The Era of Donut Wars in Japan

May 15, 2025 | News On Japan

TOKYO - Japan’s growing donut market has entered a new phase with the opening of popular American chain Randy’s Donuts’ first store in Daikanyama, Shibuya, marking its debut with handmade offerings and an iconic oversized donut monument as the 'donut Sengoku era' intensifies.

Originally founded in Los Angeles in 1952, Randy’s Donuts has appeared in numerous films and television shows. The Tokyo location features more than 40 varieties of donuts, all made fresh in-store daily, with up to 1,000 donuts on display. The menu includes colorful options such as the “Chocolate Candy Raised” priced at 550 yen, and a Japan-exclusive “Limited LA Blue Custard Cream Set” of 12 donuts for 5,500 yen, inspired by the vibrant Los Angeles sky and available until June 15th.

The store’s bestseller is the “Glazed Raised” donut, priced at 360 yen, which has retained its original light and fluffy recipe since the company’s founding. Reflecting its American roots, Randy’s donuts are notably large: the “Texas Glazed” has a diameter of about 16 cm, compared to the regular “Glazed Raised” at 11 cm. A 4-meter-wide version of the brand’s iconic donut-shaped monument has also been installed outside the new Tokyo store, echoing the 10-meter version that serves as a landmark at its Los Angeles flagship.

Commenting on the expansion, CEO Mark Kelegian said, “Japan’s donut market is showing significant growth, and expanding into Tokyo is a very important step.” The domestic market is projected to reach around 150 billion yen in 2025—about 1.5 times its size five years ago.

While donuts are often associated with the United States, Japanese-style donuts have evolved to suit local tastes and are now gaining global recognition. After Krispy Kreme first entered Japan in 2006, its overly sweet flavors drew criticism, and sales declined. But since launching products tailored to Japanese preferences in 2016, the brand has rebounded and now operates 83 stores nationwide as of May 14th, with products widely available in supermarkets and convenience stores.

Japanese brands are also making inroads abroad. The homegrown “I’m donut?” chain, which opened its first store in Nakameguro three years ago, now operates six locations in Japan and opened its first overseas shop in New York this April, where it is already proving popular.

Source: TBS

Typhoons No. 28 and 29 Bring High Waves to Japan's Pacific Coast

Two typhoons moving across the Pacific southeast of Japan are expected to remain well away from the Japanese mainland, but powerful swells could bring rough seas to a wide stretch of the country's Pacific coastline throughout the three-day holiday weekend, according to forecasts updated at 3 a.m. on October 10.

Cyberattacks Spread Across Japan

A series of cyberattacks has disrupted business operations and exposed millions of customer records across Japan, with a ransomware attack on a cloud service provider affecting 495 companies and local governments nationwide, while convenience store operator Lawson has disclosed a separate breach involving more than 2.15 million personal information records.

Japan's First 360-Degree Projection Mapping Opens in Osaka

Japan's first 360-degree projection mapping show will open at the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts on October 10, transforming the historic building into an immersive world of light, music, and seasonal imagery, with organizers hoping the attraction will also help stimulate the city's nighttime economy.

Tokyo University Professor Wins Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Tokyo University of Science professor emeritus Kenzo Soai has been awarded this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry together with French chemist Henri B. Kagan for discoveries that transformed scientists' understanding of how chemical reactions can favor one of two mirror-image forms of a molecule.

US Military Halts All Okinawa Operations for 48 Hours

The US military suspended activities by all forces stationed in Okinawa for 48 hours from noon on October 7, an unusual measure following the arrest of a US Marine in connection with a robbery and murder case that has renewed scrutiny of crimes involving American service members.

MEDIA CHANNELS

MORE Food NEWS

Nagoya's 1.5-Kilogram Noodle Challenge

A long-established noodle shop in Nagoya has become known for extraordinarily large servings, including its signature "Pitcher Koro," a 1.5-kilogram dish combining kishimen, soba and udon in a giant pitcher.

Taste of Hida Draws Food Lovers to Takayama

The Hida Taste Festival, a long-running event that began in 1986, is held twice a year in spring and autumn and has become a popular attraction in Takayama. This autumn's festival features 22 vendors offering a wide variety of regional dishes, including grilled Hida beef skewers, mitarashi dango rice dumplings coated in a savory soy-based sauce, and salt-grilled ayu sweetfish.

Japan's Salmon Farming Industry Moves Inland

A massive land-based Atlantic salmon farming facility is taking shape in a mountainous industrial district of Tsu City, Mie Prefecture, where foreign-owned Pure Salmon Japan has begun raising approximately one million young fish as part of an 80 billion yen project that is expected to become one of the world's largest operations of its kind, with plans to ship 10,000 tons of salmon annually from February 2028.

Lettuce Prices Quadruple as Farmers Warn of Winter Shortages

Prices of leafy vegetables are rising sharply across Japan as prolonged rainfall and reduced sunlight in September damage crops and disrupt harvesting, with farmers warning that shortages could continue into winter and push prices even higher during the peak season for hot pot dishes.

Heavy Rain Sends Vegetable Prices Soaring

Prolonged rainfall in Tokyo lasting more than 20 days, combined with heavy rain from Typhoon No. 25 during the Silver Week holidays, has disrupted vegetable supplies and driven up prices, with some retailers facing the possibility of suspending sales of popular seasonal products such as roasted sweet potatoes.

Cheese Eaten Since the Asuka Period?

Nara Prefecture is home to a remarkable variety of traditional dishes, including an ancient cheese-like food dating back some 1,300 years, a wild mountain vegetable enjoyed for generations and a homemade crepe once served on special occasions, offering a glimpse into the region's long culinary history.

Sweet Chestnuts Ripe for the Picking

Families and visitors are flocking to a farm in Minoh, Osaka Prefecture, to enjoy autumn chestnut picking, with this year's harvest producing smaller but particularly sweet chestnuts due to a lack of rainfall.

Tokyo Chinese Restaurant Keeps Woks Flying After 62 Years

For more than six decades, Sanyuken Fukasawa Branch in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward has served generations of customers with familiar Chinese dishes, as its 72-year-old second-generation owner and his wife continue to run the 14-seat neighborhood restaurant largely by themselves.

< 2 3 4 5 >