Shinkansen Ekiben at Tokyo Station
My schedule on this Tokyo trip was tight right up to the end, so there was just no time for a proper meal. It was already mealtime when I got on the Shinkansen, and since they don’t sell a decent bento o…
My schedule on this Tokyo trip was tight right up to the end, so there was just no time for a proper meal. It was already mealtime when I got on the Shinkansen, and since they don’t sell a decent bento o…
In Japan, lots of shops sell something called fukubukuro at the start of the year, which you could translate as “lucky bags.” They stuff a paper bag with all kinds of things and sell it for around …
I took advantage of the New Year holidays to pop over to Tokyo for a bit. I was planning to see friends I hadn’t seen in a while, do some shopping and hit some good restaurants, but almost every place wo…
Maknae Hoe Center in Singil-dong is an old regular haunt of mine. Though I can’t really call myself a regular, since I don’t manage to go that often. I wanted sandfish, a winter delicacy, and while…
This is my second time at Il Cipriani. I don’t usually go back to the same restaurant twice, but this place is handy whenever I have plans near Jongno, so I ended up visiting again. It’s easy to ge…
I heard that Payard, the famous dessert shop from New York’s Upper East Side, had opened on the 6th floor of the Shinsegae department store’s flagship in Myeongdong, so I went to check it out. (App…
It was a short trip, but here are photos of the places I dropped into in Osaka. Rikuro Ojisan’s cheesecake Rikuro Ojisan’s cheesecakes always have a long line, but you can also eat one right away …
Lotus root tempura Nice and crisp. It’s not quite the skill of a top tempura house, but every dish is good. By this point I think I get this place’s style: I’d call it casual kaiseki that us…
I’d heard there was a pretty good Japanese restaurant in Shinsaibashi, the heart of Osaka’s nightlife — think Kabukicho in Tokyo — so I went to check it out. It had been a while since I’d see…
Todaiji I was dying to know what the Great Buddha inside would look like. The walk in… The Nio guardian at the entrance It’s one of those giant guardian figures I’d seen so often in manga…
Even though it isn’t far from Osaka, for some reason I’d never been to Nara until now. I wasn’t all that interested, to be honest. This time I got the chance to look around. Seeing it in pers…
As soon as we sat down, they brought out matcha and a sweet rice-cake-like treat called warabimochi. I guess it’s meant for us to enjoy before the food arrives. Matcha Judging from the so-so aroma, I do…