Other than the Baked Cheesecake Kit Kat that Dad brought from Osaka, he also brought home a box of Tokyo Banana. But, it's a different kind of Tokyo Banana this time. Dad usually bought Tokyo Banana Miitsuketa, the original ones where the sponge cakes are in plain beige color and are filled with banana custard inside, but this time he bought the caramel flavored Tokyo Banana. God bless Daddy!
The sponge cakes came inside a rather large box, wrapped in a very lovely white wrapping paper with pink colored giraffe patterns. On the wrapping paper itself is printed a picture of the Tokyo Banana, looking all adorable with its' giraffe pattern and big pink ribbon. I have to say, whoever design this adorable packaging deserves a raise because he, or she, did a great job in selling the product with this whole kawaii-ness!
Each box are filled with 12 pieces of little sponge cakes - and by "little", I meant not that kind of small inhuman-mini-sized munchies that would disappoint you by just looking at it, but an average palm-sized kind of little. You will find some more giraffe patterns on the beige colored sponge cakes, yet I still have no idea why they would relate caramel with the animal itself. Maybe it's because the share the same color? I'm not sure.
I tore open the individual wrapping of the Tokyo Banana caramel flavor and was welcomed with a super soft and super fluffy sponge cake. It was so fluffy! I am serious! I was expecting a plain jane kind of texture, you know how cakes feel like when you touch them, right? But, instead, I got a fluffy sponge cake that reminds me of a fat puppy with soft fur when you touch it. Sure, there are other cakes out there that are way fluffier than this particular sponge cake, but to find such texture in a Japanese souvenir is something. Don't you think?
My mouth was filled with a mix of sweet banana and caramel goodness and fluffy sponge cake the moment the cake entered my mouth. Again, the cake was very fluffy and spongy, it was not the slightest bit airy, nor dry. The caramel custard filling was light, yet thick, and it did not eclipsed the banana sponge cake with its' strong flavor. Both sponge cake and custard blend it so well into a sensation of sweet and softness that tingled my taste buds. Delightful.
True, Tokyo Banana can be a little bit overrated sometimes, but this custard filled sponge cake really is delicious. Maybe you should try it for yourself to judge whether this Japanese snack is receiving too much love or not. For those local Indonesian citizen who would like to get a taste of Tokyo Banana caramel flavor, you can try exploring your Instagram for some online shop that sells Japanese product, they might have it on sale. For those who are planning a trip to Japan, buy yourself a dozen!
