Saturday in Tokyo

Yesterday began with a nice light breakfast in our hotel.  Steven can be seen here posing in front of the "living wall."  It's always nice to be surrounded by some greenery.

We had a busy day planned, and didn't lollygag for long.  Instead, we headed for the Hibiya line of Roppongi station, which took us directly to 中目黒 (Nakameguro), which is a really cool fashionable district of Tokyo, and also where I lived for a little under a year of my time in Japan. 

Steven shot me above in my Uniqlo jacket, (which has really been nice this trip) with the Meguro river and cherry blossom trees in the background.  During cherry blossom season in the springtime, these trees are in full bloom and it is really a sight to see.

We couldn't come to Nakameguro without a stop in at Coeur et Coeur, a little cafe along the river, where I spent many evenings after a long day at work, sipping chamomile tea and chatting with Junko, the owner appearing above between me and Steven, as well as Ushi, the owner of the building and a regular customer.  Junko-san was pretty floored when Steven and I appeared at the door, and we spent some time chatting and catching up.

As a treat, Ushi brought us down some 味付け玉 (aji tsuke tamago), or, marinated/seasoned eggs, which we enjoyed as a snack.  Check out that orange yolk!!

Afterward, we were off to lunch at Browny, a highly rated Japanese curry spot that Steven had found for us online.

The curry at Browny, shown above, was rich and spicy, topped with cheese (actually not common in Japan), and served with a green salad with sesame dressing.  This curry was simmered, then baked in the oven and was quite good.

After lunch, we wandered around a bit, then I played golf at Pebble Beach.  Well, okay, not the real Pebble Beach, but we stumbled upon a bar that had a golf simulation screen, where for 1,000 yen, you could play for 30 minutes.  I got in nine holes, while Steven enjoyed a beverage and made an excellent caddy.

Following the golf outing, we headed to a Japanese microbrewery that Steven had read about and wanted to check out.  He had a sampling of three small beers, and we hung out for a bit before heading back to the hotel and freshening up for dinner.

For dinner on Saturday, we met up with a friend of ours who lives in Tokyo, Ryo and his wife Masami.

The four of us grabbed dinner at an aptly named 串焼き (kushi yaki), grilled things on a stick, place called "Meatman."  We feasted on grilled skewers of meat and veggies, washed down with cold beer and some excellent cold sake.

After dinner, Steven, Ryo and I headed to a few different bars for some drinks and Masami took a taxi home.  

It ended up being a late night out, and it was somewhere between 3:30 and 4:00 am by the time we got back to the hotel.

Sushi Time!

Wow, okay...it has cretainly been a busy 24 hours here in Tokyo.  

Steven and I are now on the 新幹線(Shinkansen), or bullet train, headed to an 温泉 (onsen) hot spring in 熱海 (Atami) which is about an hour away from Tokyo.

Two nights ago, on Friday, after our tea tasting, we went to a very cool sushi place that Steven had found in Ginza.  The place was called かくとう (Kakutou), which was the name of the sushi chef, and was highly acclaimed on Tabelog, a website that rates food establishments, not unlike Yelp.

Our meal started with two or three courses of zensai, or appetizers, to whet the palette prior to the おまかせ (omakase) sushi tasting, where everything is left to the chef.

Just some little bowls of vegetables and fish, lightly marinated or cooked.  After that, we were onto the sushi.  

Piece by piece, Kakutou-san laid out some fanastically fresh fish.  All of it was simply prepared, and expertly cut, sometimes topped with a bit of salt, garnish or yuzu, and sometimes just the fish.  Though I am tempted to include all of the photos (which Kakutou-san was okay with me taking), I will just display a few of the all-stars, including this beautiful toro (fatty tuna), shima aji (horse mackerel) and uni (sea urchin).  

After having some 寿司茶 (sushi-cha) green tea special for sushi restaurants, Steven I headed out, our stomachs full and souls content.  This had been a great sushi experience!

It had been a long day and we were beat, but not too tired to stop by Propaganda in the Roppongi district for a quick drink.  This was actually the first bar I had ever visited in Tokyo, and not much had changed since way back then.

Wow, this was a quick Shinkansen ride....we are in Atami already!  I will write more later, but it's time to get off the train.

