Japan Australia: Bistro SMAP X Seven Eleven

You can now try specially designed Bistro SMAP menu items at Seven Eleven convenience stores across Japan. SMAP are a popular boy band here in Japan that have been around since the early 1990s. They are known as singers, actors, comedians, entertainers and cooks and host their own cooking segment called “Bistro SMAP” on their weekly TV variety program.

Bistro SMAP features four members of the band cooking for celebrity guests. Guests are able to order anything they want and the boys battle it out in two teams. SMAP leader Masahiro Nakai is the owner and hosts the segment.

This series of food items at Seven Eleven have been originally developed by the SMAP boys specifically for sale at the convenience store. The menu items went on sale on October 15th and include the following:

Shogayaki Omusubi (Onigiri) by Masahiro Nakai 158 yen

Shogayaki Omusubi (Onigiri)

Meat Sauce Wafu Style Omuraisu by Takuya Kimura 550 yen

Meat Sauce Wafu Style Omuraisu

Smoked Salmon and Lemon Cream Pasta by Tsuyoshi Kusanagi 480 yen

Smoked Salmon and Lemon Cream Pasta

Handy Wrap (chicken & bacon) by Goro Inagaki 350 yen

Handy Wrap

Ichigo Milk Daifuku 120 yen / Caramel Mousse Coffee Jelly 220 yen by Shingo Katori

Ichigo Milk Daifuku

Caramel Mousse Coffee Jelly

Japan Australia being a big SMAP fan had to give these a try, so we headed down to our local Seven Eleven to check them out. Unfortunately, they were sold out of the Smoked Salmon and Lemon Cream Pasta and Shogayaki Omusubi (onigiri), but we managed to find the rest. Here is what we thought of them.

Meat Sauce Wafu Style Omuraisu

This was really tasty and more like a good restaurant meal than a convenience store bento. The meat sauce was rich, sweat and tasty. It was a little more expensive than your regular conbini meals but worth the extra for the taste.

Meat Sauce Wafu Style Omuraisu

Handy Wrap (chicken & bacon)

The Chicken Handy Wrap was really good with a nice herby dressing/sauce and lots of salad. We thought the Bacon Wrap was a little plain in comparison.

Handy Wrap ~ Chicken and Bacon

Ichigo Milk Daifuku

This was delicious and the strawberry milk filling sweet and morish. This is a traditional Japanese dessert that anyone would love.

Ichigo Milk Daifuku

Caramel Mousse Coffee Jelly

Shingo Katori is definitely the dessert master with another tasty winner here. This wasn’t as sweet as I was expecting (that’s a good thing) with a bitter coffee jelly well balanced with a caramel mousse and whipped cream topping.