The moon rises at McDonald’s with eight limited-edition items on the menu, including a sukiyaki burger. 

One of the great things about the transition from summer to autumn in Japan isn’t just the dissipating heat – it’s the chance to try limited-edition “Tsukimi” (“Moon-Viewing”) exclusives at some of the country’s top chains.

Released to celebrate Japan’s annual moon-viewing tradition, which falls on 25 September this year, the limited-edition products commonly feature egg as a key ingredient due to its likeness to the moon. In fact, egg is so strongly associated with the moon in the culinary world that dishes containing egg often have “tsukimi” in their name, even outside of moon-viewing season.

One of the collections we most look forward to every autumn comes from McDonald’s, which is celebrating the 35th anniversary of the Tsukimi Burger, after it first graced the menu here in 1991. To mark the milestone occasion, the chain is giving us a whopping eight limited-edition products, including three new releases, with Japanese stars helping to promote the exclusive menu items in a trio of commercials.

▼ The collection begins with the signature Tsukimi Burger (460 yen [US$2.89]), which contains a Japanese egg, juicy beef patty, smoked bacon and a tomato creamy sauce.

▼ The Cheese Tsukimi (490 yen) adds a layer of melty cheese to the mix.

▼ The breakfast-only Tsukimi Muffin (420 yen) lets you enjoy a spot of early-morning moon-viewing until 10:30 a.m.

There are two new burgers coming to the menu this year, with one joining the others on the regular menu, and one appearing only after 5 p.m.

The Aburi Beef Sukiyaki-style Tsukimi (570 yen), which can be purchased after the breakfast menu finishes at 10:30 a.m., gives the signature Tsukimi burger a Japanese twist. Sukiyaki is a beef hot pot dish known for its sweet-and-savoury soy sauce base, and it’s commonly eaten with raw egg, making it a great addition to the Tsukimi collection.

▼ The burger, finished with a soft, chewy-textured bun, is said to have a meaty, seared (“aburi”) flavour.

Here to help promote the burgers is Japanese actress Aoi Miyazaki, returning for her third consecutive year with McDonald’s, in a 30-second clip that shows her excitedly ordering the burger in Japanese, saying “Tsukimi Burger hitotsu” (“One Tsukimi Burger”).

As for the after-5 burger – burgers on the evening menu are designed to be more substantial for dinnertime – it’s one that cheese lovers will go weak at the knees for.

▼ Cheese Cheese Bai Tsukimi (670 yen)

Affectionately dubbed “Chi-Chi Bai Tsukimi”, with “bai” meaning “double”, this version of the signature Tsukimi Burger comes with two types of cheese, cheddar and white cheddar, and two juicy beef patties.

▼ The after-5 burger commercial is fronted by Taichi Shiozaki, a member of Japanese boy group M!LK, making his McDonald’s debut.

On the side menu, we have three Tsukimi-inspired options.

▼ Golden Egg Tartar Sauce (50 yen), designed to be ordered with nuggets.

▼ The Hokkaido Butter, Red Bean Paste and Mochi Tsukimi Pie (200 yen), which is returning with an updated recipe.

And finally, the Tsukimi McShake Nagano Shine Muscat (200 yen for a small, 280 yen for a medium), which was first introduced in 2023 and is made with juice from grapes grown in Nagano Prefecture.

▼ Maika Sasaki, a member of Japanese idol group =LOVE, is making her first solo appearance in a McDonald’s commercial to promote the pie.

All three clips feature a modern version of “Tanko Bushi”, a traditional Japanese folk song that contains the modified lyrics, “Tsukimi deta deta, Tsukimi deta” (“Tsukimi is here, here, Tsukimi is here”). The commercials will begin airing nationwide on 1 September.

With this being the 35th anniversary of the Tsukimi Burger in Japan, McDonald’s says it’s also planning to release a second series of Tsukimi items on 15 September, which is great news for fans of the collection. As for the first series, it’ll be appearing at stores around Japan for a limited time from 2 September.

Source, images: Press release
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