00:00:01 John Daub: Inside this bag is a burger that is just weird. I'm going to eat it so you don't have to. This is the Burger King Whopper, Kyoto Whopper. They had to put the name of Kyoto in there because everyone wants to go to Kyoto, but why go to Kyoto when you can have Kyoto right here in Tokyo for the Kyoto Whopper? I'm kind of excited. Japan has lots of these.

00:00:30 John Daub: So I'm in Ariake. I'm going to show you where this location is in a second. It's a chilly late fall afternoon, so this is going to be a short stream, but I'm looking forward to this because I honestly don't go to Burger King very often. I'm more of a McDonald's guy. If I had to pick the two, it goes back to the 1980s—you're either a Coke or Pepsi guy, McDonald's or Burger King. You had to pick a side. I picked McDonald's when I was a kid because there was one near us, and Coke over Pepsi. Today I'm going against the trends of my childhood to try this burger. Let's have some fun and see what happens.

00:01:20 John Daub: Japan's got all these gimmicks—they do this all the time. Let me get rid of this Kyoto poster. I'll show you a little more about it as I show you the burger before I eat it. It's still warm, which is important. This is the flame-grilled Whopper—doesn't have any Burger King Kyoto labeling on the package. But the whole claim to fame is... let me show you where I am first. If you do about 10 Burger Kings in Tokyo, I'm out here in Ariake on the manmade islands. This is where the Tokyo Olympics were held—a lot of events out here. They use this land wisely.

00:02:03 John Daub: Besides Olympic venues, there's apartment complexes going up and this massive shopping mall called Ariake Garden. TeamLab is within walking distance. If you come to the shopping mall, they've got an outdoor balcony, restaurants up there, places for everyday Japan life. The Burger King is right on the corner. I went inside Ariake Garden. Gil might be interested in this. Denverites might see a Denver premium hamburger shop—Hamburg and steak? I didn't know Denver was so big here. That's neat. Umami Burger is inside too—California thing with unique burgers that went viral six or seven years ago. But it's not very popular in Japan. I don't think it's as tasty as I thought, but I sure paid a lot. They even have TGI Fridays here, which I believe is gone in the U.S. but still alive in Japan.

00:03:18 John Daub: Here's the Burger King. The Kyoto Whopper is advertised strongly behind glass. At the front gate, you've got the list—Kyoto Burger on the left. They had a bunch of wacky burgers like the niniku (garlic) burger. I like their commercial—it made it look super premium, like Burger King employees and rice farmers teamed up. Kyoto's not really known for rice, but now that I've built it up, let's see if it delivers.

00:04:03 John Daub: It's bigger than a Big Mac—like a quarter pounder. Kind of a mess. What do you guys think? There's a layer of rice. What? That patty looks like a frozen one, but it could be good. I like the vegetables, but the bread is far from good. I'm going to be critical because when you're in Japan eating a lot of food and doing food episodes, you have to be honest. So I'm going to cut this open.

00:04:54 John Daub: Wow. Cross section time—carbs on carbs. This wouldn't play well in the U.S. It looks interesting, but there's so much rice, not a lot of beef. Where's the beef? So little beef. There's an ambulance going by. Enough fun and games—it's time to eat. That's what you came for. Maybe I'll take you around—there's Japanese earthquake disaster training going on with unique stuff. Itadakimasu (Let's eat).

00:06:15 John Daub: That's not worth it. This is so geared to tourists coming to Japan. I can't even taste the burger—I taste rice and beef, bread. The meat is like a garnish. There's way too much rice. This is why when Mos Burger does rice burgers, they don't use bread—just rice, burger, vegetable, rice, and the rice doesn't fall apart. If Japanese want rice, they go to Yoshinoya, not a burger place. This makes no sense—100% for tourists. Burger King is smart. Their locations are mostly in Tokyo and Osaka where tourists are.

