Tokyo Cheap Eats – Tsukiji Market’s Tomiena トミーナ

Tomiena

Tsukiji Market feeds many of the workers (said to up to 30,000 workers come here) and naturally they are not going to want to eat sushi everyday. Tomiena is a seafood restaurant known for its pasta with topped with fresh seafood.

Chuo-ku, Tsukiji 5-2-1, Building #1

Phone: 03-5565-3737

http://gourmet.livedoor.com/restaurant/18312/ (in Japanese)

Tokyo Cheap Eats – Tsukiji Market’s Yoshinoya

Yoshinoya

Yoshinoya is a popular fast-food chain famous for its gyudon, thin slices of beef cooked with onions and a sweet soy sauce are ladled over a bowl of rice. A branch of Yoshinoya is in New York City on 42^nd Street. The first shop in the chain dates back to 1899 and was located near Nihonbashi. It moved here to Tsukiji with the move of the market.

Chuo-ku, Tsukiji 5-2-1 Building #1

Phone: 03-5550-8504

www.yoshinoya.com/shop/tsukiji/index.html (Japanese)

Kawagoe – A Day Trip from Tokyo to Little Edo

Kawagoe Clock Tower

Ken Belson in the New York Times pens a great article on the city of Kawagoe which is just about an hour north of Tokyo. This is a great day trip and my favorite shop in the city is a knife shop, Machikan. I believe it is a seventh generation shop. We have a few knives which we have purchased here and are thrilled with them.

http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/09/06/travel/06dayout.html

Tokyo Cheap Eats – Oedo Kaitenzushi 大江戸回転寿し

Ooedo Kaitenzushi

Ooedo Kaitenzushi

As a fishmonger, Shinji is always craving sushi. There are many ranks of restaurants, even within the kaitenzushi (revolving sushi). Ooedo Kaitenzushi came highly recommended for its variety of fresh fish at a reasonable price. Ooedo has several locations throughout the city. This one is near Okachimashi, just south of Ueno station and near the boisterous Ameyoko market.

Shirako

Assorted Sushi

Assorted Sushi

Ooedo Kaitenzushi – Okachimachi Kitaguchi Ten

Taito-ku, Ueno 6-2-1

Phone: 03-5812-2097

www.ooedo.co.jp

Osechi Ryori – Japanese New Year’s Day Cuisine おせち料理

Osechi Sample at Depachika

I wrote this article for bento.com on the components of osechi ryori, the traditional cuisine eaten on New Year’s Day in Japan.

http://www.bento.com/fexp-osechi.html (text follows)

Of all the annual holidays in Japan, the New Year (o-shogatsu) is often spoken of as the “most Japanese” of celebrations. With a history reaching back a thousand years, the traditional New Year’s celebration is sprinkled with symbolism, and that symbolism is particularly evident in typical New Year’s food.

“Osechi ryori” is what most people in Japan eat at the beginning of the new year. Regardless of how many times you splurge at Nobu, osechi isn’t something you’ll ever find on a Japanese menu. Its time and place are the first few days in January, in the Japanese home.

Osechi ryori was originally a way for housewives (and their families) to survive the first several days of the New Year, when stores throughout Japan were closed. The foods that make up osechi can be prepared in advance and then sit out in a cool area for a few days without spoiling. Most often everything is placed in compartmentalized lacquer boxes that are stacked in layers.

Today most osechi is purchased – either at department stores or at local supermarkets. Prices start at under Y10,000 (for portions that will feed a few people for at least three days), but it’s also possible to spend literally a hundred times that amount (the equivalent of US $10,000). The high-end osechi food is made by famous chefs (or more likely, famous restaurants), and – typical of Japanese custom – is limited in production. High-priced department stores like Takashimaya start taking orders for osechi in late October, and often the most popular varieties sell out within a few days.

Many of the food items represent prosperity, good fortune and health. (Unfortunately, regardless of how much osechi I’ve eaten I haven’t seemed to have gotten any smarter, richer, or more industrious.) The basic components are the same, but regional differences are reflected in the sweetness or saltiness of the flavoring and the use of local ingredients.

One thing to keep in mind when looking at osechi is that presentation is very important. You may notice a pleasing balance of colors. What may be harder to notice, though, is the efficiency with which each layer is packed. The more elaborate osechi will have vegetables arranged in ornate designs, representing seasonal shapes such as pine cones and plum flowers.

