Sweets made with jewel-like glittering fruits satisfy your eyes, tongue, and heart.

Fukushima is the fruit kingdom of the Tohoku region. The climate and conditions unique to the basin are suitable for fruit cultivation, allowing visitors to enjoy various fruits throughout the seasons: cherries in early summer, peaches in summer, grapes and pears in autumn, and apples in early winter. Above all, the flavor of Fukushima's fruits is second to none. The Fruit Line (the nickname for Prefectural Road No. 5), where orchards are dotted, runs through the western part of Fukushima City. At direct sales shops, you can, of course, purchase freshly picked, succulent fruits, and in recent years, you can also enjoy parfaits and sweets at cafes directly operated by the orchards.

The visually impactful parfaits, using a whole peach or pear, or generously topped with cherries and grapes, continue to charm many tourists. The lines are particularly long during the summer peach season. When I visited, there was a huge line with a 70-person wait! What attracts people so much is not only the deliciousness and the visual appeal but also the modest price. The pricing, made possible because they are directly managed by the orchards, is a joy for fruit lovers. (It might not be an exaggeration to say the price is half that of other areas.)

Two recommended shops are "Mori no Garden" and "Yotsuba no Clover FARMERS GARDEN." You can enjoy a rich variety of sweets, including seasonal fruit parfaits, smoothies, shakes, fruit sandwiches, and pies. The popular parfaits containing a whole piece of fruit are quite voluminous, so order according to your appetite.