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Miniature food sets

chocomoo

By chocomoo
in Japan: Cooking & Baking

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chocomoo

chocomoo

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The Pierre Hermé Paris mini-collection You can click on the black & white pictures for detailed pictures of each set. Almost every set comes with a Pierre Hermé box & shopping bag! Everything that comes in a container (macarons, cookies, etc.) can be taken out of the containers. I bought the entire collection :wub:

This one is a set of imported foods: "Import Delicious Foods". They changed all the names of the brands - take a look at what they changed the name of "Boursin" to (the 5th black & white picture) :laugh:

Here's another company that makes mini food sets: Re-Ment's Japan site.

I also have this entire set from Re-Ment: Mom's Happy Kitchen! There are sets like stewed kabocha (complete with the mise en place of 1/2 an uncooked kabocha, a measuring cup with mirin (?) in it, a bowl of soy sauce, a bowl of flour, & a bowl of more mirin (?)).

And Re-Ment's US site. Re-Ment currently has 5 American-themed sets:

- Mini-Sweets (I have the "Happy Birthday Surprise" (which comes with a description in English with fun facts about birthday celebrations, including the 2 sisters who penned the "Happy Birthday" song) & the "S'Mores" set (#9 should be labeled as "Strawberry Shortcake" & 10 is "S'Mores")

- Fun Meals I think the Japanese site says that if you flip over the "raw" meat, it's cooked on the other side

- Bread & Butter

- American Kitchen The cereal & gum dispensers actually work! :biggrin:

- This one's for our Hawaii contingent! I Love Hawaii

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kbjesq

kbjesq

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These look lovely, but I can't tell from the pictures - what size are these items? I assume they are intended as toys for children. Is there a recommended age bracket?

I have two small girls in mind that would love to play with such things, but I don't want to send a gift that might be age-inappropriate, or dangerous.

What do you do with them?

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prasantrin

prasantrin

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Most of the pieces in a set are quite small--would definitely be a choking hazard for a young child. They're not meant to be played with, but are more for display.

There's another topic somewhere in Egullet about these--sometime around 2004 or 2005. I have a few sets from then.

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kbjesq

kbjesq

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Most of the pieces in a set are quite small--would definitely be a choking hazard for a young child.  They're not meant to be played with, but are more for display.

There's another topic somewhere in Egullet about these--sometime around 2004 or 2005.  I have a few sets from then.

Thanks, Rona! I will keep these in mind in the future, when the girls in question are older (they are 2 and nearly 4 now).

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  • 2 weeks later...
chocomoo

chocomoo

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I was pleasantly surprised by the price of the Pierre Hermé set - I think it was something like 2670 Yen?

I like all the little details they put into the sets, like differing textures, movable parts, etc.

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Kuma

Kuma

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These look lovely, but I can't tell from the pictures - what size are these items? 

Just to give you an idea, if you look at the fun meals page:

They have a pic of the Lobster platter balanced on a normal sized fork. :shock:

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prasantrin

prasantrin

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haha.. the pierre herme set is simply adorable :biggrin:  . They are sold in various Pierre Herme outlets in Japan.

i wish i could have bought the entire collection too . lol.

FWIW, it is possible to get an entire set at once if you go to a store like Tokyu Hands. They sell the boxes individually, but you can also get a set of boxes--the manufacturer puts one of each set in the little display case, so if you buy an entire case at once, you can get the whole set without repeats. Tokyu Hands (and maybe Loft) sell factory-wrapped cases, guaranteeing that you'll get all the sets. That was how I managed to get all but one of my sets. No repeats, but it required a greater investment upfront.

I've wanted the Pierre Herme one since I first saw it, but I haven't gotten around to picking it up. There was another very cute set of Kyoto-related goods. I'm not sure if it was Re-ment, but since Kyoto has such a special place in my heart, I feel I need it!

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chocomoo

chocomoo

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I bought my set at Kiddyland in Harajuku - it's kinda across the street from Omotesando Hills.

I think they have all the Re-Ment sets, including the fridge, shelving units, display cases (for the pastries & baked items), kitchen, etc.

I think the Re-Ment sets are generally better than the MegaHouse sets - there seems to be more attention to detail. For instance, my friend got a MegaHouse set that had salt & pepper grinders. The salt grinder was painted white, while the pepper grinder was painted black. I think Re-Ment would have at least gone to the trouble of filling the grinder with white sand & grey & black sand. Anyway, minor quibble!

I really REALLY want this set: Natukasi. My friend actually has this exact same toaster. :blink:

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chocomoo

chocomoo

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*snip*

I've wanted the Pierre Herme one since I first saw it, but I haven't gotten around to picking it up.  There was another very cute set of Kyoto-related goods.  I'm not sure if it was Re-ment, but since Kyoto has such a special place in my heart, I feel I need it!

