Now it can be told, the sad tale of my last night on the town. More an afternoon, really. Any day that starts with ice cream for lunch and finishes by 8 at the 3rd restaurant deserves its own special naming convention. Big Bird is connected in convoluted and barely legal ways to the shady […]
Author: Jon
- izakaya
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Tokudawara, Kita Senju (徳多和良)
Really, Tabelog readers? Tokyo’s 6th best izakaya is a standing place in Kita Senju? Might as well find out (especially since we went to #2, 3, 4 and 5 in the last few weeks. Some were repeats. I disagree about #1, but it’s mostly an illustration of the broadness of the category.). We rolled up […]
- Other treats
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Kikuya, Kita Senju (菊や)
I used to ride my bike along the Arakawa almost every morning, and at some point I read about this place. Then it started bugging me to know that it was just over the levee. And like so many of these places, I finally gave in and found the time to go. ‘Found the time’ […]
- Kanda
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Shishi Uo, Kanda (すし魚)
It’s kinda dumb, right? Here I am, not working, and what do I do for lunch? I ride the charinko over to Kanda and have donburi with Todd. It’s also not that smart that I cruised up alongside a rightwing nutjob van, banged on the window and gave them the finger, but that’s what I […]
- Other treats
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Sakari, Sumiyoshi (らーめん屋 盛)
I’ve had this thing for Ganko ramen…pretty much since I met the guy who started the style 20+ years ago. It’s sort of like meeting someone who started Nouvelle Cuisine or whatnot. Now every time I see a bone outside, and a black sign, I get all jazzed up. This one is funny because they […]
Kushiya, Kiyosumi Shirakawa (KUSHIYA こぬた)
Thassit baby, kinjo-jiman. I don’t give a good goddam if it’s lower-class, it’s my home. We rolled around a lot on this balmy summer night, speculating on whether we would be caught in the rain. Eventually we ended up back at the original intention, where they seemed to have been saving seats for us. This […]
Mignonette, Iriya
You’ve noticed that photo-taking is an increasing hobby for me, right? It’s temporary and very low-stress, but I still spent 8 hours today cruising around – from Monnaka to Otemachi, Kasumigaseki to Kappabashi, Asakusa. Getting around, you know? Tokyo by bike is the best possible way to see it. At left, the fauna of Asakusa. […]
- bar
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Sakaoto, Yotsuya (日本酒BAR 酒音)
Someone’s on the go. Part two of our Arakicho adventure…honestly, it was part 4 after we walked out of the first two places without ordering. Finicky we are. This ‘Sakaoto’ place caught my eye on the first walk around the half-dozen blocks that make up Arakicho. It looked small, cute, maybe friendly, and after all […]
- bistro
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Bistro 18-ku, Arakicho
Aaaaaaarakicho. We finally made it here, months and months after starting to think it was worth a return visit. This was really the first time I’ve explored it seriously, and it turns out to be a ‘difficult’ neighborhood. The places that look good also look scary in the no-menu-no-prices way. Believe it or not, we […]
- Other treats
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Obana, Minami Senju (尾花)
Tokyo is on the march. Walking through this old, beat little part of Minami Senju on dead hot, overcast August days. Riding bikes, converging from all directions. To wait in line. In the rain. In a LOT of rain. Actually, my fault entirely, we arrived only 25 minutes before opening time. That meant we were […]