What is a good "American" item that would be a good present for a Japanese family?

[CalMeacham]

Be careful with the maple syrup idea. Or, rather, be prepared that they might not have any clue what to do with it. My mom took some local WI maple syrup as a gift on a trip to Russia, and her hosts gladly received it, but were mystified as to what you’d actually do with it. (She did try to explain pancakes and such, but I don’t think she got the idea across with all the language difficulties.)

Eventually, they poured a small portion into shot glasses and drank it. The good part is they loved it, the bad part is I’m afraid they think it’s a common beverage over here. (It didn’t help that that particular brand was packaged in what looked like a small plastic jug, either.)

We explained to them what to do with it – you don’t just drop a gift onto unfamiliar people*
And there are LOTS of cooking things you can do with maple syrup. It’s not m limited to waffles and pancakes.

*Actually, judging by your responses and others of heard, some people DO just that. That’s a rotten way to give a gift, IMHO. How do they expect the recipients to enjoy it if you don’t tell them what it’s for?

[Bob_Baks_Noogiehead]

A lot of good ideas here; I second the maple syrup, quality chocolates, or other local delicacies.

Coffee table books of photographs of your hometown/state, etc. make good gifts to the family as a whole, and give you something to talk with them about if you look at at the book together.

Upper-end perfumes make good gifts for women; Jack Daniels, Makers Mark, etc. are usually appreciated by men.

In case no one has mentioned this, do not give unwrapped gifts, and also do not expect the recipients to open the gifts in front of you.

Where in Japan are you going?

[lshaw]

@scr4

I’d avoid anything that takes a lot of space to store or display. Japanese houses really are small.

Food is always a good choice. But common brand-name packaged foods are risky (like candy bars), because many American brands are available in Japan. Better to go for high quality brands, or better yet, a local specialty (e.g. preserves made from locally grown fruit). See’s Candies seem to be a very popular California souvenir, but possibly too popular.

Yes, this is what I’m afraid of. Can you find See’s products in Japan? Good point about Japanese houses being small. I almost forgot about that.

[scr4]

@CalMeacham

We explained to them what to do with it – you don’t just drop a gift onto unfamiliar people*

And there are LOTS of cooking things you can do with maple syrup. It’s not m limited to waffles and pancakes.

What “cooking things” would you recommend they do? Keeping in mind that pantry supplies and equipment in a Japanese kitchen are very different from an American kitchen.

Personally, I think it’s more considerate to give something that you can just open the package and eat. Or at most, put on something that they already have and eat regularly (e.g. toast).

[scr4]

@lshaw

Can you find See’s products in Japan?

I just checked and it turns out they now have a Japanese online store. I’m sure people still appreciate it, but it’s not a very original gift.

[lshaw]

@Bob_Baks_Noogiehead

Coffee table books of photographs of your hometown/state, etc. make good gifts to the family as a whole, and give you something to talk with them about if you look at at the book together.

Where in Japan are you going?

I’ll be staying in Yokohama. Good idea about the coffee table book… I’m looking into this one, actually.

[lshaw]

@twopiecesofeight

One anecdotal data point: I met some Japanese women who, when they visited California, really wanted to go to a Bath and Body works store. They also liked peanut brittle from See’s Candies.

Bridge Brands has a “Landmark” line that has chocolates in tins or wrappers with San Francisco landmarks (Cable Car, Ferry Building, Palace of Fine Arts, etc.) imprinted on them.

Several people I know suggested the Bath and Body Works thing. I’m hesitant because in my mind, it seems to be popular with tweens, not grown women. But maybe I’m wrong about that.

Bridge Brands products look great. I like the incorporation of the SF landmarks.

[Bob_Baks_Noogiehead]

You’ll love Yokohama’s Chinatown! Or at least I think you will–I haven’t been to SF so I have no basis for comparison.

[Bob_Baks_Noogiehead]

@lshaw

Several people I know suggested the Bath and Body Works thing. I’m hesitant because in my mind, it seems to be popular with tweens, not grown women. But maybe I’m wrong about that.

I’m with you on that. I would go higher end than Bath and Body Works. If there weren’t already a LUSH Cosmetics in Tokyo I’d say that even that would be a better bet.

Are there young children in the family?

[TheTerribleTako]

Another vote here for Scharffen Berger chocolates. I think they even have gift packaging as well.

