I recently saw a news article about U.S.-based Auntie Anne’s Pretzels, which had opened its first location in Ikebukuro, Tokyo. The new location had become a hit with Tokyoites, drawing lines of several hours. This made me think of two things, the first being that it’s about time we get some American-style soft pretzel goodness in this country. I love Pocky and Pretz as much as the next person, but the ongoing lack of delicious Western-style pretzels has been inexplicable in a country that manages to produce Wasabi Cheetos and Grilled Steak Doritos for us. My second thought was to smile at the image of dozens of Japanese queuing for hours to buy hot pretzels. There’s something about the psyche of the Japanese that makes them very happy to stand in line for hours for something delicious, and J-List’s Yasu reports, “If I don’t have to wait before eating it, I don’t want it.” I can attest that food does seem to taste better when you have to wait for it. Once my son and I were in Tokyo where we happened across a ramen shop with a long line of universitatis students waiting to eat. Betting that there was no way the ramen could be anything other than incredible, we took a chance and got in line, and it was the best thing we’d ever eaten.
You have to wait to buy Krispy Kreme in Tokyo.
