Japanese Fast Food Katsu and Chicken Burger KFC Japan
Japanese Fast Food Katsu and Chicken Burger KFC Japan
Overview
In this video, John Daub visits a Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) in Tokyo on Labor Thanksgiving Day to test a unique limited-time menu item: the Chicken Fillet Menchi Katsu Burger. Combining Western fast food with Japanese menchi katsu (minced meat cutlet), the burger represents the kind of fusion experiments common in Japan's convenience and fast food scene. John provides an honest review, dissecting the burger's components and comparing it to the chain's famous Christmas offerings.
Beyond the food review, John shares updates on his upcoming travel plans to the Oki Islands in Shimane Prefecture with friend Dean Newcomb. He also discusses the cultural phenomenon of eating KFC for Christmas in Japan, detailing the reservation process and bucket options. The video concludes with John cleaning up his tray—a small act of etiquette—and heading home to Monzen-Nakacho to pack for his trip.
Highlights
- 00:09 John introduces the KFC Menchi Katsu Burger on Labor Thanksgiving Day.
- 01:25 Detailed look inside the burger: fried chicken patty meets Japanese minced meat cutlet.
- 02:29 John cuts the burger in half with his Victorinox knife to inspect the cross-section.
- 03:48 The verdict: The burger is too dry and tastes like processed pork—a hard pass.
- 06:03 John switches to a sweet potato pie to cleanse the palate.
- 07:22 Sweet potato pie review: Flaky, buttery, and natural sweetness earns a 9/10.
- 08:38 Explanation of Japan's famous KFC Christmas buckets and ordering deadlines.
- 12:29 Travel update: Heading to the Oki Islands in Shimane for filming.
- 15:40 John rides home through Monzen-Nakacho and mentions website issues due to a GoDaddy hack.
- 17:41 John washes his tray before leaving, practicing good etiquette.
Timeline / Chapters
- 00:00 Introduction at KFC Tokyo
- 01:25 Unboxing the Menchi Katsu Burger
- 03:48 Burger Taste Test & Review
- 06:03 Sweet Potato Pie Review
- 08:38 KFC Christmas Bucket Details
- 12:29 Oki Islands Travel Announcement
- 14:14 Community Updates & Pandemic Status
- 15:40 Ride Home & Closing Thoughts
Japan Travel Tips
- KFC Christmas Orders: If you want KFC for Christmas in Japan, you must order by December 12th (two weeks prior) to secure a discount and guarantee availability.
- Ordering Methods: You can book online, scan QR codes in-store, or use a yoyaku kanjo (reservation card) for old-school ordering.
- Etiquette: John demonstrates cleaning your own tray at the fast food counter, leaving the area cleaner than you found it.
- Pricing: Christmas buckets range from 2,800 yen (S size) to 5,900 yen (premium roasted chicken).
- Internet Safety: John mentions his website was down due to a GoDaddy hack; always keep your digital assets secure.
Japanese Language & Culture Notes
- Menchi Katsu: A Japanese yōshoku (Western-style) dish consisting of minced beef or pork formed into a patty, battered, and deep-fried.
- Labor Thanksgiving Day: November 23rd is a national holiday in Japan (Kinrō Kansha no Hi), loosely associated with Thanksgiving themes.
- Christmas KFC: A unique Japanese tradition where fried chicken is the standard Christmas meal, requiring advance reservations due to high demand.
- Satsuma Imo: Japanese sweet potato, specifically the purple variety from Kagoshima mentioned in the pie review.
- Yoyaku Kanjo: A reservation card used for ordering high-demand items like Christmas buckets.
Food & Drink Guide
- Chicken Fillet Menchi Katsu Burger: A fusion burger featuring a deep-fried chicken patty with 11 herbs and spices layered with a menchi katsu (minced meat cutlet). John rates it 3/10, citing dryness and processed pork flavor. 01:25
- Sweet Potato Pie: A flaky, pastry-like pie filled with purple sweet potato (satsuma imo). John rates it 9/10, praising the natural sweetness and buttery texture. 06:03
- Christmas Bucket: Includes chocolate cake, gratin, a bucket of chicken, Christmas plate, and tenders. Prices start around 2,800 yen. 08:38
- Premium Roasted Chicken: A higher-end option priced at 5,900 yen, featuring roasted leg and cheese options. 11:16
People
- John Daub: Host and reviewer. He provides the food critique and travel updates.
- Kanae Daub: John's wife. Mentioned as wanting Thai food for dinner after seeing travel photos.
- Irvin: A viewer/supporter who sent a superchat. John thanks him on stream.
- Michael: A friend/viewer mentioned in conversation regarding the burger's flavor.
- Dean Newcomb: John's friend and travel companion for the upcoming Oki Islands trip.
Key Takeaways
- The KFC Menchi Katsu Burger is not recommended; it lacks moisture and tastes processed.
- The KFC Sweet Potato Pie is highly recommended for its natural flavor and texture.
- KFC Christmas buckets are a major cultural phenomenon in Japan and require early booking.
- John is planning a filming trip to the remote Oki Islands in the Sea of Japan.
- Vaccination rates in Tokyo are high (80%), and coronavirus cases were low at the time of filming (November 2021).
Notable Quotes
- 00:43 "This is a chicken fillet menchi katsu burger or sandwich. And of course it's finger licking good."
- 03:48 "No. It's too dry. It tastes like a cheap burger... It's a hard pass for me."
- 07:22 "Sweet potato pie, 9 out of 10. Burger, 3 out of 10 and that's generous."
