eF & Be Bakehouse: Melonpans

One thing about this whole pandemic thing is that we’ve been keeping an eye out for new take-out options… and what could be better than having freshly baked melonpans delivered right to your door?

Kagetsudō Kaminarimon: Tokyo 2017

Ahhh… Melonpans! One of the main reasons for coming to Japan! If you’ve never heard of melonpans before, you couldn’t be blamed for expecting that these oddly shaped buns would taste like melon. But you’d be wrong! 🙂 No, these baked buns earn their name by resembling the shape of melons (kind of like how pineapple buns get their name because they look like pineapples).

Baker and Table Cafe: Melonpans!

After our introduction to melonpans during our trip to Japan last year, I’ve been seriously craving these crunchy-topped buns. Recently, I heard that a place on Fraser Street had started selling these in Vancouver and we wound up stopping by after a Lobster Sticky Rice dinner at nearby Ho Yuen Kee.

Asakusa Sakura (Tokyo 2016): Matcha Ice Cream Melonpan

If you’re ever in Japan, you’ve got to try these sweet buns called “melonpans”. Now, they don’t usually contain any melon in the bun… the name comes from how the shape resembles a melon – in particular, a cantaloupe. It’s similar to how a Chinese bo lo bau is called a pineapple bun because it resembles a pineapple.