From ramen to sushi, plenty of delicious Japanese dishes have become staples on restaurant menus across the UK over the last few years.
But most recently, Brits have become obsessed with sweet treats from the country in East Asia, with matcha and mochi popping up everywhere, in part thanks to brands like Blank Street Coffee and Little Moons.
Blank Street started life as a coffee cart in Brooklyn in 2020, but now has 74 locations across the US and UK and is valued at a cool $500 million (£368,000,000). Its success can be credited, in part, to the launch of their blueberry matcha, which was created by a mixologist in London in 2023.
The sugary drink went viral online and inspired the brand to double down on flavoured green tea drinks – which now account for 50% of the business. The menu currently includes White Chocolate Matcha, Strawberry Shortcake Matcha, as well as classic Iced Matcha Tea or Latte.
Meanwhile Little Moons, a brand founded by siblings Vivien and Howard Wong in 2010 and inspired by the food they grew up eating with their Asian parents, is now an ice cream mochi empire, worth a whopping £50 million (a revenue that jumped by £40m in the last two years alone).
Mochi is made using a short-grain glutinous rice called mochigome, which is steamed, pounded and moulded into a stretchy dough that can be flavoured and wrapped around a filling.
Traditionally they are filled with anko, a sweet red bean paste, but Little Moons put a British spin on this by wrapping their mochi around balls of ice cream in flavours like chocolate and salted caramel and strawberries and cream. Recently they’ve also jumped on the Dubai chocolate trend and launched a Dubai Moons collaboration with Choco Fruit UK.
Vivien claims she and her brother founded the company after spotting a ‘shift’ in the way people in the UK were consuming Japanese food.
She recently told Forbes: ‘We had always loved the traditional Japanese mochi our parents made with red bean paste, and on our travels in Japan and the US, we discovered mochi filled with ice cream. That was the “aha” moment: what if we gave mochi a modern British twist by using ice cream as the filling?’
And these aren’t the only brands putting a British twist on Japanese treats. If you’ve been on social media lately, you will have seen photos of the viral M&S Red Diamond Strawberry & Creme Sandwich.
The retailer confirmed to Metro that their first-ever dessert sandwich was inspired by the ‘cult sweet Japanese sandos’ sold in convenience stores across Japan.
Sando means sandwich in Japanese, but it also refers to a specific style of sandwich in Japan that’s made with soft, pillowy milk bread (shokupan). Classics include the egg salad sando, katsu sando and fruit sando usually filled with whipped cream and large slices of fruit.
Marks & Spencer has put its own spin on the latter with its sandwich, which is made with a brioche-style sweet bread, whipped cream cheese and creme fraiche and Red Diamond Strawberries.
A spokesperson for M&S said: ‘We’re constantly inspired by food cultures and food trends from around the world, whether it’s a subtle influence or a more direct nod, we love putting our own unique and innovative spin on products to make them feel right for our customers.’
Thus far, the sandwich has proved so popular with customers, it’s even outselling water, with hundreds of thousands of the sandwiches dropping into 800 Foodhalls across the UK every morning this week. Production has even had to be increased to keep up with the demand.
However, not everyone is on board with the way brands are turning traditional Japanese dishes into trends.
‘It’s no secret that Japanese desserts are having a moment,’ Marcin Chanek, the head chef at Marugame Udon, tells Metro.
He’s thrilled to see a rising interest in Japanese flavours, but like several other chefs, he has concerns about whether the history and art of the cuisine is actually being taken seriously.
‘Whilst it’s exciting to see Japanese desserts go viral, it’s important to respect the roots of Japanese cuisine and know how it’s meant to taste when it’s done right.
‘That doesn’t mean there’s no room for innovation, as Japanese food has always evolved but we think it’s important to maintain a boundary between creativity and caricature.’
Leonard Tanyag, the executive chef at LUNA Omakase feels similarly, stating that Japanese desserts are ‘special’, not just because of the rare ingredients they contain, but because of the ‘blend of artistry and discipline’ that goes into creating them.
‘In Japan, the best desserts are found in cities like Tokyo and Kyoto, but my personal favourite is from a particular part of Hokkaido: a matcha cheesecake made with Wagyu milk. It’s unlike anything you’ll find elsewhere in the world because of the delicate balance of sweetness, the aesthetics, and the deep respect for seasonality and precision that defines traditional Japanese patisserie,’ he explains.
‘Unfortunately, when big brands try to replicate this abroad they often focus on the look rather than the craft. It might photograph well, but the taste just isn’t quite right.’
Leonard puts this error down to three things: mass production, a misinterpretation of ingredients and a lack of seasonal focus. And the latter is key.
He claims the brands that ‘do it better than others’ are the ones who are ‘genuinely invested’ in seasonal flavours and traditional Japanese techniques.
The chef continues: ‘We’re seeing other Japanese-inspired trends gaining momentum too, from mochi doughnuts and yuzu-infused pastries to the growing popularity of kinako, hojicha, and kuromitsu in Western menus. But again, the success comes down to how much respect is paid to the original craft.
Where to find Japanese desserts in London
Happy Sky Bakery, 94 Askew Road, W12 9BL
Happy Sky is a Japanese artisan bakery known for its breads, pastries and of course, sandos. The menu features dishes ike orange and matcha cheesecake croissants, mochi croissants and sandos.
Toconoco, 28 Hertford Road, N1 5QT
As well as a number of rice and noodle dishes, Toconoco has several sweet treats on the menu, inclduing a daily cheesecake, matcha blondies, red bean buns and mochi.
WA Cafe, locations in Ealing Broadway, Covent Garden and Marylebone
This Japanese patisserie is serving up edible works of art, with a selection of fluffy cakes, pastries and buns. They also sell loaves of shokupan, as well as souffle cheesecake, and matcha drinks.
‘What brands often get wrong is assuming that Japanese food is all about minimalism or novelty. In reality, it’s deeply rooted in omotenashi (hospitality), seasonality, and an incredible attention to detail. Without that, you lose the soul of the dish.’
He adds: ‘If brands want to do better, they need to look beyond Instagrammable plating and actually collaborate with Japanese chefs or artisans.
‘It’s not just about trends, it’s about cultural understanding. And when done right, the result isn’t just more authentic, it’s far more meaningful, memorable, and delicious.’
Do you have a story to share?
Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@Metro.co.uk.
