Japan. Home of solar-powered cigarette lighters and wasabi-flavored beer.
Also home to Pocky, one of Japan’s most popular snacks.
Named for the sound (
pock!) it makes when you bite down, Pocky is a thin, wand-shaped cookie, coated in melt-in-your-mouth milk chocolate. It was released in 1966 by a Japanese confectionary company called Glico, becoming an instant hit that racked up nearly $84 million (30 billion yen) in sales within two years.
A few years later, Almond Pocky debuted, followed by Strawberry Pocky. These days Pocky is sold worldwide in dozens of (often bizarre) flavors, from banana to green tea, from coconut to a delectable mousse. Some, like honey and sweet potato, are seasonal, while others are sold only in certain regions of Japan (grape in Nagano, wine in Kobe). And for Real Men: Men’s Pocky, made with bittersweet chocolate.
Pocky's savory, crunchy cookie and silky sweet coating can make an addict out of almost anyone. The snack has spawned oodles of videos and fan sites; one even tracks sightings of new or hard-to-find flavors so that devotees can hop in the car and hunt them down. Track down your own
Pocky.