Osechi-ryori components:

Kazunoko (herring roe) – tiny yellow fish eggs. Like the tobiko you often find at sushi restaurants, kazunoko have a bite or crunch to them, however, the eggs are not loose. They are marinated in a broth of dashi, sake and soy sauce.

Kuromame (black beans) are soft and quite sweet, although you may notice a bit of soy sauce flavoring.

Gomame (also known as tazukuri) are small sardines that have been dried and then finished in a sweet sauce of sugar, mirin, soy sauce and sake. These are rich in calcium and yes, you can eat the head.

Kombumaki are nothing more than the umami-rich kombu rolled tightly and bound shut with a ribbon of gourd strip (kampyo). Often kombumaki are stuffed with salmon. This is also cooked slowly in dashi, mirin, sugar, and soy sauce.

Datemaki looks like the tamago-yaki (egg custard) you often find in a bento box, but here it’s made with a fish paste and has a sponge-like texture. It’s quite sweet.

Sweet potatoes and chestnuts are the base of kurikinton, which can look something like yellow mashed potatoes.

Kamaboko, a dense cake of fish paste, is red and white (traditional New Year’s colors). You can often find thin slices of this on your soba.

Another red-and-white food you’ll find is called namasu - typically daikon and carrots pickled in vinegar.

For vegetables, look for gobo (burdock root), often dressed with sesame. Also lotus root, carrots, shiitake mushrooms and pea pods.

Konnyaku (devil’s-tongue starch) and fu (wheat gluten) will also be sprinkled throughout the stacked boxes.

For seafood, shrimp (representing long life) and sea bream (for auspicious fortune) are most typical.

 

ACCJ Journal Restaurant Review – Nihonbashi Yukari

2002 Iron Chef Winner - Kimio Nonaga

My first restaurant review for the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan Journal on my favorite kaiseki restaurant, Nihonbashi Yukari.

http://accjjournal.com/nihonbashi-yukari/ (text follows)

If it’s good enough for the emperor, it’s good enough for me. Third generation Kimio Nonaga of Nihonbashi Yukari recently catered an event at the Imperial Palace for a meeting between the emperor and prime minister Yukio Hatoyama. Chef Nonaga captured the attention of foodies in 2002 upon winning the Iron Chef trophy at the tender age of twenty-nine. While he grew up in his family’s restaurant, he trained for seven years in Kyoto’s renowned Kikunoi under the tutelage of Chef Yoshihiro Murata. Murata is the author of the gorgeous book “Kaiseki,” published by Kodansha International.

Nihonbashi Yukari is just minutes from Tokyo Station’s Yaesu exit. The entrance to the restaurant, elegant and simple, is a stark contrast to the cheap restaurants and office buildings that crowd the area. Inside you are warmly greeted by kimono clad waitresses and are transported to an oasis. The inside is the classic sukiya style of wood and paper shoji screens. In the basement are private rooms for intimate dinners and groups. Diners range in age from young to old, and at lunchtime well-heeled ladies populate the space.

The best seats are at the counter, where you can watch the chef create cold dishes. Hot dishes are prepared in the kitchen. And, if you speak Japanese, Chef Nonaga will share with you the seasonal ingredients.

Nihonbashi Yukari is renowned for serving classic kaiseki cuisine composed of seasonal ingredients presented exquisitely over several courses. And great thought is put into pleasing the customer; for example, if it is a cold day your first course will be a warm dish.

The menu changes daily, depending on what Chef Nonaga has picked up that morning at Tsukiji Market. He is also a big proponent of local produce. No two meals are ever the same – and here is the challenge of suggesting favorite dishes.

The sashimi course is always a highlight. Chef Nonaga cuts the fish different in thicknesses or scores the flesh to create the best texture. I still remember fondly a creamy shirako (fish sperm sac) with a ponzu dressing and an owan (soup) dish of seasonal fish dusted with rice flour and deep-fried until crispy and served in a savory, thickened broth.

 

Chef Nonaga takes an unusual interest in creating original desserts, often based on Japanese ingredients. Kinako (roasted soybean powder) ice cream studded with black beans, or a cheesecake made with sake lees are just two examples of his creativity. The chef also has an original mugishochu and beer, both that are perfect beverage partners for his cuisine. There is also a nice selection of Japan wines on hand.

One of the great delights of Nihonbashi Yukari is that it is open for lunch, unusual for many kaiseki restaurants. Call ahead and reserve the bento box, as the number prepared each day is limited. For classic Japanese cuisine Nihonbashi Yukari is among the top in the city. If you go, tell him Yukari sent you.

