Fresh off of its “drinkable mayonnaise” high, Japanese convenience store (combini) chain Lawson is trying to drum up headlines again. Its latest gag product – and this time, I mean “that “gag” in the “novelty” sense rather than the “involuntary vomiting” sense – is a take on a Japanese dessert classic that you can see right through. But how does it taste?
Lawson, Japan’s third-largest combini chain, has been upping the ante lately with its limited edition goods. Its last big headline maker was its drinkable mayonnaise, which did a better job making waves on social media than pleasing people’s taste buds.
Its new effort is a twist on a much-beloved dessert. Flan (プリン; purin) came to Japan at the end of the Edo Era and the start of the Meiji Period, according to sweets maker Glico. Today, it’s a staple dessert found in every Japanese combini and supermarket.
To be fair, the new product isn’t actually “new.” Family Mart sold its own limited-time “transparent flan” in July 2024. The dessert is a type of flan known as “chemical flan” (ケミカルプリン; kemikaru purin), which is made with gelatin instead of milk. So this “transparent flan” is basically a clear gelatin.
However, Lawson gets credit for putting it into a clever packaging. When you first pick up the package with its stark white label, it seems to only say, “Can you see it?” Tilt it into the light and the words “transparent caramel-flavored flan” make themselves known.
The dessert itself is the gelatin plus the sauce in a separate packet. It really can’t be eaten I the package – it’s designed to be put into a bowl so you can place the sauce on it yourself.
What’s funny is that the sauce is also transparent. So even after you put it on, it doesn’t look like you did anything.
So, what does it taste like? I dug into it carefully. The gelatin is slick and doesn’t stay on the spoon well. (I had a volunteer taste-tester offer her services, which I politely refused.)
The taste was…okay? It definitely had the overall taste of a traditional Japanese purin – i.e., the caramelized sugar taste you expect to get from the syrup. However, since it’s a gelatin, the texture felt off to me. I was expecting milkiness and instead got…well, Jello.
If you’re in Japan, try it for yourself and let us know your thoughts. It’s selling ta most Lawson for 228 yen (USD $1.47).
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