If you can make a trip to the Ferry Building in SF, they have a Scharffen Berger store there as well as other gourmet food stores like Frog Hollow Farm which sells small jars of decorative, local jams.

If your host family enjoys coffee, you can buy a few bags of Peet’s coffee too.

[aruvqan]

@CalMeacham

We explained to them what to do with it – you don’t just drop a gift onto unfamiliar people*
And there are LOTS of cooking things you can do with maple syrup. It’s not m limited to waffles and pancakes.

*Actually, judging by your responses and others of heard, some people DO just that. That’s a rotten way to give a gift, IMHO. How do they expect the recipients to enjoy it if you don’t tell them what it’s for?

though a gift basket with the pancake setup is great … http://www.wisconsinmade.com/gift-ideas/Willow-Creek-Mill-Pancake-Syrup-Gift-Basket-886.aspx

[aruvqan]

@Bob_Baks_Noogiehead

A lot of good ideas here; I second the maple syrup, quality chocolates, or other local delicacies.

Coffee table books of photographs of your hometown/state, etc. make good gifts to the family as a whole, and give you something to talk with them about if you look at at the book together.

Upper-end perfumes make good gifts for women; Jack Daniels, Makers Mark, etc. are usually appreciated by men.

In case no one has mentioned this, do not give unwrapped gifts, and also do not expect the recipients to open the gifts in front of you.

Where in Japan are you going?

never buy perfume for a woman unless you really know her. Scents can be very private - and perfume can be seen as a romance gift. Not to mention giving someone a perfume she hates [frex emeraud smells fantastic on my mum, on me it smells like cat piss]

[AquaPura]

Another vote here for real Maple syrup. We had several Japanese foreign exchange students who fell in LOVE with the stuff. You might include a little brochure on how it is made, and what it is traditionally eaten on.
Several of our students liked to eat the syrup on Mochi, or ice cream, or shaved ice, and MANY packed several bottles to go in their suitcase home with them.
Also, you said you were from the SF area, you could buy a loaf of fine sourdough just before you leave, wrap it well, and let them know it is a specialty of your area and give them a small cute selections of jams to eat with it.
The Japanese students we had all seemed to be especially proud of “their” local area specialties, and when they came to live with us usually brought some for the host family to try.

[astro]

Japanese are (or used to be) absolutely nuts for beef jerky. If you have some unique local jerkys it might be a thought.

[lshaw]

Thanks to everyone who replied! I was never good at picking out gifts, and this whole matter has gotten a lot less daunting now that I have some sort of direction.

This may sound stupid, but I’ve only ever bought real maple syrup when I was in Canada, and I never even knew it was a specialty in America. Where can I get this here? What brand should I look out for?

Also, does anyone know what type of items to avoid? For example, I never give clocks to my Chinese friends or relatives, because it’s considered an inappropriate gift. I know that a lot of Asians don’t like the taste of cheese. Also, like some one mentioned, bulky items would take up too much space in a typical Japanese home…

[Tom_Tildrum]

I have to admit, when you asked for a small, uniquely American item not found in Japan, I immediately thought, “handgun.” Transporting it would be a challenge, though.

You might try for an East-West crossover: Tea with an American twist. The Leland Tea Co. in San Fran, for instance, has a chocolate tea made with Scharffen-Berger, a yerba mate, and maybe a couple of other suitable ones.

Some spices might be considered American, like cajun or Old Bay.

The most uniquely American liquor might be bourbon. Something high-end like Maker’s (which i see someone has already mentioned) or Woodford Reserve would be good stuff.

[Argent_Towers]

Nine and a half inches of thick, juicy all-American sausage.

[lee]

Make sure the Maple syrup doesn’t have any other ingredients, such as corn syrup, and is grade A. Grade A dark amber seems to be what I see in the grocery stores and tastes more mapley to me thank light amber, but the recipes for maple creams calls for light amber. For a gift, I would try to get some in a bottle shaped like a maple leaf, which is probably pretty easy as I see them in grocery stores at least part of the year. Maple syrup has the advantage over many food gifts in that it can stand a wide varieties of temperatures and keep for a long time without showing any signs of alteration.

[Dewey_Finn]

I don’t think maple syrup is a good gift, as you said that you were from the San Francisco Bay Area. I think the gift should be representative of your area.

[Pyper]

How about root beer or ginger ale? It’s consumable, requires no preparation or explanation, and if you get some of the higher-end bottled stuff it has a nice appearance for a gift.