Autumn is around the corner, so grab your telescope for a magical moon-viewing (月見) session. The season’s clear sky is perfect for looking at the stars and maybe even spot a shooting star (流星). Around mid-September, Japanese people celebrate the bountiful harvest by gazing at the bright and beautiful harvest moon (中秋の名月).
Traditionally, Japanese people eat dango (dumplings made from rice flour), reminiscent of Chinese mooncakes, piled in a pyramid shape as an offering.
Today, fast-food restaurants in Japan never miss an opportunity to play with seasonal events. During the tsukimi (moon-viewing) season, restaurants launch time-limited specialties such as tsukimi burgers, tsukimi bentos and tsukimi pizza. Check out some of them below!
Tsukimi burgers
TLはマクドの月見バーガーでもちきりだけど、ケンタッキーは１日から、ロッテリアは明日の９日から月見系出してて楽しみ。他を調べたらモスやバーガーキングは特にイベなし、ドムドムの期間限定に関しては月とかいう次元じゃなかった。
“My [timeline] is all about McDonald’s tsukimi burger, but Kentucky [Kentucky Fried Chicken] has been serving it since the 1st, and Lotteria will be serving one from tomorrow, on the 9th. I checked other stores and found that Mos [Mos Burger] and Burger King have no special events, and Dom Dom’s time-limited offer is not even about the moon.”
Tsukimi bento
／
いよいよ本日発売!!
3種の#月見弁当
＼
香ばしい焼鳥×コリコリ食感のつくね×温玉
月見焼鳥つくね丼
ロースとんかつ×濃厚味噌だれ×温玉
月見ねぎ味噌かつ丼
ジューシーハンバーグ×甘辛照り焼きのたれ×目玉焼き
てりたまハンバーグ弁当
食べたいと思ったらRT
“Finally on sale today!
Three types of #tsukimi bento.
Aromatic grilled chicken, crunchy chicken, meatballs and boiled egg.
The Tsukimi grilled chicken ball on rice.
Roast pork cutlet, rich miso and boiled egg.
The tsukimi leek miso cutlet rice bowl.
Juicy hamburger steak, sweet and spicy teriyaki sauce and fried egg.
The Teritama hamburger steak lunch box.
RT if you want to eat!”
Tsukimi pizza
今年もドミノの月見が
やってきた！
今年は新たに2つの味が加わり月見クワトロになって新登場！4種類の味を存分に楽しめちゃいます
毎年恒例、期間限定の伝説のピザ、
食べてみたい人はRT
“Another year, another Domino’s moon viewing!
Here it comes!
This year, we added two new flavors to the lineup, making it the new Tsukimi Quattro! You can enjoy the four different flavors to the fullest.
The legendary annual time-limited pizza.
RT if you want to try it!”
Japanese expressions for ‘looking forward to’
To express how you’re looking forward to enjoying Autumn’s bounty, you can use the easy expression built on the word 楽しみ.
- 楽しみです: I’m looking forward to it!
- 月見は楽しみです: I’m looking forward to doing moon-viewing.
- おは楽しみです: I’m looking forward to the New Year.
You can also use のが with 楽しみ to expression looking forward to ‘doing something.
- にするのが楽しみです: I’m looking forward to studying in Japan!
- をるのが楽しみです: I look forward to seeing the movie!
Finally, you can also combine 楽しみ with している (ing form for the verb する), which will sound more formal.
- 日本に留学するのが楽しみにしています: I’m looking forward to studying in Japan!
- 映画を見るのが楽しみにしている: I look forward to seeing the movie!
Vocabulary
月見 tsukimi Moon viewing 流星 nagareboshi Shooting star マクド makudo McDonald’s バーガー baagaa Burger ケンタッキー kentakkii Kentucky Fried Chicken ロッテリア rotteria Lotteria モス mosu Mos Burger バーガーキング baagaakingu Burger King ドムドム domudomu Dom Dom Hamburger 期間限定 kikangentei Time-limited
