 1000 yen. Also, if you're not sure what to buy as a souvenir, it's recommended to share this unique Japanese vending machine experience as a souvenir story.
Price: 1000 yen/play
Weird Vending Machine Corner near Akihabara Manseibashi
Akihabara, the holy land for otaku, once made headlines with a vending machine selling canned oden. In recent years, there is a famous spot in this area that has been making vending machine enthusiasts excited. This spot is about a 5-minute walk from Akihabara Station Electric Town Exit, on the 1st floor of an old building. In the dimly lit space, various vending machines are arranged, where you can purchase potato chips, canned yakitori, popcorn, toys, and more.
With its mysterious atmosphere and unique vending machines that are hard to come by, why not stop by when you're in the Akihabara area?
Spot Information
- Address: 2-19-42, Suda-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
- Location: Near the Niku no Mansei Building, across the Mansei Bridge from Akihabara Station
- Price: Varies by machine
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