Japanese Shop Sells Perfect Fruits as Luxury Items

Hi there! Thanks for clicking by today. Coffee's waiting for you as is our ever-present tray of scrumptilitious virtual treats. Y'know... sometimes you have to wonder about people, eh. They'll pay anything to get what they want - and some folks can afford to do it. Nowhere is that more evident than the strange things that happen in Tokyo. Here's a prime example...

Tokyo’s Sembikiya Fruit Parlor looks like a luxurious jewelry store and the prices of the items on offer aren’t too far off either, only instead of diamonds and gold this place sells fruits. If you’re looking for perfectly shaped, delicious-tasting cantaloupes, apples, grapes or any other Japanese fruits, Sembikiya is where you’ll find them, but you’d better stop by the bank first, because they don’t come cheap.
 
In Japan, it’s customary to give high-quality fruits for formal occasions like weddings, business meetings or hospital visits. But we’re not talking about fruits you usually find at the local market or grocery store. Specialized fruit shops like Sembikiya sell only the rarest, most perfect products, grown in special conditions to ensure they look and taste as good as possible. 

Take the Yubari muskmelons, also known as Yubari King melons, priced at ¥15,750 ($160) for one, or ¥26,250 ($265) for two, at the exclusive Tokyo fruit parlor. That’s a small fortune for produce, wouldn’t you say? But these Japanese cantaloupes are pretty special. The Yubari King sold at Sembikiya only come from Shizuoka prefecture, where they get the most sunshine. They are grown in specially-designed greenhouses with air-conditioning and paper hats in the hot summer months, and heaters during wintertime. 

Farmers prune the less perfect fruits early on, leaving just one melon to ensure it gets the best flavor possible. A 12-pack of Queen Strawberries sells for ¥6,825 ($68), a box of perfect cherries costs ¥15,750 ($159), and a Senkai-ichi (Japanese for “world’s best”) apple will set you back ¥2,100 ($21). They might seem like outrageously-priced fruits to most people, but with 11 parlors opened in Japan, at Sembikiya business is booming.

So, like, if you come across a perfect strawberry or apple in the local supermarket what should you do?
a) buy it and eat it?
b) forget about it because fruit gives you gas?
c) buy it, take a picture of it and post it on Japanese Facebook offering it for $1200.00 plus shipping?

Don't suppose I'll ever get to try a Yubari Melon but then again you never know, eh. Maybe I'll win the lottery and be able to afford a couple of them.  But it brings up one of the age-old questions. What is the plural of fruit? Is it fruit or fruits? I was taught that fruit was one of those words that didn't add 's'. Like fish. Is it fish or fishes? What do you think?

See ya, eh! 

Bob