Hello Kitty truck at Menlo Park Mall Saturday oddly a big deal

It's called the Hello Kitty Cafe Truck.

"I'll take things I never heard of before for $500 Alex."

This garishly pink rolling tribute to Hello Kitty is a cafe and gift shop on wheels that has been touring the country for years. It debuted in 2014 (okay, there are actually two of them) and combined they have visited 100 cities from the east to the west. They sell Hello Kitty themed snacks. They sell Hello Kitty themed merchandise.

Do they sell a Hello Kitty themed helmet? I think I need one while I bash my head against the wall trying to figure out how this is popular.

But popular it is. Apparently wherever it goes hundreds of Hello Kitty fans show up and mob the thing. Kids will even dress up in Hello Kitty attire (there's Hello Kitty attire?) and lay in wait for its arrival.

Well it's coming to Menlo Park Mall in Edison this Saturday. It will be near the Jersey Strong entrance from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.. You've been warned.

Now if you don't know (and my daughter was never once into this, Thank God, so I had to look this up) Hello Kitty is a Japanese creation dating all the way back to 1974. It was a fictional character, a cartoon that was used on all kinds of merchandise. It didn't become a tv show until almost a decade after it was a marketing gimmick. There have been clothes, toys, music albums, games, books, you name it. By 2014, the first year the Hello Kitty Cafe Truck went on the prowl, the Hello Kitty empire was worth $8 billion a year.

Her backstory:

She's a perpetual 3rd-grade student who is a young female anthropomorphization of a Japanese Bobtail who lives outside of London. She has a twin sister Mimi. George is her father, Mary her mother, Margaret her grandma, and Anthony her grandpa. Charmmy Kitty is her pet cat. (Wait a minute, a cat who owns a cat? Wouldn't this be slavery? How is this not being protested?!)

So if all this sounds a bit ridiculous to you, I'm in your camp. But if this sounds right up your or your kid's alley, remember Menlo Park Mall this Saturday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.. Hello Kitty snacks and merchandise galore. But no cash! It's credit or debit only.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski. Any opinions expressed are Jeff Deminski's own.