"Ota x Ishii DELA LOVER" is a variety show where Bakusho Mondai's Hikari Ota and TV Host Ryoji Ishii delve deep into Tokai region staples! This time, it's the "Chilled Sweets You Want to Eat in Summer Ranking." We'll announce the top 10 favorite chilled sweets based on a survey of 1000 people in the three Tokai prefectures. (The present campaign has ended)

Carefully selected rare azuki beans that go well with cream

The 10th place in the "Chilled Sweets You Want to Eat in Summer Ranking" is "Cream Zenzai" from "Sugakiya," which originated in Aichi Prefecture. In the survey, people commented, "I like the way the soft serve ice cream and anko mix. I like eating them together," and "Zenzai is sweet to begin with, but the soft serve ice cream is cold, so it's refreshing to eat."

While Sugakiya is now known for its ramen, it was originally founded in 1946 as a sweet shop selling zenzai and other sweets. In 1960, they released "Ogura Cream," the product that would become the basis for cream zenzai.

According to public relations representative Miyaji, they use the same cream as their soft serve ice cream, and they are particular about the azuki beans to match it. They use rare azuki beans that can only be harvested by some farmers in Hokkaido.

100% Jersey milk from their own farm

The 9th place in the "Chilled Sweets You Want to Eat in Summer Ranking" is "Hida Milk Soft" from Hida, Gifu. In the survey, people commented, "The milk flavor is strong. It's moderately sweet and very refreshing," and "The nature is beautiful, so it tastes even better when eaten there."

Hida Milk Soft is a local soft serve ice cream made from milk produced in the Hida region. The Hida region has many pastures in the mountains and is relatively cool even in summer, so livestock farming has been prosperous there for a long time.

A particularly popular shop is "Bokusensha" in Furukawa-cho, Hida City, about 2 hours and 30 minutes by highway from Nagoya. Founded in 1897 (Meiji 30), it is a dairy that has been in business for nearly 130 years in the Hida region. Many locals and tourists visit to enjoy their "Bokusensha Jersey Milk Soft Cream."

The reason for its popularity is "Jersey milk." The soft serve ice cream uses 100% Jersey milk from their own farm. They don't use fresh cream in their soft serve; they rely on the taste of Jersey milk.

According to the fifth-generation owner, Mr. Makita, "We developed Jersey soft serve to make a 'milk you can eat' type of soft serve that makes the most of this delicious milk."

Fruit-filled daifuku that sells about 6,000 pieces a day

The 8th place in the "Chilled Sweets You Want to Eat in Summer Ranking" is "Fruit Daifuku" from "Yoro-ken," a long-established Japanese confectionery shop in Gifu Prefecture. In the survey, people commented, "It's full of fruit and very delicious," and "It's nice to be able to eat it chilled when you want to eat summer fruits."

The "Marugoto Kyoho Daifuku" contains a whole Kyoho grape! According to Mr. Watanabe of Yoro-ken, if you put it in the freezer and chill it for about 30-40 minutes, it becomes semi-frozen, and the Kyoho grape is crunchy and delicious. They also have fruit daifuku that combine figs, mascarpone cheese, and kurikinton (sweet chestnut paste).

Yoro-ken has created about 50 kinds of fruit daifuku so far. According to Mr. Watanabe, it was born about 33 years ago from the idea of "let's make a Japanese confectionery that looks like a cake." The first fruit daifuku they made, which combined strawberries, bananas, chestnuts, tsubu-an (sweet red bean paste), and whipped cream, was an instant hit. Now, it is a popular product that sometimes sells over 6,000 pieces a day.

Eating cake-like daifuku chilled is the Yoro-ken style. The mochi dough on the outside is still fluffy even when chilled!

To find out the secret to mochi that stays fluffy even when chilled, the program infiltrated Yoro-ken's daifuku factory! All fruit daifuku are made at the Minokamo factory in Kawabe-cho, Gifu, which is about a 5-minute drive from the main store. We were guided through the manufacturing site by Assistant Factory Manager Ishihara.

Making fruit daifuku is a manual process. According to Mr. Ishihara, on busy days, they make about 12,000 pieces a day. By performing a process called "momi," which gives the mochi its elasticity and smooths the surface, they can wrap plenty of fruit and cream without tearing. For every one person in charge of cutting the dough, there are four people in charge of wrapping. They pinch the dough and gradually wrap the fruit.

The reason the mochi is fluffy even when chilled is because meringue is mixed in! They have been mixing it into the mochi since its development over 30 years ago. This achieves a texture that doesn't harden when chilled and melts in your mouth.

Classic cream soda with a simple taste

The 7th place in the "Chilled Sweets You Want to Eat in Summer Ranking" is "Cream Soda" from "Komeda Coffee Shop," a store originating in Aichi Prefecture. In the survey, people commented, "It has a retro feel and is good," and "It's a classic, simple taste. A taste that everyone from small children to adults loves."

It comes in a boot-shaped mug with soda and soft serve ice cream on top.

In cool highlands, cows don't drink much water?

The 6th place in the "Chilled Sweets You Want to Eat in Summer Ranking" is "Milk Soft" from Hirugano Kogen, Gifu. In the survey, people commented, "I drink milk, but (the soft serve) is also delicious and I want to eat it," and "The richness of the milk!"

Following Hida Milk Soft in 9th place, another Gifu Prefecture soft serve ice cream ranked 6th!

The program visited "Hirugano Kogen Bokka no Sato" located in the northern part of Gujo City, Gifu, about 1 hour and 30 minutes by highway from Nagoya.

Bokka no Sato is a healing theme park with flowers and animals, located on a plateau at an altitude of about 1000m. In addition to cow milking experiences and horseback riding, visitors can interact with a total of 7 types of animals, including alpacas, making it a very popular spot for summer outings.

"Bokka Soft" sells over 80,000 units annually! According to Mr. Fujimori of Bokka no Sato, "Hirugano Kogen is cooler than other places because of its higher altitude. Cows don't drink much water, so the milk is rich. It's sweet and refreshing milk."

Here are places 5th to 1st in the "Chilled Sweets You Want to Eat in Summer Ranking"!
5th place: "Soft Cream" from "Sugakiya"
4th place: "Mizu Manju" from Ogaki City
3rd place: "Shiro-Noir" from "Komeda Coffee Shop"
2nd place: "Akafuku Kori" from "Akafuku"
1st place: "Azuki Bar" from "Imuraya"

From CBC TV "DELA LOVER" broadcast on August 19, 2026