Asterix has been around for positively yonks. Even after going, I’m not sure if I’ve been before or not – it’s very possible that I went once, back in that halcyon month known as September 2004 when I had just moved to Japan and everything was fresh and exciting (except for work, which was a […]
Month: April 2010
Kikkon, Otemachi (吉っ今)
Somehow I got it into my head that this place was good…as soon as we got out of the elevator (Sankei Building, 6th floor, watch out because you need to take the one labeled ‘goes to 6th floor’) and saw the crowd barrier dividing the big entry hall and the poster-sized menu from which you […]
Yoshimaru Ramen, Yaesu (由丸)
It’s not that I wanted to eat Hakata ramen two days in a row. But a note to late diners everywhere – 3 PM is just too late for lunch. Most places will be closed, except those places that stay open all day, which is going to get you into a lot of chains. The […]
Marukin, Monzennakacho (丸金)
Why is it that some places sit right near my apartment and never get ‘the nod’? In the case of Marukin, it’s because it looks so spartan from the outside, or that’s what I thought. Why was I opposed to that? I’m not usually. And it was more clean and spacious than spartan, and I […]
- izakaya
- ...
Tsugaru, Kashiwa (つがる)
Well, Tsugaru looked great on the web. Maybe it’s the photos they used, but I expected a lot from this place. It turned out well in the end. But first, I was disappointed when I stopped by in the afternoon before opening – the exterior is tiny, plain, and very much in keeping with its […]
- Other treats
- ...
Yataichi, Kashiwa (やたいち、柏)
Quirky is pretty much always good in Japan, especially when the quirk focuses on food and drinks. I wasn’t sure about Yataichi based on what I could see on the interwebz, but it’s a real winner in person. The quirk starts with the door, which is no more than 4 feet high and will have […]
- izakaya
- ...
Yoshiharu West, Kashiwa (吉春、柏)
Kashiwa is a bit out there, to the northwest, but worth a late-afternoon trip since there are a bunch of nice-looking izakayas scattered about the town. It’s surprisingly big, having a Takashimaya, Marui and various other department stores; clearly a major outlying town and one of the bigger in Chiba. First on the agenda was […]
- beer
- ...
Belg Aube, Roppongi
Peafowl, rain, beer. One of the staff was outside soliciting business, we didn’t say no. I asked ‘How late are you open?’, he said ‘Oh, until morning. Well, until 5.’ That’s Roppongi. I’ve been here a bunch of times before in various companies, but for some reason it hasn’t resulted in a post. Just imagine […]
- Other treats
- ...
Ichi, Roppongi (いち)
Not exactly what I was expecting, getting a recommendation for a very nice course kappou place in the back of Roppongi from Koala, who I always think of as a Korean / Chinese / hotpot specialist. But very nice it was indeed, and along with several peafowl I enjoyed it very much. This place is under-reported […]
Santoka Ramen, Nihonbashi (山頭火、八重洲)
Everything came up aces today – I was carrying my camera in anticipation of dinner with the Peafowl, and decided that You was the kind of guy who wouldn’t make a big deal out of it if I started taking pictures of noodles. The ramen, in the Asahigawa style from Hokkaido, turned out to be pretty […]