They're far removed from tomatoes in taste, texture, etc. Hard to describe their taste. When fully ripe they're really sweet with a lot of juicy pulp. In fact you can't really eat them like an apple as some people might try since the ones that are firm enough to be eaten that way won't have much sweetness. Although unripe native persimmons (which are about the size of cherries) are very astringent, the Japanese varieties aren't so mouth-puckering strong but do have a small layer of pulp just under the rind that has a bit of astringency.