As a result of even conventional Japanese folktale characters crave quick meals by the sunshine of the moon.
When tsukimi moon-viewing season arrives in September, quick meals chains round Japan take the chance to have a good time with particular limited-edition menu objects that honour the moon. No one does it fairly like McDonald’s although, with the chain persistently giving us a full vary of treats and a industrial that tugs on the heartstrings, and that’s what they’re serving up this 12 months too.
▼ There are seven objects on this 12 months’s assortment.
First up, there’s the Tsukimi Muffin (400 yen [US$2.76]), which sandwiches the moon –“tsukimi” is usually referred to dishes containing egg because the spherical yolk resembles the moon — inside an English muffin and pairs it with a sausage patty, smoked bacon, and a wealthy, creamy tomato sauce.
Then we’ve the Tsukimi Burger (440 yen) and the Cheese Tsukimi Burger (470 yen), which comprise the identical base elements because the muffin, solely with a sesame seed-topped bun and a beef patty as a substitute.
Whereas the three eggy objects above have turn into regulars on the tsukimi menu yearly, the remaining 4 objects are model new for this 12 months.
▼ Houjun Fuwatoru Tsukimi Burger (520 yen)
This poetic-sounding burger exudes an air of esteem with its title, which interprets as “Mellow Fluffy Moon-Viewing Burger“. The part that elevates this burger and makes it stand out from the remainder is the buttery, fluffy scrambled eggs beneath the meat patty, that are made with a beneficiant quantity of butter and effectively seasoned with pepper and garlic for further flavour.
▼ When you’re hungry for meat, you possibly can pay 100 yen extra for an additional patty on any of the burgers after 5 p.m.
On the facet menu, we’ve a brand new Yuzu Shichimi Tartar dipping sauce (40 yen) for the McNuggets, with the Japanese citrus fruit and seven-spice seasoning delivering a superb dose of warmth.
The Custard Pudding Flavour Tsukimi McShake (190 yen for a small) additionally incorporates golden hues to symbolize the moon, with custard and caramel including sweetness to the combo.
And at last, we’ve the Kinako Mochi and Anko Tsukimi Pie (190 yen), which incorporates a tasty trifecta of roasted soybean powder, sticky rice cake, and pink bean paste. In Japan, the markings on the moon are stated to seem like a rabbit pounding mochi, and McDonald’s says this pie can have you fascinated with that rabbit on the moon.
Now that we’ve run by the moon-viewing menu, it’s time to check out the brand new industrial that accompanies it. As in earlier years, the advert zooms in on the father-daughter relationship, which is well timed as many younger individuals can have simply visited their dad and mom through the August obon vacation interval. Plenty of these kids will now have returned to the large metropolis, the place they work and reside away from their household, so that is an advert that may tug exhausting on the heartstrings.
This time, the father-daughter relationship is portrayed with the assistance of Kaguya-hime (actually “Princess Kaguya“), a standard Japanese people story. In keeping with this story, a person who labored as a bamboo cutter discovered a child woman inside a shining bamboo stalk, and he took her dwelling to his spouse, the place they raised the kid collectively.
She grew as much as turn into a fantastic younger girl with many suitors, considered one of whom was the emperor. Nonetheless, she refused all of them as a result of she harboured a secret, which she finally revealed to her father — she got here from the moon and could be taken again there by messengers on the evening of the following full moon.
▼ Now that you recognize the background story, let’s check out the industrial, which is titled “The Return of Kaguya-hime“.
It’s a fantastic re-interpretation of the story, with Kaguya-hime coming back from the moon to eat tsukimi burgers along with her household. And that’s not all, as a result of there are two shorter advertisements as effectively, with one exhibiting them having fun with the pie…
…and the opposite selling McDonald’s supply, with the messengers from the moon performing as impromptu company, catered for with a McDonald’s supply.
The advert above closes with Kaguya-hime saying, “Once we return to the moon, we gained’t be capable of do moon-viewing”, to which the messengers agree. It’s an amazing reminder for us to cease and admire the sweetness round us…and eat all of the tsukimi objects whereas they’re on the menu, from 4 September to mid-October.
Supply, photos: Press launch
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