What's Bobby eating?

I just moved into my apartment and don't have a refrigerator, microwave or rice cooker yet, so I haven't started cooking. Mostly I rely on bentos from the conbini (convenience market) to keep me alive. But one of the great things about living in a new city is finding new places to eat!

Our table at a yakitori restaurant near the Oimachi train station. We were there for six hours and rushed back to the station to catch the last train home! The restaurant was in a narrow alley lined with tiny pubs. Inside it was decorated with natsukashii (nostalgic) Japanese pop culture memorabilia, which is common here and I love it.



A hot pot rice bowl from Churari, an Okinawan restaurant in Shibuya. This one is kalbi and kimchee (not very Okinawan I know!) and cost 880 yen. They also have a taco rice bowl, and by taco, I mean a Mexican taco, which is a very Okinawan dish.



Okonomiyaki at a restaurant in Ebisu. I think it's more fun when you cook it yourself, but then mine wouldn't of looked this good to eat.



500 yen bowl of green curry with chicken and eggplant from a booth at the Thai Festival in Yoyogi Park.



A deluxe bento from the basement food court under Tokyu Department Store in Shibuya station. It's pricer than the combini, but they have a huge selection of goodies.



The Ebi Filet-o at McDonald's! It's a shrimp sandwich and oh-so tasty!
(Youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TN9RKY9hXk)

Haisai from Okinawa!

"Haisai" is "hello" in the Okinawan language.

I'm now in Okinawa visiting family from my mother's side before I settle down in Tokyo. This is my sixth time here and I love Okinawa. My family lives in northern Okinawa in a city called Nago. Let me share a little bit about this island and its rich culture.

Okinawa is a beautiful island located between Japan and Taiwan. It was once called the Ryukyu Kingdom. The Kingdom was independent and had close ties with China before being invaded by Japan four hundred years ago. During World War II, a terrible battle was fought on the island with over 100,000 civilians killed -- many by Japanese soldiers or by suicide. My aunt was actually born in the middle of the fighting. I can't imagine how it must have been for my grandparents during that time. After the war, Okinawa was placed under the control of the U.S. government until 1972. Today, there is still a strong U.S. military presence on the island.

Okinawa prides itself on its unique culture. It has its own language, food, music and other traditions. Let's start with food!



Okinawan soba is one of the island's most popular dishes. We found this great place in Nago that makes its own soba noodles. Okinawan people love to eat pork. This bowl is topped with "souki" (stewed pork spare rib), "sanmai-niku" (stewed pork belly) and "kamaboko" (steamed fish cake, a kind of fish hot dog). This bowl cost 500 yen, about $5.



This funny looking vegetable is called "goya." It has a bitter taste that takes some getting used to, but once you learn to love it, you really love it!



Goya is commonly served in a stir fry dish called "goya champuru" with tofu and/or meat and egg and served with rice.



This nice lady is selling saataa andagi -- an Okinawan donut -- from a stand for 90 yen each, about 90 cents.



Andagi can be plain, with brown sugar or with sesame seeds.



This is beni imo ice cream. Beni imo is a purple potato. I tried to find Foremost brand ice cream but the super market only carried this one for 250 yen, about $2.50 for a small cup.

One interesting fact about Okinawan food is that there is a strong influence from American culture through the military. In addition to Foremost ice cream, Okinawa has A&W drive ins and tacos!

As for drinking, Okinawa is famous for it's own brand of beer called Orion and it's own sake called "awamori." A special kind of awamori is made with a snake in the jar called "habu sake." Habu is a poisonous snake indigenous to the Ryukyus and habu sake is said to pass along special powers to the drinker.


image credit: panduh

More cool Okinawan culture to follow!

Shabu Zen

What is the sound of thinly sliced beef swishing in boiling hot water? And if no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?

My second night in Tokyo I had dinner at Shabu Zen in Shibuya, an all-you-can-eat shabu shabu joint. Dinner starts at around $38 and goes up with higher quality of meat.

There are several Shabu Zen restaurants in Tokyo. This one is Shibuya is famous for being in the movie "Lost in Translation."

In Japanese, all-you-can-eat is called "tabe-houdai." And an all-you-can-eat buffet is called "viking."




After finishing up the shabu shabu meat, the broth is used to make a noodle soup.

LINK: Shabu Zen

Kogi BBQ in Little Tokyo

The taco truck is a definitive part of LA culture. And in this place where cultures intermix we discover that we can create something bold. A Mexican staple meets Korean flavor in a Japanese setting. This is our LA. This is the tale of the "two-hour taco" at the Japanese American National Museum.



For more info: www.kogibbq.com