- 08:38 "Japan is very famous for having Christmas meals at KFC. You have to order by December 12th... It's that popular."
- 17:41 "I'm going to wash this tray, leave it cleaner than I found it. Ciao."
Related Topics
- Christmas in Japan
- Japanese Fast Food Reviews
- Oki Islands Travel
- KFC Japan Limited Menu Items
- Japanese Sweet Potato Desserts
Search Tags
#only-in-japan-go #tokyo #kfc #fast-food #menchi-katsu #burger-review #christmas-in-japan #travel-update #oki-islands #shimane #sweet-potato-pie #japan-travel #monzen-nakacho
Full Transcript
00:09 John Daub: So here we are at Kentucky Fried Chicken or KFC in Tokyo and they have this really unique burger that just came out. I'm going to introduce it to you. I thought it would be something special because today is like Labor Thanksgiving Day. Which I guess would be considered Thanksgiving and on Christmas and Thanksgiving people typically come to KFC. So check this out.
00:43 John Daub: This is a chicken fillet menchi katsu burger or sandwich. And of course it's finger licking good. Kentucky kara age desu ne? I'm going to open this up. Let the steam out. So if we can get to 300 likes, I'll open this up. It's up to you community. And I got a water because I'm on a diet.
01:25 John Daub: How do you even open this up? Oh that's kind of neat. Whoa. You can see the inside of the burger or sandwich. What's inside is a deep fried chicken patty with Kentucky's 11 herbs and spices and then a menchi katsu (minced meat cutlet), which is very Japanese. It's like minced beef or pork in a meatball, battered and deep fried. There's a sauce on there, looks like honey mustard or something. There's a chicken patty on a piece of lettuce and more sauce underneath. This is going to be interesting. I don't eat a lot of fast food but this piqued my curiosity.
02:29 John Daub: Let's take it out of the box and I'm going to cut it in half because I don't think I can eat the whole thing. Welcome to Japanese Thanksgiving. I brought my own Victorinox knife. Wow, that doesn't look like menchi katsu. The cross section looks just like another piece of pork. What do you guys think? Does that look like menchi katsu? There's the chicken at the bottom with the deep fried crunch. We're just going to have to give it a try. There's only one way to find out.
03:48 John Daub: No. It's too dry. It tastes like a cheap burger. Not enough vegetables. Chicken's okay but the menchi katsu just tastes like processed pork. That's why I cut it in half. Just take a look. It looks as good as it tastes, which is not good at all. It's a hard pass for me. I'm glad I only tried half. Hey, Irvin's here. Thank you, Irvin, for the superchat.
06:03 John Daub: Michael, my friend, that's where this comes in to get rid of this flavor. It's not awful, they just didn't put a lot of thought into this menchi katsu burger. Michael, I thought ahead. Thanks for clicking the like button, guys. It's actually purple. This is a sweet potato pie, and we all like yams during Thanksgiving. This is sweet potato goodness. Now you can see the purple color. The sweet potato in Japan, satsuma imo (sweet potato), one of the varieties is purple down in Kagoshima.
07:22 John Daub: Let's give this a try. This is good. Flaky, pastry-like, crispy, almost like a croissant. Sweet potato. Sweet but not overly sweet. You can taste the naturalness of the potato. Buttery. Yeah, I can get behind this one. Sweet potato pie, 9 out of 10. Burger, 3 out of 10 and that's generous. The 3 is for the chicken.
08:38 John Daub: This is their Christmas bucket and a brochure from the table. Japan is very famous for having Christmas meals at KFC. You have to order by December 12th, two weeks before Christmas, for a 100 yen discount. It's that popular. Easy to book online or scan the QR code. For 4,000 yen you get a chocolate cake, some gratin, a bucket of chicken, a Christmas plate, chicken tenders. There's also an S size for 2,800 yen with original chicken, tenders and nuggets. They are making a killing on marketing.
11:16 John Daub: There's a premium roasted chicken for 5,900 yen, roasted leg for 1,100 yen, roast with cheese inside. And a yoyaku kanjo (reservation card) for old school ordering. When you pick up, get temperature checked, sanitize, wear a mask, social distance because there's always a huge line.
12:29 John Daub: Postcard Club, they're available now. Picture of Matsumoto Castle. Available on Patreon, taking less than a week to arrive. Tomorrow I'm going to the Oki Islands in Shimane Prefecture with my friend Dean Newcomb. We're flying at 6 a.m. via Osaka's Itami Airport, then ferry. Only there for 36 hours, two days one night, filming a lot, mostly live streams. The National Parks Association asked me to come. Always wanted to go, islands in the Sea of Japan, really beautiful.
14:14 John Daub: I'm editing the next video on the fireworks industry in Yamanashi. Lots of stuff promised 6-8 months ago, pushed back by the state of emergency. Now coronavirus is very low in Tokyo. Vaccination rates at 80%, proud of everybody. Our buddy Irvin is traveling, making me jealous. I showed the photos to Kanae Daub, now she wants Thai for dinner.
15:40 John Daub: This is Monzen-Nakacho. I'm riding home to pack. Questions in the comments. Most unusual Thanksgiving dinner, hard pass on that burger. McDonald's is killing it right now. Thanks everybody. Website down due to GoDaddy hack. Postcard Club link in chat, maybe send from Oki Islands. If you're an insider, I shared Matsumoto Castle in 8K with projection mapping, releasing tonight to everybody. Join the YouTube Insiders Club.
17:41 John Daub: A lot of processing for half a burger. I'm going to wash this tray, leave it cleaner than I found it. Ciao.