Were you looking at this one? As is the case with all Re-Ment products, I like how you can take all the little wagashi out of the boxes.

Update: I got my hands on the entire MegaHouse "Import Foods" set! I think it might be discontinued (it says MegaHouse 2006) though. My friend & I had fun laughing at all the changed product names (the aforementioned "Bullshit", "Best Feel Mayonnaise", "High-Roller Beer" (Heineken), "Linda 85% Chocolate" etc).

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prasantrin

prasantrin

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Were you looking at this one?  As is the case with all Re-Ment products, I like how you can take all the little wagashi out of the boxes.

Yes! That's the one! I've only seen it at my local Lawson's, so I wouldn't have been able to get the whole set. But I'm going to Kobe this week, so I'm going to see if Tokyu Hands has it.

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prasantrin

prasantrin

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If you don't get around to Tokyu Hands in Kobe, Kiddyland probably carries it too.

Thanks! I'm actually headed to Osaka on Sunday for The Police concert! :cool: So maybe I'll just take a look at Kiddyland, first. Except there's a patisserie in Kobe that only has chocolat chaud until the middle of Feb., so I really must go to Kobe soon! (I'm almost exactly half-way between Umeda and Sannomiya, so I'm in the perfect spot for either!)

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prasantrin

prasantrin

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So exciting!  Hopefully the opening act isn't Fergie...  :hmmm:

Let us know if you end up buying the Kyoto set!

I went to Tokyu Hands last night, and not only did they not have either the Pierre Herme set or the Kyoto one, but they no longer sell the sets in packs! Their section of miniatures is quite small now, too. I wonder if they might be phasing them out.

I guess it's Kiddyland for me tomorrow!

At least the chocolat chaud was worth the trip!

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prasantrin

prasantrin

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Heck, they have them in our local Daiei, even the Kyoto one! Want one?  :smile:

Thanks for the offer! But I know I saw a place that sells an entire set in one go (shrink-wrapped pack of 8-10 boxes depending on the set)--I thought it was Tokyu Hands, but maybe it was Loft? I will try a couple of other places, and if I still can't find it, I'll let you know!

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prasantrin

prasantrin

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I went to Kiddy Land yesterday, and they have every single possible Re-ment set except the Pierre Herme set! I think it may have been discontinued already :sad:.

AND, it seems they have changed the rules about buying Re-ment stuff. You can no longer buy a whole set at once, but you are limited to just two boxes per purchase per set! I guess I'll have to go with four friends. :angry:

Tokyu Hands in Shinsaibashi didn't have any. They must not be carrying them anymore.

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chocomoo

chocomoo

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WHAT?? What kind of stupid rule is that? :angry: So there's basically no way to avoid getting doubles because they're blind-boxed (ie. you don't know which set you're getting)! Argh!

I hope the Police concert was also worth the trip! :wink:

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chocomoo

chocomoo

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I must have the S'Mores.  Can I order these online?  Or get them in the US?

Here's Re-Ment's US website. It's linked to the map of stores that carry Re-Ment products. I have the Smores set! It has lots of small parts: the stove itself consists of 4 components. Did you notice that one of the smores has a bite taken out of it? :biggrin:

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hjshorter

hjshorter

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I must have the S'Mores.  Can I order these online?  Or get them in the US?

Here's Re-Ment's US website. It's linked to the map of stores that carry Re-Ment products. I have the Smores set! It has lots of small parts: the stove itself consists of 4 components. Did you notice that one of the smores has a bite taken out of it? :biggrin:

Thanks! Various sets and partial sets are available on eBay.

Heather Johnson

In Good Thyme

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prasantrin

prasantrin

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WHAT??  What kind of stupid rule is that?  :angry:  So there's basically no way to avoid getting doubles because they're blind-boxed (ie. you don't know which set you're getting)!  Argh!

I hope the Police concert was also worth the trip!  :wink:

A Japanese friend went to Kiddyland to check it out, and she thinks the rule is specifically for collections that are limited edition (aren't they all limited edition?), or those which are low in stock. So one should still be able to get an entire set at once, depending on the set.

I still want to get the entire Kyoto set (if it's still around), but I was finally able to get the entire Pierre Herme set at the Pierre Herme store at the Isetan depachika!! It's so cute! I haven't unpacked everything, yet, and probably won't (I lose a lot of things), but I'm so happy to have it!

And that Police concert wasn't quite what I had hoped for (they wouldn't let us stand up much less dance where we were sitting!), but I enjoyed it, anyway!

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chocomoo

chocomoo

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Oops, sorry Rona, I totally didn't see your reply until today! I'm going to Japan again in May! So excited! AND we're going to Osaka & Kyoto this time.

My friend & I got the entire Re-Ment delivery set - it's really cute, but I'm too lazy to link to it right now. Each set comes with a take-out menu, and the "DoReMi" pizza set even comes with a little insulated bag with velcro on it :wub:

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