Kinoko no Yama with a green matcha chocolate top and Takenoko with a green matcha chocolate coating

Kinoko-no-Yama vs. Takenoko-no-Sato: One of Japan's Greatest Debates

The world of Japanese chocolate has tons of amazing treats. However, in the J-chocolate world, two snacks in particular stand out due to the rift they’ve created among snack enthusiasts. Today, we’re going to explore the great divide between Meiji’s iconic Kinoko-no-Yama and their Takenoko-no-Sato! 

Let’s take a quick dive into what these snacks are, how they came about and some interesting facts about the great Kinoko-no-Yama and Takenoko-no-Sato debate, including actual research and surveys!

What is Kinoko-no-Yama?

A hand holds a bag of Kinoko no Yama, a biscuit stick with chocolate on top, in their car

Let's dive into this iconic snack that has been around since the 1970s! Image via Instagram (@taki_fumino)

First, let’s talk about Kinoko-no-Yama, which was the first one to come along. Kinoko-no-Yama translates to Mushroom Mountain,” which it gets from its shape. As a whole, this treat is mushroom-shaped, but if we look at it, the chocolate part establishes the mushroom part while the cracker “stem” is what makes it a “mountain” of chocolate. 

This chocolate mushroom came about in 1975, created by the iconic Japanese chocolate brand Meiji, and is actually related to the Apollo (or Uproll) chocolate treat! After creating Apollo in their Osaka factory, the company wanted to make an effort in making a whole line of small, cone-shaped chocolates. 

A pile of brown and pink Apollo chocolates, with a cone shape and one single star shape

Just put a biscuit stick into an Apollo and you're pretty close to the Kinoko-no-Yama treat! Image via Instagram (@yume_miru21shonen)

With this push, the leader of the Osaka factory created a prototype of Kinoko-no-Yama. Initially, it was just like an Apollo umbrella. It went into development, but something  happened in 1970 that pushed its release back—the release of Pocky by competitor Glico—which made Meiji focus less on developing new products.

However, in 1975, the development of the current cracker cookie was finished, a cuter (and rounder) design and were created, and Kinoko-no-Yama was released! Fun Fact: This tasty treat is also known as Chocorooms in some countries!

What is Takenoko-no-Sato?

A pile of Takenoko no Sato with a white biscuit and a brown, chocolate coating

The story behind Takenoko-no-Sato isn't as deep, but it is a great chocolate treat! Image via Instagram (@kibeda1suke)

Takenoko-no-Sato (Bamboo Village) is the sister product of Kinoko-no-Yama and was released just four years later! This one is in the shape of a full bamboo shoot with the chocolate forming the folds of the bamboo shoot and cracker cookie underneath. It was actually released as a “fancy” chocolate snack despite its everyday feel now!

The Great Debate

A map of Japan with stick figures and Kinoko no Yama or Takenoko no Sato on each side, saying "which divided the Japanese people, creating chaos"

This debate sees brother fighting brother as they argue which treat is the best! Image via Meiji Official Website

With Takenoko-no-Sato being released in 1979, the Kinoko vs Takenoko debate began! People all over Japan started to take up sides, with even major celebrities getting in on the fight in advertisements. And as these treats spread across the world, the debate did too.

The fun thing is that Meiji has really leaned into the debate, not just in advertising, but also in actual research and periodic surveys to find out which reigns supreme! 

There have been three national votes for Japan. However, they’re currently also doing a “Comprehensive National Survey” that collected even more comprehensive data for Japan as well as an international survey.

Japan

A map of Japan with each prefecture's preferred treat between Kinoko no Yama and Takenoko no Sato

This graph is up on the Meiji website and shows the current results for the national survey for each prefecture. Yellow is Kinoko-no-Yama and Green is Takenoko-no-Sato! Image via Meiji Official Website

Japan was actually dominated by Takenoko-no-Sato during the first two surveys, but the third survey saw Kinoko-no-Yama come out on top for the first time! But it seems the tides are shifting back to Takenoko as the live data is showing that almost every prefecture is leaning towards the bamboo shoot treat.

At the time of writing, it seems that Fukushima is the only prefecture where the chocolate mushroom is leading.

The Rest of the World

A map of the world with 20 countries and their preferred treat between Kinoko no Yama and Takenoko no Sato

This graph shows the winning treat in 20 different countries, excluding Japan. Image via Meiji Official Website

Out of the 20 countries (outside of Japan) where these two treats are served, Kinoko-no-Yama dominates 14 of them! In fact, the US, South Africa, South Korea, China, Italy and Kenya are the only places where Takenoko-no-Sato comes out on top. And three of those countries (South Africa, South Korea and China) are almost a 50-50 split!

Looking at the countries and regions who preferred Kinoko-no-Yama, Peru, Brazil, Switzerland, Ghana, Singapore and Australia are more evenly split. Meanwhile, France, India, Taiwan and Thailand are really Kinoko-no-Yama countries, all having over 70% mushroom lovers. India’s the highest with a whopping 82%!

If you want to check the data for yourself, you can check the Meiji 50th Anniversary data page. It’s in Japanese, but the map is interactive, has maps and plain numbers, making it easy to understand!

Which side are we on?

Personally, I (the writer) am a bit biased. While Kinoko-no-Yama is fun, I am a Takenoko-no-Sato stan. To me, it’s the better balance of cookie to chocolate and leaves my chocolate craving more satisfied. 

And I’m happy that my team generally agrees! While one person surprisingly had never had Takenoko-no-Sato, the remaining six team members (including myself) chose Takenoko-no-Sato as their preferred. However, we all love Kinoko-no-Yama as well!

A Takenoko no Sato with a dark cookie and a light brown chocolate coating

Whether it's the standard chocolate or limited-time flavors, like this Okinawa black sugar flavor, we love this treat! Image via Instagram (@yossiein)

Limited-edition & Japan-exclusive flavors

While Kinoko-no-Yama doesn’t have as huge a range of flavors as Japanese Kit Kats, they do maintain a few limited-edition flavors. 

For example, they currently have a Kyoto Uji matcha vs. Aichi Nishio matcha bag, featuring Uji matcha-flavored Kinoko-no-Yama and Nisho matcha Takenoko-no-Sato. This bag is made for you to eat and compare the two, having eight mini-bags of each.

Kinoko no Yama with a green matcha chocolate top and Takenoko with a green matcha chocolate coating

We love the matcha flavored ones and always look forward to their release every year! Image via Instagram (@satoshi.h901)

At the time of writing this, you can also find a tasty ‘strawberry and chocolat’ flavor of each cookie treat with a lovely pink and brown chocolate part! Throughout the year, you can also find an Okinawa black sugar flavor, Kinako (roasted soy bean powder) flavor, and chocolate-covered (but no chocolate top) versions of these famous treats! 

A pile of oblong cocoa-flavored, brown biscuit cookies

We were a little shocked when we first saw these chocolate-less treat, but they're actually really good especially if you like the cocoa cookie stick more than the chocolate. Image via Instagram (@yossiein)

And that’s our guide! What side of the Kinoko-Takenoko debate? (There is no wrong answer.) Were you surprised by your home country’s choice? Let us know with a comment!

And don't forget that you can get tons of Japanese sweet treats, from everyday chocolate treats to high-end cookies, at MiauMall!

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