While friendships and taxes may be forever, value is fleeting. Yesterday while walking deeply northward into Kanda to revisit Yamaichi, I passed this place and was impressed by the spread of gaudy crap outside. I resolved to visit. At 35% the price and probably 50% more calories, Zuien is never going to be as exciting […]
cheap
- bar
- ...
All That Jazz, Arakicho (オール・ザット・ジャズ)
You have to admire courage and conviction. If you were a regular salaryman who liked drinking sake, would you get off the treadmill around age 40 to open a little bar in Arakicho with a focus on southern sake and a mild theme of 50’s memorabilia and pinup girls? No, you would not. But if […]
Brasserie Gus, Kagurazaka
If you can’t handle some self-satisfaction in a post, now’s a good time to stop reading. Today’s lunch, both format and destination, is so amusing that there’s sure to be smugness in the offing. After last Friday’s disastrous lunch in Iidabashi followed by a tantalizing walk in Kagurazaka, my longstanding regret at not being an […]
- Kanda
- ...
Kitchen Yutaka, Kanda (キッチン ユタカ)
Admit it. Sometimes we go to places for the wrong reasons. Today involved a bit of disgruntle – there was an Italian place that’s been on the list for months, but my boss delayed and delayed a meeting before finally canceling it. I got to the place at 1:45 and thought, phew, they’re open until […]
- Other treats
- ...
Harajima Liquors, Otaba (Okutama) (原島商店, 大丹波)
The Woodsman and I had a bit of a walk today. It’s a tourist special to take the train west from Shinjuku and go ‘hiking’ at Mt. Takao (where you have your choice of fully-paved road, cable car or chairlift to get you up and down), but in the same area there are plenty of […]
- Other treats
- ...
Iseya, Kichijoji (いせや)
After spending a long, long day in Kichijoji last summer, I didn’t feel a tremendous need to go back – not that it’s not nice, but it’s pretty far away. So imagine my surprise when a trip to my new friend Beach’s pottery exhibition and lecture east of Ikebukuro turned into an invitation to yakitori […]
Zero, Monzennakacho
Bike culture may not be for sale, but it is most certainly available for exhibition in the windows of recently-opened bars in middle-aged districts of Tokyo that cater to middle-aged men. This is a questionable strategy; there were some young customers in here that might have been lured in by the hip fixie in the […]
Popolare, Iidabashi
I like to admit when I make mistakes. I don’t like people who don’t admit when they made mistakes. I made a horrible mistake today, I feel a complete boob, and I want to apologize deeply and sincerely to Mayu, who suffered with me in this mistake. Sorry dude. For Japanese readers wondering about Mayu’s […]
Fujimura, Kiyosumi Shirakawa (藤村)
These lazy days of not working really agree with me, especially when they’re Wednesdays. It was getting late and I was on the way home from my epic wander around Sendagi and Nezu, but I saw this sweets store on a street near my house and stopped in. I’ve been in the area for quite […]
- Other treats
- ...
Gomentei ramen, Toyocho (御めん亭)
Several times in the past I’ve mocked the idea of ‘tough housing projects’ in eastern Tokyo. I haven’t gotten any comments telling me I was wrong (and once in a while I see the monthly crime reports on the local public access channel, and there’s nothing there), so I’ll continue with that. Unfortunately I’ve just […]