Here we are in backwater Arkansas…I’ll let you figure out why. Certainly it was a neat experience, and one I hope to repeat as necessary (like a lather-rinse cycle, only this experience leaves you feeling a little dirty afterward). I was there with Solly and Earle, and since Earle is down with barbecue, and I […]
mid-price
Baker Bounce, Sangenjaya (ベーカーバウンス)
So I was just roaming around Sancha, waiting for a liquor store/bar to open at 12 so I could have a few drinks on my way to another appointment (this is what people do in Tokyo. Liquid lunches, all that.), and as I roamed a curious sight hove into view down an extremely typical and […]
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Café Schwarzenberg, Vienna
Once, in the dreadfully cold winter of 1743, an enormous black iceberg washed up on the shores of Wiener. It still looms large, nay, it hulks in the memory of Wieners, and to remember the horrific sight while also defusing some of its mystery, majesty, and mummery, the Guldraus family named their eponymous restaurant after it […]
Cafe Demel, Vienna
Were we excited to get to Demel? We were. Called by at least one seasoned observer the authority on Viennese cakes, this is the other famous one, and more appealing to me than the overtly touristed Sacher. It turns out to be almost as touristed, but they do a better job in atmosphere and service […]
- coffee
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Cafe Sacher, Vienna
Do I feel a little guilty engaging in the most touristy of pleasures? Why yes, I do. You know how much I like seeking out hidden gems, but when you’re traveling to a new city, that just isn’t an option – either you’re on your own, walking the streets, or else you’re looking at reviews […]
Konditorei Oberlaa, Vienna
Getting back to the whole ‘cafe’ thing, and more particularly the Konditorei or confectionery aspect of it, here’s Oberlaa. We saw this place on our first night, opposite the Christmas tree seller in Neuer Markt (and I love creatively misinterpreting German, so this makes me wonder where der Older Markt is). Then it turned out […]
- Other treats
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Abura Soba, Akasaka (油そば 東京油組総本店
Fattay, fattay, fattay. It had been a while since I ‘challenged’ the abura soba. I say ‘challenge’ in the Japanese way, meaning to try something new or perhaps distasteful. There’s nothing distasteful about this shop (except perhaps the pained expression of the guy looking at my camera), but I generally don’t see the need for […]
Yattai Soba Hachiman, Monzen Nakacho (屋台ソバ 八幡)
You just never know, you know? This place has been hanging around on one of the most boring streets in Monnaka, and I always thought it might be OK in that dumpy-but-delicious ramen way. I was put off by it being across from a chain fugu place, the kind with the sad fish swimming in […]
- 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’ […]
- 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 […]