Japanese regional specialties are fraught – so many, so dull. I’m not even sure if zunda mochi are much of a specialty. Maybe we just thought they were famous because they occupied two whole pages in the travel magazine we bought in advance? Even if it was just a monthly promotion, it’s a good regional […]
cheap
- izakaya
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Tarafuku, Sendai (いろり酒場 たら福)
Leaving our date with tongue, we were forcibly reminded of our dietary wants. Where would one get soba that was not a traditional noodle of Japan? And in any case, we ignored that crap and headed right back to a warm and welcoming place that we saw when on recon patrol before dinner. We should […]
Nakasato, Matsushima (磯焼 なかさと)
We’ll start this trip with a cave, I think. Zuiganji is a nice enough temple, and really a must if you’re in Matsushima – there aren’t that many things to do other than cruise the bay. Unfortunately the harsh climate means it needs a lot of renovation, and right now it’s in one of those […]
- Other treats
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Tengen ramen, Machiya (天元)
Vacation. Ooooh, how we love it. For some reason it didn’t feel like vacation started until today; I think there was just too much excitement in the lead-up to Christmas. So don’t laugh, but faced with nothing to do for a day, what did I do? 3+ hours of exploring northeast Tokyo, with a lunch […]
- Other treats
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Fukuchan Ramen, Tsukiji
Fuku-chaaaaaan! Over the summer I started running more seriously again (I think I can now declare that I’ve stopped again; it’s been weeks. My knees almost feel normal.). While doing my Tsukiji route, I would go past Fukuchan, across Harumi Dori from the Tsukiji market. I was running at night, and the huge red neon […]
- Italian
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North Side Cafe, Shimo Kitazawa
An afternoon of walking Shimokita. Believe it or not, this was outside a music store. It sounds positively filthy, doesn’t it? In a way that’s dirty and yet mysterious, like some kink you’ve never heard of. Indeed. This is not where we ate dinner, but that’s not the subject of this post. The subject is […]
Daruma, Kiyosumi Shirakawa (だるま)
Weird stuff, my friends. As I was leaving work I realized that not only was I really hungry, but I was thinking “It’s good to be hungry. Maybe I’ll skip dinner.” That sort of thinking has got to stop, and since I needed to go to the rice store I decided to eat a bunch […]
- beer
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American, Shibuya
‘Tis the season, folks, and nothing says FESTIVE to me like a baby plastic tree in the stony lobby of a Shibuya-crossing mid-rise! Our merry crew was practically chorusing in the aisles as ve valtzed to the elevators for round 2 of this forget-the-year party. But hell, it got even better when we got upstairs! American […]
Kanako Hannosuke, Nihonbashi (金子半の助)
Full disclosure: Our assistant somehow picked up free lunch tickets for this place that opened mid-November. You may have noticed that I like trying new places? I like free things too. A lot. So do other folks. When You and I assayed this place last week, we found a good 20 of them in line, some of them […]
Bistro Le Midi, Kagurazaka
It’s truly a shame that I went to the best bistro first when I started this little Kagurazaka project; Le Midi might have seemed pleasant or even good-quality a few weeks ago. At this point, it’s just OK. The Provencal flourishes and wood on the exterior are cool though. And the sushi cooler on the […]