A Day in Tokyo

After getting back to the hotel from Tsukiji, I met up with Steven, who had finished his work for the week, and we headed to lunch in the fashionable area of Aoyama.  Here is a pic of me in front of the Prada building, a pretty cool architectural feat.

Steven and I decided to have とんかつ (tonkatsu) for lunch, which is pork that has been lightly breaded and fried.  We checked out Maisen, one of the more popular spots in Tokyo.  I opted for the 黒豚ロス (kurobuta rosu) which is a black-foot premium pork, sirloin cutlet.

As shown above, it I served with as much cabbage as you can eat, rice, おしんこ (oshinko) or Japanese pickles and 豚汁 (tonjiru), a miso soup with daikon, carrots and bits of pork. 

It is also served with a tonkatsu sauce, and I was given a special one made with apples, to compliment the kurobuta pork.  Somehow, with the crunchy fatty pork, crisp and fresh cabbage with a squeeze of lemon, and rich miso-based broth and sour pickles, everything blends together really well in a tonkatsu symphony of taste and texture.  This is usually the case in Japanese cuisine - every ingredient and accompaniment has a place and serves a purpose, not only in presentation and taste, but also for overall balance.

After lunch, we walked around the Omotesando district, a fashionable neighborhood bordering Aoyama.  The Lexus IS300 Hybrid was on display, and Steven can be seen admiring from the passenger's side (reversed in Japan).  Anyway, a really cool automobile.

We walked around a bit more, checked out some cool cafés, including this one which had a nice indoor/outdoor vibe, and I enjoyed a nice refreshing iced tea with yuzu (Japanese citrus fruit).

We strolled around the area a bit more, until about 5:00 pm, then took the train over to an area called Kachidoki to check out a bar Steven had read about.

Steven is shown entering かねます, a small standing bar that is a local favorite, but also known to international chefs like the one from elBulli in Spain.  Shown below are the few dishes we tried as appetizers, as we were to have sushi for dinner a few hours later.  First was the uni, or sea urchin, wrapped in Japanese beef; quite decadent.  And the foie gras and matsutake mushroom dish was also really nice.  We met a Japanese couple (actually, more appeared to be a man and his mistress), who were interested and curious why two gaijin (foreigners) were in this somewhat out of the way locals spot and speaking Japanese.  They were kind enough to give us a taste of the grilled ふぐ (fugu) pufferfish that they ordered.  Really tasty, and shown below while still on the open flame charcoal grill.

 

Following our "snack" at Kanemasu, we headed over to Ginza to walk around a bit before dinner.  I had also wanted to check out a tea tasting that the guy had told me about earlier when I bought my tea in Tsukiji.  It was the 11th anniversary of the うおがし (Uogashi) tea company, and to celebrate, they were holding a tasting where for 700円, or around $7, you could taste a bunch of their best teas, paired with little snacks.  I was not hungry at all at this point, but really wanted to try the tea.  

We tried everything from the 抹茶 (matcha), which is ground and steamed high-quality tea traditionally used for ceremonies but now more commonly served, to the 玉露 (gyo kuro), the finest and most prized of all Japanese teas, shade grown and very delicate, it imparts an intense, deep flavor of rich and full umami, almost tasting of the ocean.  Steven was set back on his heels when experiencing the intensity of this tea, as was I.  The gyokuro we tried sells for about $100 for 25 grams.

Each tea was served in a different type of cup, including this antique bone china one below which was super thin and really cool.  Evidently, they were from the personal collection of the owner and not for sale.

Okay ragazzi, there is more to come, including our Ginza sushi adventure, bit now I need to shower and get ready for a big day ahead...a presto!!

Tea time at Tsukiji!?

This morning I went and checked out the 築地市場 (Tsukiji Shijo) fish market.  The picture above is the building that sits atop Roppongi Station, where I had to enter to get to the subway line that would take me to the market.

Completed around 2001, it is called Roppongi Hills, a massive development by Mori Building, probably the largest building owner in Tokyo.  

The project encompasses hundred of thousands of square feet of office space (Japan HQ of Goldman Sachs and other prominent firms), high-end retail, restaurants and residential.  

