As much as I love being on east coast time here on the west coast, I find something weird and just plain wrong about getting up before the sun has risen. It strikes me as inherently unnatural, like fluorescent green pistachio ice cream or the tuck rule in football. I mean, there's "early" and then…
December 20, 2012: Your Handy Wildebeest Guide!
Last night, Akemi and I met up with Simon and Sean for dinner at a restaurant I've been eager to check out for quite some time: Wildebeest. According to the restaurant's website, its focus is on "Meat-centric, off-cut farmhouse fare simply prepared with immaculate ingredients and thoughtful creativity", reminiscent of L.A.'s Animal and Toronto's Black Hoof, two…
December 5, 2012: Culinary creations! Bubba hanging out!
The other day, I received THIS in the mail - No, not the pug. Or the Japanese girlfriend. Or the Japanese girlfriend's Dalmatian slippers [note: no actual dalmatians were hurt in the manufacturing of said slippers]. I refer, of course, to the cookbook - a cookbook chock full o' classic German recipes like gulasch, jagerschnitzel,…
November 22, 2012: Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone celebrating today with friends, family, loved ones, and their respective peculiar dates. Here in Canada, we already celebrated back in October (approximately two days after Canadian Christmas) but that didn't stop me from enjoying a good old-fashioned American style Thanksgiving complete with football, sweet potato pie, and the traditional post-meal vow…
November 20, 2012: Culinary Catastrophes! Hits and misses!
Look at the above-pictured masterpiece compliments of my buddy, Ivon - the bacon on the inside gloriously crispy, the chicken meatloaf on the inside delectably juicy. This, my friends, is tasty perfection, something we all aspire to every time we search out a recipe, track down unique ingredients (what's a galangal?), or don that dainty…
November 17, 2012: Shao Bing and scriptwork! Another rainy afternoon!
Welcome to mid-November, Vancouver-style. Cold, wet, and rainy. But that didn't deter us from checking out the winter farmer's market today outside Nat Bailey Stadium. Less fresh fruit, more fresh root vegetables, several baked good stands doing brisk business, and the the food trucks were out in force. I counted five in all, including one…
November 10, 2012: Sayanora Tokyo! Dai San Harumi!
There are a grand total of three possible sleeping positions on an airplane seat and I exhausted all three today. I quite like the timing of the flights both to and from Tokyo. On the way there, the flight departs in the mid-afternoon, giving you plenty of time to sleep in and do your last…
November 9, 2012: Last full day in Tokyo! Restaurant Esquisse! Chez Tomo!
My friend Moro-san suggested we go to lunch at Restaurant Esquisse, a relatively new addition to the Ginza dining scene. It has only been open for about four months now and yet, in that short time, garnered some great word of mouth. Always up to trying something new, I booked us a table. I arrived…
November 9, 2012: Tokyo Day….? I’ve lost count! Star Bar! Nodaiwa! Nakajima! Quintessence!
When I travel to Tokyo, I usually stay at The Imperial Hotel. The service is great, the rooms very comfy, and I can't think of anywhere else I'd rather spending my nights. With the exception of Star Bar, a truly awesome basement bar Ivon Bartok and I discovered on our trip here a couple of…
November 8, 2012: The return of The Weird Food Purchase of the Day! Gyoza Stadium! Ice Cream City! Nodaiwa!
Today, Akemi and I headed over to Ikebukuro's Sunshine City Mall, home to Namco Namja Town's Gyoza Stadium and Ice Cream City. It's been some five years since my last visit to Ice Cream City (I still flashback to the aftertaste of that squid ice cream) and I was looking forward to the return trip.…
November 8, 2012: The Osaka wrap-up! Back in Tokyo! Family dinner! Honkogetsu! Killer ramen!
On our final night in Osaka, I was invited to join Akemi's family for a grand kaiseki dinner at Honkogetsu. It was a magnificent meal, due in large part to the food and company, but also in some small part because I made it through the meal without fumbling anything with my chopsticks or unwittingly…
November 6, 2012: The Osaka Walking Tour: Part Deux!
Wow! It's been a whirlwind few days here in Osaka. I've covered so much ground that I've decided to squeeze in an extra blog entry. Let's call it "November 6, 2012: The Quickening!" We met up with Akemi's parents on our first night in town. The plan was to go to Sushi Koyoshi, a mom…
November 6, 2012: A guided photo and video tour of Osaka! And a message from my sis!
Hey, we're in Osaka, Akemi's hometown, and we've just checked into the hotel. Akemi is going to meet up with some friends and, rather than tag along, I thought we might have the day to ourselves checking out the city. Ready? Let's go! Thanks for tagging along. This concludes our walking tour of Osaka. Let's…
November 5, 2012: What day is it? Oh, let’s call it Osaka Day #1! And the tail end of Tokyo Day #7! L’Effervescence! And dogs eating ice cream!
Today, we took the shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo to Osaka, riding (and eating) in comfort as the scenery whizzed by. It was quite comfortable (surprisingly roomier than any airline I've ever flown), with reserve seating and food vendors who stroll up and down the various cars, offering up everything from ice cream and coffee…
November 4, 2012: Tokyo Day #7! On the home front! L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon! Pieces of the Puzzle!
Here I've been wracking my brain, wondering how I could make a living if moved to Japan - when, suddenly, opportunity comes a-knocking: Japan suffers sumo wrestler shortage. The way I've been eating of late, I figure I should be ready for action in about two months. As much as I'm enjoying myself here in Tokyo,…