There are very little things that Ms Buddha and I won’t do to find good food, especially when it is good rice! So when we were planning for the Fukuoka trip, Ms Buddha had already researched and found Yoshinotorimeshihozonkai (吉野鶏めし保存会) factory, which is the supplier of Chicken Rice ball products in Japan.
I have to forewarn you that this place is VERY out of the way, and we only manage to get there because we had a car and also because we were closer after visiting the OPAM.
The place itself is actually more of a factory than a shop, so the people had very very limited English skills, and I ended up having to communicate why body language and Google Translate; but in the end, we managed to buy a couple of rice balls each and had a snack out in the boot of our car.
Verdict? They were delicious and the rice had the really good Japanese rice chewiness with the slight firm texture that makes them so desirable! The rice also absorbed a lot of the Chicken and various ingredients used without becoming too soggy, overall top notch for flavour.
Will I drive 45mins for them again? For a rice fan like me, I might think about it since that it means you get them fresh! But for most people, I do think that you might enjoy the rice balls just as much if you managed to find them in stores around town.
Buddha Explores 