IZUMISANO, Osaka -- Burgers combining expensive cuts of Kobe beef steak with the rice and nori seaweed of "onigiri" rice balls have been a hit with foreign travelers since their December 2023 debut at Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture, despite their hefty 5,500-yen (about $35) price tag.

Demand is so high for the luxurious "Samurai" Kobe Beef Steak Burgers that a limited quantity of 80 burgers per day sell out quickly on weekends at the Onigiri Burger shop near the international departure gates.

Henry Chen was eating one of the burgers while watching planes take off before his flight. The 58-year-old from Shenzhen, China, said he was satisfied, adding that even in China, Kobe beef is famous for its deliciousness, so the price was not too high. He continued that it tasted the same as Kobe beef he'd had at a three-star restaurant in Kyoto. Chen said he was happy to have something good at the airport, the last spot in his trip.

Yasushi Yoshikawa, the store's 61-year-old branding director, explained, "With the cooperation of famous restaurants in Osaka and Kyoto, we offer authentic taste, and even at this price, foreign visitors with high purchasing appetite will buy our burgers." Yoshikawa expects a flood of customers from the United States for the 2025 Osaka Kansai Expo, and said that he hopes it will lead to opening a shop in the U.S.

Kansai airport set an April-September record for foreign visitors in 2024 with 9.47 million. Seeking to fulfill strong demand, Peach Aviation Ltd. opened a direct Kansai-Singapore route in December, while fellow low-cost carrier Jetstar Japan Co. increased their direct flights between Kansai and Taipei to twice daily the same month. Nankai Electric Railway Co. has greatly increased the number of trips for its Rapi:t limited express train service between Kansai International Airport and Osaka's Namba Station, which connects the two stations in as little as 34 minutes, as well as the number of cars and journeys for its regular express airport service.

During the Osaka Expo, the Izumisano Municipal Government will open a two-story, roughly 320-square-meter facility to showcase produce from across Japan, called "Marukajiri Japan," at the Rinku Town development on its shore just across from the airport. Local cuisine and specialties from 50 or more municipalities across Japan will be sold there. There will be fireworks shows and monthly special events.

Hiroshi Shintani, the managing chair of the expo for the city, commented, "I want domestic and international passengers using Kansai International to come here."

(Japanese original by Tadakazu Nakamura, Izumisano Local Bureau)