It took years to amass the land from more than 1,000 different owners of small parcels in the area.  It is impressive and probably the most significant real estate development in Tokyo in decades.

Getting on the metro and finding your way around can be a bit confusing.  Even an old pro like me was a bit rusty.  I bought a ticket for the Hibiya line, when I needed to buy one for the Oedo line instead.  No big deal, I just got a refund and was on my way.

築地 (Tsukiji) is known for the fish market and some great little restaurants including 大和 (Daiwa) shown above, where I had the best sushi I have eaten in my life with my brother, way back in 2000.  You can see the people lined up at 10:00 am, as they had been for hours.  For about 3,500円, or $35, you can get a really nice breakfast with a good amount of the freshest fish you will taste...washed down with a cold draught beer is about the most perfect meal I can imagine.

But this time, I wasn't at Tsukiji for fish.  It is also a really good place to buy tea.  

I had a really nice tea time with 松源さん (Matsugen-san), who worked at the shop called しゃん (Sean), and the gentleman dressed in black, who was buying fish for his eight-seat sushi restaurant in 双子玉川 (Futagotamagawa), not far from where I lived when I was in Yokohama for a year.  

Matsugen-san poured me some 緑茶 (ryokucha) green tea, which I was a bit skeptical of before trying because of its pale color.  I am accustomed to high quality tea with more flavor having a deeper green color.  He quickly, and in a really nice way, disabused me of the false notion, and even brought out the above pamphlet to illustrate why a more yellowish colored tea can actually indicate higher quality.  

It has to do with the leaves opening more slowly, and diffusing flavor over time.

Anyway, after a few more cups and some great conversation with these guys about tea and sushi (two of my very favorite things), I made some purchases then walked around the market a bit more.

There are so many tourists, it can be disrespectful to get up in the shopkeepers' grill with cameras, so I tried to keep the photos to a minimum.

I did get this one of a speciality shop selling all different kinds of cooked egg, plain or filled with anything from fish or chicken to vegetables.

For 160円 (about $1.60), I bought a small rolled up egg to taste.  This is the same type of egg that is sold at sushi restaurants, called 玉子 (tamago).  A bit sweet, a bit fishy, it definitely has a distinct taste all of its own.

It seems that most shops in Tsukiji specialize in one thing, egg as an example.  The guy selling shrimp is only selling shrimp, etc.  This generally holds true throughout Japan, where someone or a family will master a craft over decades and have a store or restaurant dedicated to and specializing solely in that one thing.  This is something that I really admire about Japan and the Japanese, their "stick-to-it-ness" for lack of a better term.  If I am buying tea, or eating yakitori, I want to do it at the place where they are specializing in the trade.

I asked a shop owner if I could snap one of this ice chest full of wasabi plants (roots?), surely about to make their way to sushi restaurants across Tokyo, before being ground fresh and served.

Okay ragazzi, that's all for now.  Steven is down with his work obligations and we are going to head out for lunch.  A presto!!

おはようございます and Show me the Money!

おはようございます！That's ohayogozaimasu, or good morning!

Well, it is just before 8:00 am and I am about to head out for the day.  I had a minor fiasco last night that made me feel like a Japan rookie and travel rookie in general.

Basically, I couldn't get my ATM card to work at any of the banks.  Wells Fargo had issued me a temporary card that was still good through 2016, and I informed them that I would be traveling in Japan.  

No problem....!  Except it was.  The card wouldn't work anywhere, and four customer service calls later, still no good.

Fortunately, Visa saved me.  I was able to set up a pin and get a cash advance so that I could use my credit card to withdraw cash from 7-11, and also as a normal card to make purchases.  So, big thumbs up for Visa, big thumb up somewhere not pleasant for Wells Fargo. Booooo....

Anyway, on a lighter note, I had a nice breakfast in the hotel this morning, and pretty healthy too.  Pictured above is rice congee with some pickled sea vegetables, cilantro, dried plum and chicken, a salad with a bunch of sea vegetables (kelp/seaweed), a "potage" soup and some Ceylon tea.  