Nihonbashi Yukari

Chuo-ku, Nihonbashi 3-2-14

03-3271-3436

http://www.nihonbashi-yukari.com/

closest stations: Nihonbashi and Tokyo station Yaesu exit

closed Sunday and holidays

Tokyo Cheap Eats – Ivan Ramen

Ivan Orkin of Ivan Ramen

There are many great ramen shops in Tokyo, but if I had to pick only one to send my friends to it would be Ivan Ramen. The first Westerner to bravely, and successfully, open a ramen shop in Japan. Ivan, a native New Yorker, is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and honed his skills at some of the best restaurants in NYC, including Lutece with master chef Andre Soltner.

Shio (salt) Ramen

The basic ramen has a well-balanced broth made from chicken and dashi stock with hand-made noodles.

Tan Tan Mazemen

Ivan also does original dishes, usually on a seasonal (limited) basis. These “genteihin” are where he shines. This tan tan mazemen was one of my favorites. At the moment he is doing a Mexican tacos mazemen.

If you go, tell him Yukari sent you!

Ivan Ramen

Setagaya-ku, Minamikarasuyama 3-24-7

Phone: 03-6750-5540

www.ivanramen.com

Tokyo Bargain Dining – Nihonbashi Yukari

Iron Chef Kimio Nonaga

I am often queried for good but affordable restaurants in Tokyo. One of my favorites for lunch is Nihonbashi Yukari with 2002 Iron Chef winner Kimio Nonaga. The basic lunch starts at about 2,000 JPY (around $20 USD). If you want to splurge, the Yukari bento, an uspcale bento, is about 3,675 JPY (about $35 USD).

Yukari Bento

Here is the Yukari bento, a large meal, complete with tempura, sashimi, a simmered dish, and more.

Nihonbashi Yukari Lunch

This is a basic lunch of a grilled fish, side dish, pickles, rice, and miso soup.

Nihonbashi Yukari is a short distance from Tokyo station, and very close to Takashimaya department store. Chef Kimio Nonaga is often behind the counter.

Dinner is also quite reasonable for kaiseki cuisine. I believe it starts at about 10,000 JPY. If you go, tell him Yukari sent you!

Nihonbashi Yukari 日本橋ゆかり

Chuo-ku, Nihonbashi 3-2-14 中央区日本橋 3-2-14

03-3271-3436

http://www.nihonbashi-yukari.com/

Kappabashi Gotta Gets

Shochu Cups

I love these shochu cups in the winter when I drink shochu with hot water. These have the type of base ingredient written on the cup 芋 for imo jochu (sweet potato shochu) or　黒糖 for kokuto jochu (brown sugar shochu).

Teacups

These teacups will get lots of use in any home. The cup on the far right has different types of sushi drawn on the cup. The second from the write, the white cup with blue calligraphy, has the popular types of fish written on it, as could be found at sushi restaurants.

Lacquer Bowls

These lacquer bowls are most often used for miso soup but we also love them for serving ice cream.

Natto Bowl and Chopsticks

For natto (fermented soybean) lovers this bowl and chopsticks are indispensable. Natto is put into the bowl and stirred up with special chopsticks that bring out the slippery and slimy texture of the natto.

Kappabashi Gotta Gets

Refrigerator Sushi Magnets

 

Kappabashi is filled with treasures, gadgets, and tools for anyone passionate about cooking. These refrigerator sushi magnets are always fun gifts.

Iron Tea Pots

Iron tea pots are said to soften the water that result in tea that is round on the palate. These sturdy pots retain heat and are gorgeous on any table. Some do rust easily so they are a little bit high maintenance but worth it for anyone who drinks a lot of tea.

Ceramic Rice Cookers - Donabe

I love the results of my ceramic rice cooker. The aroma of the rice is better than rice cooked in electric rice cookers. And, the best part is that if cooked properly, there is a lovely “okoge” or charred crust that develops on the bottom of each pot. Before you purchase ask about the sizes. The smallest ones cook two cups of rice which is good for one or two people, but if you are cooking for a larger group you will want to invest in a larger size pot.

Chopstick Rests - Hashioki

These lovely chopstick rests (hashioki) brighten up any table. Sizes and shapes run the spectrum. Best of all, there are seasonal varieties which keep me coming back to see what I can add to my collection.