Posted in Food on Apr 27th, 2008
Prior to moving to Japan i had never eaten Ramen, now i can’t live without it. Most weekends for lunch i visit a local Ramen shop in Yoyogi or if i’m visiting a new station on the JR Yamanote Line then i’ll get my fix there.
Ramen comes in all different flavours and naturally i’ve got my favourites. I generally lean towards a Miso base with either a flavouring of Onion or Chashew with an Egg for topping.
One of the only good things about working in Hon-Atsugi is the Ramen down that way is good, very good, and it’s hard to get anything close to it back up here in Tokyo. Luckily for me i have a good shop a few minutes walk from home, just in front of the North Exit of Yoyogi station.
Today i went for the Negi (Onion) Miso Ramen, and once again it hit the spot.
It’s a very Japanese thing to do, taking photographs of your food that is, and i find myself doing it more and more these days.
Going through my phone last week after my trip to Nagoya i was surprised to see how many photos of past Ramen experiences i had. Here’s some of the favourites from Hon-Atsugi and in and around where i live.
As i continue the 29 stops of the JR Yamanote Line series i’ll make sure i have Ramen for lunch, it will probably become a series of its own.
Read Full Post »
Posted in Food, Japan, Ramblings on Apr 2nd, 2008
Last night I attended the same function I met the grandson of the founder of Miss Nippon last year. Again it was held at the Keio Plaza hotel and again it was a great night.
I spent the early part of the evening talking to TVK Yokohamas Kyoko Nakayama which was interesting as always and also caught up with the World Extreme Skiing champion Yoshimasa Wada and told him of my recent Snowboarding trips.
The highlight would have to have been meeting Lungtok who apart from being part of the Tibet Olympic Judo Team several years ago, is currently the translator for the Dalai Lama when he is in Japan. Not only was his conversation interesting I was most impressed to hear he was fluent in 5 languages.
Unfortunately the guy in charge of taking the photo was obviously impared with Sake and he managed to take an out of focus photo.
Not unlike last time, the grog and food was put on, and put on very well i might ad. Fast becoming a favourite of mine is Sushi and I only broke away from the Sushi last night to try one thing and that was the Whale Steak. There was a raw option beside the cooked variety but my taste buds weren’t tempted.
Coming from Australia the topic of Whaling came up on several occasions and it was discussed in a mature fashion, more than I can say for the behaviour from the guys from Chasers in this recent clip on youtube. I never have really liked much of their stuff.
Read Full Post »
Posted in Food, Japan on Feb 20th, 2008
A few weeks ago the good folks from Mark Batty Publishers approached me saying they were putting out books on Japanese visual culture and wanted Japanophiles to review them. The first thing i did was check what the word Japanophile meant.
Japanophile - Japanophilia is an interest in, or love of, Japan and all things Japanese. (It’s opposite is Japanophobia.) One who has such an interest or love is a Japanophile. Various cultures and peoples have gone through various periods of Japanophilia, for various reasons, throughout history.
Once the word checked out I promptly agreed and a week later they sent me a book on “Face Food: The Visual Creativity of Japanese Bento Boxes”
I’m not a massive reader of books these days, so lucky for me there’s lots of pictures and what fantastic pictures they are, all about the Bento Box.
This book provides a fascinating insight in to the Japanese Bento Box and the integral part It’s played for the last several hundred years.
The book is not only very entertaining for the pictures of the Bento Box but at the back there’s a how to section providing a great example for you to try on your own. I probably won’t be rushing out to do it myself but for anyone with kids it would be a bit of fun.
Read Full Post »
Posted in Food, Japan, Ramblings on Feb 13th, 2008
When i first came to Japan in 2002 i experienced being ‘waved away’ from several restaurants due to language issues no doubt. It hasn’t happened in a long time and i think those times are well behind us, not everywhere from what it seems.
This restaurant in Tsukiji Fish Market had gone one step further until after a flood of complaints last week they now welcome foreigners to their restaurant. Now it’s just time to get accepted into the rest of these here.
Image courtesy of Arudou Debito
Read Full Post »
Posted in Food on Jan 9th, 2008
There`s no problem getting decent meat in Japan and certainly no problem finding decent restaurants to eat in but when you feel like some meat and foods from back home it proves a little harder - enter The Meat Guy
10 years ago with a starting capital of USD$1000 The Meat Guy started bringing in meat and foods foreigners craved while in Japan and he was welcomed with open arms. The Meat Guy is a whole lot more than just a few meats these days, he brings in a wealth of options and he`s now incorporated in a Japanese company so he`s here to stay. The projected figures back in 2005 were USD$1.5 million so i’d say that was a pretty good investment he made back in 1997.
Whether you want meat for “yakiniku”, hard to get lamb, or Western-style cuts of steak The Meat Guy is the place to go. Delivery is quick too, place an order on the internet and expect to see it on your doorstep, C.O.D in only a few days time.
I`m yet to use the services of The Meat Guy but a few Friends from work have and say its every bit of what you expect. First purchase for me will include the Vili`s Pies and Sausage Rolls, add a convectional microwave from Yodobashi and it`s an expensive reminder of food from back home but one i`m more than willing to pay for.
Read Full Post »
