Monteur Custard and Whip Waffle

There was a Belgian waffle craze in Japan sometime in the late 80's or early 90's when I first arrived. I don't know if that set off placing waffle-based snacks as permanent fixtures in markets and convenience stores or if they were there greatly prior to that time. However, if you ever hanker for a cold, pre-cooked waffle, nearly any store has your back in Tokyo. These types of things are everywhere, and this brand can be had at nearly any major supermarket.

Since I've seen these packages of 4 waffles (usually for around 300 yen) for quite some time, I finally decided to take the plunge. The main appeal is that they are full of two of my favorite substances in the world - cream and custard - and are only about 100 calories each. Occasionally, I get an angel cream of custard cream donut for breakfast, but that requires a 10-minute walk each way and having something like this on hand means I can have the fatty goodness without the groggy semi-conscious trek. Of course, this is no donut.

The company that makes these, Monteur, manufactures quite a few similar types of sweets sold in the refrigerator sections of markets and konbini.Their range is not broad and focuses on cream-filled things like Swiss rolls, crepes, and chou creams. They do make a limited range of puddings and Japanese-style sweets as well. However, I rarely see those offerings in shops in my area.

It's growling at me.

The waffles are soft and fluffy and dominate the flavor profile. The custard comes in second, but doesn't have much flavor. Both the cream and custard lend texture for the most part, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing. The waffle itself has a good "baked good" thing going on for it. It's not too sweet, which might not work for some people, but was good with me.

As a small, portion-controlled sweet for tea time, this makes for a pretty nice snack. It would probably also work as a component of breakfast in a pinch, particularly if it is served with fruit to round it out. Though I only picture one option here, I tried two varieties. Besides this mix of whipped cream and custard, there is also a blended version which has a light yellow version of custard and whipped cream together. I got that version on sale for a mere 125 yen ($1.63) because its expiration date was 3 days away. I actually liked it even better than this, but I'd go for either if I was in the mood and stumbled across them.