Umaibō: Japan's beloved "tasty stick"

Since 1979, Umaibō うまい棒 has been a household name in Japan. Literally meaning "tasty stick," the snack brand made by Yaokin Co., Ltd. is probably one of the first things that come to mind to most Japanese people when you mention the word dagashi, or "penny snack". Although it doesn't cost a penny, its cheap 10 yen price has remained unchanged even as the price of living has increased through the decades. Moreover, with brightly colored and fun designs featuring mascot character Umaemon, as well as their fun flavors and crunchy texture, it's not hard to see why they're a favorite for kids young and old.

Yaokin Co., Ltd. has sold a broad range of Umaibō flavors in the last 41 years and you can purchase 17 different flavors today, 20 if you count the larger Premium Umaibō. Together with grape Japan writer Big Neko, I made a selection of seven Umaibō flavors reflecting tastes both familiar and less familiar to Western palettes.

Disclaimer: Please note that we are just two amateur snack fans raised in the United States, and our reviews below only reflect our personal opinions based on our cultural backgrounds. Moreover, although we have permission from Yaokin Co., Ltd., this isn't a paid advertisement.

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Umaibō Review: Seven Flavors

In our review, we rated each flavor on a scale of 1 to 5 in the following categories: Authenticity (how authentically the snack recreates the food described in the flavor name), Pungency (how strong the flavor is), and Uniqueness (how unusual the flavor is compared to typically available American snack flavors)

Cheese Flavor チーズ味

Ben K

• Authenticity: 4
• Pungency: 3
• Uniqueness: 2

The aroma was definitely cheesy. It looked like a cheese puff. The creamy but mild cheese flavor builds up with each bite, so it was enjoyable until the end.

Big Neko

• Authenticity: 4
• Pungency: 4
• Uniqueness: 2

Very much tasted like an American cheese puff. It felt airier than other Umaibō.

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Corn Potage Flavor コーンポタージュ味

Ben K

• Authenticity: 4
• Pungency: 5
• Uniqueness: 3

This was my favorite of the seven. The aroma, the taste, everything was like the familiar corn soup which I’ve had so many times in Japan. I also liked how strong it was. Definitely a bold corn soup flavor.

Big Neko

• Authenticity: 4
• Pungency: 4
• Uniqueness: 3

This really captured the thickness of corn potage, almost like the soup in solid form.

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Yakitori Flavor やきとり味

Yakitori (やきとり or 焼き鳥 in Japanese) is grilled chicken skewers, served with a sweet and savory tare sauce or with salt. In this case, the tare version is the inspiration.

Ben K

• Authenticity: 3
• Pungency: 3
• Uniqueness: 4

This was unexpected. They really got the glazed appearance and aroma of yakitori tare sauce, but I couldn’t taste much chicken. It was a bit too sweet to my liking, but it reminded me of the smell of a yakitori stand.

Big Neko

• Authenticity: 2
• Pungency: 4
• Uniqueness: 3

This was very sweet. It tasted more like yakitori sauce and tare sauce than it did chicken. It reminded me of a fruit snack, surprisingly.

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Takoyaki Flavor たこ焼味

Takoyaki (たこ焼き in Japanese) are ball-shaped octopus dumplings usually brushed with a special sauce similar to Worcestershire sauce and sprinkled with nori seaweed and dried bonito shavings.

Ben K

• Authenticity: 4
• Pungency: 3
• Uniqueness: 2

The appearance and aroma matched takoyaki. I like how they even had the flakes of nori on the glaze. It had the unmistakable flavor of takoyaki sauce and I liked the crispy texture.

Big Neko

• Authenticity: 3
• Pungency: 2
• Uniqueness: 1

As with a lot of takoyaki flavored stuff, it tastes more like the sauce than the actual food. I think the flavor reminded me of American beef jerky.

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Mentai Flavor めんたい味

Mentai (written めんたい or 明太 in Japanese) is seasoned pollock roe.

Ben K

• Authenticity: 4
• Pungency: 4
• Uniqueness: 4

This was one of my favorites. The color really says mentai. Nice, tangy, umami-rich flavor and a seafood aftertaste. I wanted to have some sake with this.

Big Neko

• Authenticity: 4
• Pungency: 4
• Uniqueness: 4

Another surprise, I was expected more spice and kick but it pretty much captured the more fishy taste of mentai as opposed to the spice. It was sort of like a fish stick with more spice.

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Nattō Flavor なっとう味

Nattō (納豆 in Japanese) is a traditional Japanese food made of fermented soybeans. It's a common accompaniment to rice at breakfast and can be mixed with mustard, tare sauce and other ingredients.

Ben K

• Authenticity: 3
• Pungency: 2
• Uniqueness: 5

For someone who loves nattō, I found the taste to be subtle but in a good way. You could taste nattō but it wasn’t overwhelming.

Big Neko

• Authenticity: 4
• Pungency: 3
• Uniqueness: 5

I was surprised—I expected it to be overwhelming like actual nattō but instead was kind of a subtle spicy snack. The texture felt thicker like nattō, but the taste reminded me of a Dorito.

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Sugar Rusk シュガーラスク味

Ben K

• Authenticity: 4
• Pungency: 2
• Uniqueness: 3

I didn’t know what to expect since I didn’t think sweet Umaibō existed but this really tasted like rusk. Not too sweet, with a pleasant blend of sweet and creamy flavors. I wanted some tea with this.

Big Neko

• Authenticity: 5
• Pungency: 3
• Uniqueness: 3

This was like eating a rusk in Umaibō form. Because rusks are usually hard and crispy, the flakey nature of Umaibō made it a unique snack.

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And that's only seven. You can also buy Tonkatsu Sauce flavor, Salami flavor, Teriyaki Burger flavor, Salad flavor, Shrimp and Mayonnaise flavor, Beef Tongue flavor, and Nori and Salt flavor. There are also two seasonal flavors: Chocolate, which isn't available in Summer, and Lemon flavor which is only available in summer, and one regionally exclusive flavor, Cinnamon Apple Pie, only available in Tokyo. Finally, there are three Premium Umaibō flavors.

To see the whole lineup and learn more about Umaibō, visit their website here.

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News Crossing: Related articles

• Dagashi discoveries: Japan’s “penny snack” culture
• The current state of dagashi: What Japan is losing along with its dagashi shops

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Talk Event: Friday, July 16th 13:00 (JST)