I also had another shot of one of my favorite skewers from last night, of 鶏皮 (torikawa) chicken skin.  It was served with 七味 (shichimi) or seven spice, which you can buy at a Japanese grocery store back home, and a side of homemade miso paste.  If this irks you at all (I can't imagine it would, chicken skin is pretty tame), you might have been more bothered by what I noticed on the chalkboard of specials, which was 鯨ベーコン (kujira bacon) whale bacon 🐳. 

Ummm.....at least it wasn't dolphin?  I've heard Japanese refer to whales as the cockroaches of the sea, in defense of their harvesting of these animals.  I wonder if a cockroach is the whale of the land.  Is tuna still chicken of the sea?

I digress.

The yakitori here is really unparalleled.  There are a bunch of yakitori places in the Bay Area, new ones popping up all the time.  If these pictures are making you hungry and not squeamish, I would say that ゆづき (Yuzuki)  in the Mission and 一服 (Ippuku) in Berkeley are the most authentic and would steer clear of the rest.  Ippuku is really the closest it comes to Japan....IMHO.

Anyway, off now for a fun filled day in Tokyo...will be sure to bring my camera.

Ciao ragazzi and good evening!  Happy trick or treating :).

Okaerinasai!

Okay ragazzi, I made it to Tokyo, and stayed up until 10 pm and now am officially knackered.  Notwithstanding, I said I was going to blog, so I must fulfil my promise and do that before I crash!

I'm surely not the first who has posted a picture of the above sign, and will not be the last.  This sign, that greets you as you descend to baggage claim at Narita airport, says おかえりなさい (Okaerinasai) in Japanese, and Welcome to Japan in English.  There is a slight nuance, because the Japanese version translates "Welcome back," meaning that if you are reading that, you most likely have been to Japan before and are being welcomed home, whereas the English version is meant for first timers.  Anyway, it was a nice familiar sight to see upon my arrival.

After a quick shower and change of clothes at the hotel, I headed out for some yakitori.  Steven had a work dinner tonight, and we won't meet up until tomorrow so I was on my own.

I opted to go to a little divey place near my old office, where this guy has been grilling meats for over 30 years, and was gracious enough to let me snap a photo of him in action.

You can tell that this is a man who knows what he is doing and is comfortable with flame.  And it certainly showed, as the meat was fantastic.

Shown above is もも肉 (momo niku) chicken thigh, ぎんなん (ginnan) ginkgo nuts, ピマン (piman) green bell pepper and シシト (shishito) padron peppers.  These were all lightly seasoned with salt, and washed down with a Kirin draft.

Following that came a barrage of タレ (tare) sauce yakitori, which included つくね (tsukune) ground chicken, some more もも肉 thigh meat and also レバー (reba) liver, which was actually pork and not chicken.  Shown below was a delicious 手羽 (teba) chicken wing with some spices.  All grilled to perfection and delicious!

After dinner, I cruised around the old workplace neighborhood, which was a bit nostalgic, especially when passing this cafe where I would get my morning coffee and sometimes have clandestine meetings with my girlfriend at the time, who worked at the same company.

Okay ragazzi, going on about 24 hours here without sleep, so I will leave you with this last pic of the remote control toilet flusher in my hotel, with varying washing, blowing, drying capabilities depicted.  Enjoy!

Arrived in 東京！

Haha, just kidding.  I haven't yet left.  This is just a photo from outside of a small, dubious sushi shop in the international terminal at SFO.  I did not eat there, just snapped a quick photo.

And now, I am waiting to board my EconomyPlus bulkhead seat on this behemoth of an airplane.

It has been ten years since I left Japan after living there for 3.5 years, and more than five years since my last visit.

I would be lying if I said that I am not more than a little bit excited about this trip.  

There is a lot going on back in SF, and there will be when I return and always.  

That said, this little six day get away should be a lot of fun, and I am really looking forward to seeing and experiencing Tokyo again.  I am sure that a lot has changed there as they are always building and developing the city.  Also, Japan is old-school, and a lot has undoubtedly stayed the same.

Here's to visiting some old haunts and new haunts, but probably no haunted houses (though I arrive on Halloween).  Nevertheless, there should be lots of fun and interesting things to report, and I shall do my best to keep record and report back to you guys.

Here we go...off to Tokyo!