The vibrant display of the Omiyage Fair at Isetan Scotts supermarket calls to mind the souvenir shop at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport where tourists would buy omiyage (souvenirs usually in the form of snacks) for their friends, relatives and colleagues back home. Omiyage are often representative of the place where they are from.
Giving omiyage, a practice deeply ingrained in Japanese society, is an act to simply show gratitude or good intentions to someone, for instance, to share their joy from the trip or to express thanks for covering their work while they were away.
During this time when travel is near impossible, the fair taking place from Oct 8 to 21 is a nice way to reminisce and experience this popular Japanese souvenir culture as you take your pick of up to 26 different omiyage from 13 brands hailing from different regions of Japan such as the hagi no tuski (萩の月) from Sendai (仙台), Rokkatei (六花亭)’s marusei butter sandwich from Hokkaido (北海道) and the Castella cake from Fukusaya (福砂屋) in Nagasaki (長崎). The fair also sees the debut of the following six confectionery brands in Singapore showcasing their popular products.
KamakuraGoro (鎌倉五郎本店) with its Kamakura Hangetsu (鎌倉半月), a crispy rice cracker (6 pieces/$13.80) with green tea or Ogura cream fillings from Kanagawa prefecture (神奈川県).
Meigetsudo (明月堂) with its HakataTorimon (博多通りもん), a sweet confection made with sweet white bean paste (8 pieces/$23.90) from Fukuoka (福岡).
Tokyo Tamago (東京玉子) with its GomaTamago (ごまたまご), a cute egg-shaped confection with black sesame paste (5 pieces/$11.90; also pictured right at the top of the article) from Tokyo.
Kamakura Beniya (鎌倉紅谷) with its Kurimicco (クルミっこ), an award-winning confection made with a combination of walnuts, house-made caramel in a buttery dough (5 pieces/$17.10) from Kanagawa prefecture (神奈川).
Kujukushima (九十九島) with its Kujukushima Senbei (せんぺい) named after the Kujuku Islands in Nagasaki (長崎) – a hexagon-shaped crispy cracker (8 pieces/$11.50) with peanut aroma that has won the Monde Selection Gold Award for 12 consecutive years.
Kikusuian (喜久水庵) with its Kikufuku (喜久福), a mochi treat filled with cream of different flavours and best enjoyed with green tea (a set with four flavours at $11.20). This a speciality of Sendai (仙台).
