Japan's Plastic Food Displays

Above, an elaborate display of plastic food in the window of
an Asakusa, Tokyo restaurant.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

One of the amazing things to see in Japan when passing by a restaurant is a glass display case of the restaurant's menu items. They look tantalizingly delicious. Except for one thing.

They aren't real. They're made of plastic.

The Bangkok Post has an article on Japanese fake food displays. They wrote:

Fortunately for the hungry honeymooner, restaurants across this food-obsessed nation -- where English menus range from sparse to non-existent -- often display their wares in the form of intricately made plastic replicas. 

The sight of a giant hotdog slathered in condiments doesn't faze the average Japanese restaurant goer, and these fake food parades are often so similar to the real thing that they almost dare potential customers to take a bite. 

A sudsy-looking beer, perfectly glazed sushi and indestructible deep-fried pork cutlets, known as tonkatsu, are a common sight on the streets of neon-lit Tokyo and even the smallest towns.

I've seen many displays of plastic food and they are quite realistic-looking.

To read more, go here.