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From Tugi, a beautiful and classic namagashi with a twist. Red and white bean paste dance together inside a spring marbled dome that invokes the blue sky peeking behind sakura blossoms as the trees thin out and petals fall.

Another very very fun one from Kumaya・熊屋, an interactive sweet: cream cheese and white bean paste daifuku with an injection of strawberry sauce. It was fun, it was sweet, it was very unique. A tiny overflow on my part did not hamper my enjoyment of it at all. Doesn’t it look like a mini jelly donut?

Possibly the first time I’ve had fū manjū・麩饅頭 from Kumaya・熊屋, this was a soft, moist and salty black sesame dough with smooth & light red bean paste inside. They are the perfect thing during hot weather because they feel simultaneously refreshing & hydrating while light and fluffy. The last area I lived in Tokyo had a sweet shop that specialized in these and were probably the last ones I had eaten. Happy to break the spell.

This is another souvenir from a rest spot we had on the way back to Osaka at a shop called Suzuya. It’s so cute with its little chocolate glaze cap! Inside was a creamy smooth chestnut and bean paste mixture.

Another souvenir from a train station. This is most famously from Kyoto but this is a modern take on nama yatsuhashi・生やつはし. Rather than cinnor red bean flavour on the classics, this is a red bean and black sesame version. I always love the gritty sweetness of black sesame in desserts, the mochi was so, so soft and it’s no surprise it’s such a common souvenir.

Another beautiful Tugi moment. Even though it consistently delivers some of the most exquisite tasting and interesting sweets imaginable, their attention to every detail should not go unnoticed. The box always has beautiful decorative elements and tucked into it is always their menu. In case you forget, you can re-read what the flavour profile of your sweets or get excited for next time.

On the left was a slightly savoury and citrusy castella sweet with lots of herbs, it was truly unlike anything else I have tried. Similarly inventive was the white one is red bean paste mixed with strawberry paste and white grape bean paste. This one was really shocking, in a great way, I loved it so much.

A busy day but not too busy to grab some cute flowers and a weird little sweet potato based sakura flavoured cake.

This one is a couple weeks old that I forgot to add but of course it’s too pretty not to include it. This was for Girl’s Day・ひな祭り. The layers are (top to bottom) red bean paste, white chocolate, matcha. Might not be a surprise that this was from Tugi.