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I'm an American who ate breakfast, lunch, and dinner at McDonald's in Japan. All 3 meals blew away the chain's US offerings.

I'm an American who ate breakfast, lunch, and dinner at McDonald's in Japan. All 3 meals blew away the chain's US offerings.

Nickelle Tilley

I ate breakfast, lunch, and dinner at McDonald's in Japan.Nickelle Tilley

I'm an American who's eaten my way through McDonald's breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus in Japan.
The global fast-food chain offers limited-time menu items exclusive to Japan.

After moving from North Carolina to Okinawa in 2022, my family was overwhelmed but fascinated by our surroundings. One familiar monument made us feel right at home: McDonald's two golden arches.

The fast-food chain was the first place we ate after getting settled in our home here. It was so fun to see familiar menu items, like the Big Mac and the Oreo McFlurry, along with unfamiliar ones, like the Teriyaki-Chicken Filet-O and the Samurai Mac.

After eating McDonald's in five different countries, I ranked the ones in Japan in the top spot. So, I thought it would be fun to visit my local McDonald's for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and get menu items I've never tried before.

The McDonald's locations in Japan offer savory and sweet breakfast options reminiscent of the items I used to get in the US.

The exterior of a McDonald's in Japan. Nickelle Tilley

The McDonald's locations in Japan have the Mega McMuffin, a breakfast sandwich on an English muffin with egg, cheese, bacon, and two sausage patties. Customers can also opt for the Chicken Crisp Muffin or the Filet-O-Fish.

The fish fillet is one of my favorite breakfast items I've tried there so far. My husband likes to get the Big Breakfast, complete with hotcakes, eggs, an English muffin, and two sausage patties.

The location I visited had a McCafé, so I ordered the McFizz Tropical Blue Hawaii, a limited-time item.

McCafé are cafés located in select McDonald's locations. Nickelle Tilley

For drinks, we ordered a small café latte, an orange juice, and a limited-time drink called a McFizz Tropical Blue Hawaii, a blue yogurt drink. Customers can also order it as a float with vanilla ice cream.

It tasted like a creamy blue-raspberry soda, and to date, it's one of my favorite drinks I've ever tried in Japan.

I've also ordered an Uji Matcha Frappe from a McCafé. It wasn't too sweet, making it a good option for matcha lovers.

When it was time to pick up lunch, I tried out the McDonald's drive-through.

I was able to order my meal in English. Nickelle Tilley

When I pulled up, I noticed signs advertising three limited-time menu items: a pie with cheese and lemon, a melon shake, and spicy chicken nuggets.

For the sake of research, I ordered all three.

The employees handed me my order in a clear plastic bag, even putting my drinks in a cupholder.

The bag helped me avoid spilling my drinks and making a mess of the food. Nickelle Tilley

I've never received a drive-through meal in a plastic bag in the US, but it definitely made it convenient to carry all my food and drinks inside from the car.

I could choose between sour-cream lemon sauce or garlic-habanero sauce for my nuggets.

I dipped the spicy nuggets in the sour-cream lemon sauce. Nickelle Tilley

Although it was a hard choice, I went with the sour-cream lemon sauce. It didn't disappoint.

It tasted similar to ranch dressing, just with a little hint of lemon, and paired nicely with the spicy chicken nuggets.

My husband and I think these chicken nuggets taste better than the ones we've had from McDonald's in the US.

Japanese McDonald's also comes out with limited-time pies throughout the year, and this variation with lemon and cheese was my favorite.

The pie flavors switch as part of the seasonal menu. Nickelle Tilley

Crispy on the outside and a mixture of salty and sweet on the inside, this dessert reminded me of a lemon-meringue cheesecake.

As for the melon drink, I thought it tasted just like cantaloupe. It was good but a touch too sweet for my liking.

On a super hot day, I returned to McDonald's to try its refreshing peach smoothie.

The beverage was one of McDonald's drinks of the month. Nickelle Tilley

Japanese peaches are known to be some of the sweetest in the world, so I was excited to try the smoothie while the fruit was in season.

The smoothie's base was made of white peaches, yellow peaches, and nectarines. It was topped with a sweet sauce made of white peaches, and there were chunks of peaches at the bottom, which elevated the drink.

We also ordered the Golden-Pineapple Frappe, which we preferred to the peach smoothie.

The Golden-Pineapple Frappe was one of the monthly drinks at the McDonald's I visited. Nickelle Tilley

The Golden-Pineapple Frappe was topped with whipped cream and pineapple syrup, and we liked it more than the peach smoothie.

I got a burst of pineapple flavor in the first sip, and the sweet whipped cream and syrup balanced it out. I enjoyed it, however, I don't think I'd pay for this drink again.

The nearby McDonald's released three new sandwiches for a limited time, so we decided to try all three for dinner.

Upon entering, we saw electronic displays flashing the offerings above the registers. Nickelle Tilley

The sandwiches were part of the Heisei collection, inspired by an era in Japan spanning from 1998 to 2019. The advertisements featured popular J-pop bands from the time.

We ordered the Black-Pepper Chicken Sandwich, the Tamago Double (a two-patty burger with egg and bacon), and the Roasted Sesame Filet-O Shrimp.

After trying all three, I ranked the Tamago Double in third place.

The Tamago Double is part of the Heisei collection. Nickelle Tilley

It was definitely a beefy burger, and I really enjoyed the garlic-pepper mayo sauce and the egg on top.

The runner-up was the Black-Pepper Chicken Sandwich.

The chicken sandwich was packed with flavor. Nickelle Tilley

The chicken patty was heavily seasoned, giving it a really good flavor and a slightly spicy kick. I thought it was definitely better than the average chicken sandwich from McDonald's in the US.

My favorite sandwich from the collection was the Roasted Sesame Filet-O Shrimp.

The bun had sesame seeds on it. Nickelle Tilley

This sandwich was the perfect combination of crispy and soft, and the sesame sauce was fantastic. When it comes to fish and shrimp, McDonald's locations in Japan seem to know what they're doing.

We ordered some french fries as a dinner side.

Other side options include salads, edamame, and yogurt. Nickelle Tilley

McDonald's customers can request seasoning for their fries to get an extra kick of flavor.

My husband and I also paired our meal with Shaka-Chicki, fried chicken that comes with a small bag of seasoning.

The Shaka-Chicki comes with a variety of seasoning flavors, like cheddar cheese and red pepper. Nickelle Tilley

If you sprinkle the seasoning in the bag with the chicken and give it a generous shake, you'll get a crispy, flavor-packed chicken.

The limited-release menu items are my favorite part of eating at McDonald's locations in Japan.

I can also get familiar items, like an Oreo McFlurry, in Japan. Nickelle Tilley

Every month, there's something new to try, from pies and McFlurries to sandwiches and seasoned french fries.

My family prefers McDonald's Japanese menus, and we've found the customer service to be unrivaled there, too.

After eating McDonald's around the world, I've found that the locations in Japan are my favorite. Nickelle Tilley

My husband and I both agree that McDonald's ingredients look better in Japan and we think the food tastes a lot fresher as well. But the food isn't the only reason we prefer the locations here over the ones in the US.

Japanese hospitality, known as omotenashi, is unlike anything I've ever experienced. Whether I'm checking into a five-star hotel or placing my order at McDonald's, almost all of the employees I've met in Japan have been welcoming and treated me with attentiveness, grace, and warmth.