Sakura Ebi no Mai: An Irresistibly Shrimp-Rich Souvenir from Izu

Everyone in our family loves shrimp, so our attention automatically locks onto shrimp products whenever we are searching for souvenirs.

One item that triggered that instinct was a rice cracker called Sakura Ebi no Mai, which we found during a trip to Izu.

We bought it at the Izu no Heso roadside station. I plan to write a separate guide to Izu no Heso soon.

Shizuoka is famous for sakura shrimp. Even at a soba restaurant in Tokyo, it is always exciting to find sakura-shrimp kakiage soba on the menu.

Naturally, a snack made with those shrimp was impossible for our seafood-loving family to resist, and it went straight into our basket.

Sakura Ebi no Mai (Mura no Eki)

A box of 12 costs ¥760.

The wrapping paper features illustrations of Mount Fuji and sakura shrimp. Its kimono-like colors are elegant and beautiful.

The best-before date is printed on the back. The box I purchased had about five months remaining.

Even the box beneath the wrapping paper has a traditional Japanese pattern.

Because the crackers are thin and easy to break, the 12 pieces are packed with plenty of protective space inside the box.

The plastic inner bag has a convenient tear notch.

The moment I opened the plastic bag, the aroma of sakura shrimp drifted out.

The individual wrappers use a lovely pattern inspired by the pink color of sakura shrimp. They are attractive enough to hand out one by one.

Sakura Ebi no Mai delivers an irresistible crunchy texture and concentrated shrimp flavor

The surface of the cracker has a visibly grainy texture, and a whole sakura shrimp sits in the center, giving it a luxurious appearance.

Let’s eat.

The thin cracker has a firm, rugged crunch.

As you chew, it develops a fragrant, almost nut-like texture.

It is faintly sweet and packed tightly with the savory richness and dashi-like flavor of sakura shrimp. Although the cracker is small, it seems to contain every possible bit of delicious shrimp flavor.

This is the kind of cracker I want to treat carefully, eating each one slowly and savoring it properly.

Its toasted fragrance really is remarkable, and the crunchy texture is addictive. Precisely because it tastes so good, one cracker can feel slightly insufficient.

My children crunched happily through them too, although the quality was so high that I was reluctant to share too many. It is the sort of flavor that almost anyone would agree is delicious.

I also love sakura-shrimp kakiage at soba restaurants, but these crackers concentrate the essence even more strongly and deliver an even more intense sakura-shrimp character.

I will definitely buy them again the next time I travel toward Izu.

Thank you for the meal!

Sakura Ebi no Mai Product Info, Expiration Date, Manufacturer