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Bacon potato pie returns to McDonald's Japan: Can you say hehonhohehohai?

Photo: McDonald’s Japan
Photo: McDonald’s Japan

It’s easy to feel sorry for ourselves in Singapore where we only have apple pie, occasionally banana pie that tastes like goreng pisang, and other sweet-flavoured pie at our local McDonald’s – whereas places like Japan get savoury pies like this “hehonhohehohai” – otherwise known as bacon potato pie.

This popular menu item is now available at most McDonald’s outlets in Japan. Priced at 150 yen (about S$1.80), the bacon potato pie will be up for grabs until end October.

Not only does the bacon potato pie have a crispy crust, it is filled with a creamy base, smokey bacon, chunks of potato and bits of onion. It had been a regular menu item for 12 years, from 1990 to 2002. The smoking hot pie’s return last year, for McDonald’s 45th anniversary since the first outlet opened at Ginza, generated a lot of excitement as well.

This year, the name “hehonhohehohai” was given to the bacon potato pie as a description of its savouriness and the comfort and warmth it brings this cold season. Since we do not have autumn or winter here, think of it as having a bowl of steaming, creamy soup when it is raining. In case you’re wondering, “hehonhohehohai” is how people sound when they have a mouthful of the hot pie and are asked what they are eating.

If you are in Japan, or travelling there this month, be sure to order one “hehonhohehohai”! But not to worry if you get tongue-tied – saying ‘bacon potato pie’ works, too.

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