Travel Tips: Best Japanese Street Food That You Must Try

Yatai - this is what the traditional Japanese people call their world-famous street food. You can find food carts on almost every corner of the country where you can taste Japan's most delicious specialties. Aside from being one of the most celebrated cuisines in the world, Japan has actually value its street food more than any other destination in the world does with over a hundred festivals commemorating the delicious and mouth-watering Japanese grub. Here is a guide for the best Japanese streetfood you must not miss when you're in the country.

Skewered on metal or bamboo sticks, Yakitori is composed of small cuts of meat, most typically chicken, that are marinated to a special sauce and are grilled on top of charcoal fire. Tourists can find Yakitori from streetside carts, pubs and restaurants where you can enjoy the best Japanese yakitori, either dry or with sauce.

The traditional Japanese bento is a box composed of rice, meat or fish, pickled vegetables and fruits. It is a take-out meal which is not only sold by streetside vendors but in convenience stores, bento shops and railways, as well. Aside from being a street food, bento is usually made and served by Japanese moms as lunch box for their families. Over time, bento has already evolved and modernized by the Japanese community. Contents of bentos are now designed as pandas, cartoon characters and other decorations.

One of the most celebrated street food in Japan is crepe. With its attracting sweet smell plus the irresistibly huge variety of selections, Japanese crepe is definitely the best filled-pancake you could ever devour. Customers can have a choice of filling for their crepes - from sweet such as cakes, fruits chocolate sauce and whipped cream to savory. Japanese crepe stands will astonish you to a humongous variety of choices you never imagined. There are over 10,000 crepes stores in Japan as of the moment, Japan Talk confirms.

Derived from the Japanese word "tako" which means octopus, the ball-shaped takoyaki is a snack that consists of a deep-fried batter that is filled with octopus, pickled ginger, tempura scraps and chopped green onion. Takoyaki is brushed with special sauce and is drizzled with mayonnaise and dried bonito on top. According to The Culture Trip, despite being widely sold in Japan, authentic takoyakis are found in Osaka.