00:07:44 John Daub: The burger's so thin—I'm filled with disappointment. It's a gimmick. Always look on the bright side—I'm not going to be hungry, vegetables are good. But there's not enough meat—you need a double patty or rice between two meat patties. Rice as a hamburger bun is good, but bottom line, tourists will want to try it. It's interesting, but not an attraction for Japanese—gimmicks get people in the store. The commercial makes you curious—there's more meat in it, looks better. Kyoto's not famous for rice. I could see the meat when I opened it, but couldn't taste it—it's tasteless. It fails as a burger, fails as an onigiri (rice ball), but succeeds in filling me up and inspiring boldness and creativity.

00:10:46 John Daub: There were a lot of people in there doing social media. Don't be disruptive like that streamer in Korea—get away from everybody, share your experience. Burger King wants this info out. Kyoto Whopper is the new California roll—non-existent in Japan normally, but all over Burger King in Tokyo. I can only eat half—bottom line, it fails to deliver what it promises. McDonald's Japan almost looks like the picture—they do a good job. Hats off to Burger King Japan—you're bold, tried something new. To win Japanese, go regional like Aomori or Kagoshima kurobuta (black pork) burger from the countryside.

00:13:09 John Daub: They need to make a sushi Whopper? That might be a step too far. With all food options, burgers are last to try—not entirely true, some places do interesting things. Japan takes Western food and makes it their own. Burger King took the American burger and made it Japanese. It fails for me as a resident, but you should try it if you're a Burger King fan. Sometimes on travel you need a break from sushi, okonomiyaki, yakitori. Friends from the U.S. order Domino's to balance the saltiness of Japanese cuisine—sometimes you need Thai, Vietnamese, or soul food like this with a Japanese touch. It's a miss for me, but gets stars for inventiveness—gimmicks are fun, though they rarely hit.

00:14:52 John Daub: They had Canada Dry Hot Ginger Ale in Coke machines—like hot coffee cans, tasted like bubbly hot apple pie. So good, 12 years ago—now in my gimmick drink collection with salty watermelon Pepsi. End of year means more gimmicks to beef up profits. Japan's bold—they go for it. Burger King, promise: make another prefectural burger, I'll try it for a second chance. I believe in redemption. I'll only be back for gimmicks—my wife cooks really good, and we love home eating.

00:16:56 John Daub: I don't have much more for this livestream—want to keep it short. Before I go, a bit of this area. Ariake Garden is a neat shopping mall, 15-minute bike ride for me. Muji Bakery, Muji Cafe, massive Muji—you can spend two hours. Calbee, Baskin-Robbins, H&M, TGI Fridays, Toys R Us at Toyosu. Taco Bell here too. You can walk from TeamLab to Toyosu Market over a bridge, or to Odaiba in 10-15 minutes.

00:18:02 John Daub: They're doing disaster prevention training—fire engine with ladder up. Awesome for kids dreaming of being firefighters, or curious adults learning earthquake response. They recruit here. Got to bring Leo—open space for this, across from shopping mall with roof garden and play area. That's all—heading home to edit. Thanksgiving's coming—we don't celebrate much, but might share a dinner. Nice connecting with Americans in California, Hawaii—East Coast's asleep. Lots to be thankful for, stay positive. Today I learned: hold off on the Kyoto burger.

00:20:19 John Daub: Kanazawa Burger—lots of burgers. Try Japanese ice creams: soy milk, milk-flavored, green tea. Uji matcha shortage, but matcha isn't—Shizuoka matcha grows everywhere. Uji prices doubled due to demand, but it's branding—not better than Shizuoka or Kagoshima. Matcha from shaded gyokuro cha (premium green tea) leaves—robust flavors. Starbucks likely uses Shizuoka. Shizuoka and Kagoshima bigger than Kyoto for green tea. Get pumpkin pie—might bake for Kanae and Leo, who's never had it. Happy Thanksgiving—mata ne (see you later).