Mister Donut the Dunkin Donuts of Japan?

Alright guys. It's like 11:44 pm here, and I should be studying, but this topic has been on my mind and I just have to blog about this. And who actually wants to write kanji over and over till they all look like inkblot tests...

About a week ago, I went to Takarazuka with some of my friends from the CET Program to buy tickets to see a show in the all female acting troupe "Takarazuka." It's about an hour by train from where we are in Osaka, and by the end of the trip we decided to stop by the Mister Donuts at the train station.

Mister Donuts is a pretty big coffee/donut franchise in Japan. They're pretty much everywhere, and they specialize in... donuts and coffee.

photo courtesy of clubsnap.com

Anyways, I had already eaten, so I didn't get anything. My friends went ahead and got some donuts! As we were riding on the train back, I noticed there was writing on the Mister Donuts bag my friend was carrying. It was in English, so I read it. 

photo courtesy of Elizabeth Denny

I don't know if you can read it very easily, but the bag is basically saying this:

Mister Donuts started in Boston, MA in 1956

Mister Donuts began in Japan in Osaka in 1971.

Mister Donuts is a big deal in Japan.

but. but. Mister Donuts started in the United States? What? Mister Donuts is HUGE in Japan but I've never heard of it in the America. And I'm from the Boston area! I was really surprised to hear this because I've really never seen one in my area back at home.

This was really nagging me for a while so I went to the source where you can look sound information on pretty much anything.

Wikipedia!

Mister Donut's Wiki Page

Apparently, Mister Donut and Dunkin Donuts were competitors for a while in America, but then Mister Donuts became a really big thing in Japan. In the 1990s, Dunkin Donuts bought out pretty much all the Mister Donuts in America and agreed to let Japan manage/own the Mister Donuts in Japan. 

... so are Dunkin Donuts and Mister Donut the same? The same niche of coffee shop-ness? When I read this my mind was pretty much blown. But looking back, when I walked into the Mister Donuts shop in Takarazuka, Osaka Japan, the store smelled just like home. It smelled exactly like Dunkin Donuts.

Now I really have to go back and try the coffee and the donuts and see how similar they are!!!! When I do this, I will be sure to blog about and let my dear readers know. 

But maybe, this all just means one thing. That the world truly runs on Dunkin....