As you know, Katakana is basically used for Western origin words. But there are many English words coined in Japan, called 和製 (わせい)英語(えいご) (Japlish). For example, コーンポタージュスープ, refers to a corn potage (thick soup). Some Japlish words are abbreviated, eg. 「オムライス」 lit. omelette rice (rice covered with omelette), and 「メンチカツ」 lit. mince cutlet (a deep fried mince patty), and 「ハムポテトサンド」, a sandwich containing potato salad with chopped ham. There are many more examples of abbreviated foreign language words. 「ファミレス」 refers to 'family restaurant', and 「スタバ」 refers to 'Starbucks'. Kansai people say 「マクド」 for 'McDonald's' and Kanto people say 「マック」. Even the expensive French champagne Dom Perignon is abbreviated to 「ドンペリ」！ 　   　 There are many foods and dishes of Western origin which have changed or been reinvented to suit Japanese taste. The dish ナポリタンスパゲッティ typically uses ketchup sauce, not actually tomatoes. カレー came to Japan from England, but Japanese カレー is thicker than the original because they use flour to make the curry sauce. Also, the Japanese ショートケーキ is different from the Western-style 'short cake', as it is fundamentally a sponge cake, not a biscuit. What's more, you will find interesting taste sensations such as みそパン and わさびアイスクリーム! 　 This section written by Koji Matsumoto and Cathy Jonak 　   　 Privacy & Copyright © The Japan Foundation, Sydney