The Japanese convenience store inventory has seen slight Americanization over the course of 2026. It isn't overwhelming, but it is noticeable. Whether by stocking hearty US fare (Seven-Eleven's Philly Cheesesteak) or spiritually channeling the land of the free (novelty food), something is afoot. Maybe this is the inverse of US Seven-Elevens introducing a Japanese-style egg-salad sandwich.

Now comes Lawson with two staples of American cuisine applied liberally to food: butter and cheese. This new series finds items practically smothered in one or the other. There's something for everyone, and all of them mostly look good. Or at least like a logical combination, albeit a bit over the top in topping application.

Save for one, which is so American it's impossible to resist. That's the mac 'n' cheese burger, a konbini-grade burger topped with "mac 'n' cheese sauce" complete with actual pieces of pasta within.  Now this is gastro-pub excess only possible in the Land Of The Free...available for ¥397.

An immediate challenge facing this one is the unfortunate fact that convenience store hamburgers tend to be horrible. It's arguably the most consistently disappointing item available across chains. The meat here isn't changing that, but the cheese sauce...is actually really good! It tastes like the kind of deeply unhealthy gloop you want from American junk food, which might be excessive to some but wonderful for others.

Then you bite into the noodles. Somehow, these don't absorb the cheese resulting in a bland bite featuring a bizarre texture. It isn't enough to completely derail the experience, but it does make it much odder. Which, in the end, contributes to its success as an accurrate replication of American excess. Worth trying once, but never again.