The summer of yesteryear is now a fantasy. Daytime temperatures in Japan creep towards 40 degrees Celsius, and spending more than like five minutes in the sun feels draining. I've seen some people say 2026 isn't actually as hot as previous years...but it sure doesn't feel that way.
What this means is that staple activities of the season prior now sound like misery, or in extreme cases a legitimate health risk (see baseball games played during the day being canceled, as was the case this week). One potential tradition that might be caught in the heat is the summer festival. A traditional staple of July and August, it sounds a lot less fun in current conditions, even if held at night.
Seven-Eleven Japan offers one potential solution via its festival-themed "choco banana whip" dessert sandwich. Meant to capture the taste of the "choco banana" stick treat found at so many summer fests, it places a yellow-colored whipped cream between two soft pieces of bread. The taste is great — artificial banana can be divisive, but the flavor is not as strong here and balanced by the chocolate, making for a good experience. The only drawback is the sprinkles, added on in copious amounts that can get messy. Still, when it comes to replicating experiences that the weather has made less fun, this is solid.
