I hope you’re not hungry, because this is a long post about FOOD! To me, eating is always the best part of the trip. Restaurants, vending machines, street snacks – we did it all. I grew up eating a lot of odd Japanese food, so my choice of food in Japan might be a bit unusual from an American perspective. But no fear – there’s plenty of normal-ish food there, and being that their food standards are much higher, there’s nothing to be worried about. Japanese food is good. Sooo good. ::drool::

One thing that did surprise me were the size of the portions there. Like everything else in Japan, I expected their portions to be miniature, but I felt that their portions are just as big, or bigger, than American portions. The Japanese, as model-thin as they are, eat everything – there’s never one grain of rice left behind, and no take out boxes to be seen. How do they do it? I must learn the ways.

Contrary to what most Americans think, sushi isn’t big in Japan. (My friends from Japan say they eat more sushi here than back home, and I see why!) Their version of sushi is much less complex than the creative sushi rolls we have here in the States. Instead of sushi stuffed with mayo, avocado, or tempura, the Japanese like having their fish with plain rice or sushi rice – whether it’s in the form of nigiri, sashimi, or in sushi bowls like this one.

This sushi bowl had tuna, tuna belly, salmon, fish eggs, grilled eel, and grated Japanese moutain yam (it’s super sticky stuff), and an egg yolk on top. It was pretty rich. And guess what. I got this at a mall. The malls actually have restaurants instead of food courts.

Guess what else is all over Tokyo. Falafel stands! Crazy, right? It was a one of the best falafels I’ve had too. I wish I brought my falafel costume, it wouldn’t be out of place at all in Japan.

Everything is nicer in Japan. Even Krispy Kreme is better there. It’s an actual nice, clean, sit-down restaurant.

Plastic Food

Many of the restaurants on the street have plastic food displayed in window cases outside. It’s practically an art form, and some of it surprisingly real – and very appealing after walking around the city on an empty stomach (I lie, my stomach was never empty when I was there).

The waiters are completely ok with foreign customers taking them outside to point to what they want in the window instead of reading the menu. What’s funny is you get exactly what you see – the real food that arrives at your table is arranged just like the plastic version outside. It’s pretty surreal.

What I thought was unusual was that there was egg in almost every dish there, and it was either raw or barely cooked. There’s no fear of salmonella.

I would have thought this was real if the noodles and broth weren’t tilted.

A Vending Machine…Restaurant!

After wandering in and out of electronic stores all night, we were starving and decided to get a quick bite at a place that had pretty good looking plastic food in the window (I’m telling you, it works). So we go in, and ask for a table of two – which was a complete mistake. We stood there confused until a little man scurried out and led us to a vending machine next to the front entrance.

This is what we were supposed to do:

1. Decide which one of the plastic food items in the window we wanted to eat, and remember the number marked next to it.

2. Walk up to the vending machine and press the button with the name or number of the food item. A receipt prints out.

3. Go into the restaurant, hand the cook the receipt, and sit down wherever we want.

4. Hot food appears in seconds. Literally, seconds.

5. You eat it as fast as you possibly can and leave – at least that’s what everyone there was doing. There’s no need to tip (Tipping doesn’t exist there anyway. Everyone does their job, and does it well.)

It’s basically like getting hot dinner from a vending machine.

I could not believe how fast my meal came out. Then again, everything was already cooked; all the chef had to do was throw the cooked noodles in a bowl full of hot broth and add the pre-cooked toppings on it. It wasn’t the best meal I had there, but it’s delicious as far as fast food goes. I’ll take this over Jack in the Crack anyday.

Takoyaki

Just ask Mike – I was talking about eating takoyaki, a popular Japanese street snack, months before we actually went to Japan. Takoyaki is a grilled dumpling made of batter, diced octopus, fried tempura bits, and topped with green onion, a sweet Teriyaki-like sauce, mayo, and dried fish shavings (bonito). I know I just made that sound disgusting but it’s sooo good. SO GOOD.

This takoyaki stand had a modern twist, and served up takoyaki in several different flavors.

It’s fun to watch takoyaki being made. They fill the domes with batter, drop the octopus and fillings in each one, then constantly nudge them so they form into balls as they cook.

The takoyaki man was very nice.

I also got one with deep fried onions and fresh green onions.

This stand served up traditional takoyaki, with sweet sauce and dried bonito flakes. YUMMM. I’m so ready to go back to Japan for more.

So ladylike.

The Pancake Man

This guy was making these pillow shaped pancakes that you could smell a mile away. He poured pancake batter into this odd contraption, let it cook, closed it, and flipped the entire thing over. It was so cool!

Delicious. Unforgettable.

Crispy on the outside, and perfectly cooked in the middle.

Izakaya

We ate at a Izakaya on our last night, which is basically a bar that serves grilled tapas. Do NOT eat at an Izakaya if you’re sensitive to cigarette smoke. The yakitori is delicious until the guy behind you starts puffing a cigarette. Restaurants in Tokyo are pretty good about keeping smokers out of restaurants, but I think it’s still an issue at bars.

Hungry, and waiting for our food and sake.

Cold sake!

There’s usually a sitting fee for ordering sake at a restaurant there, but I think it’s because they include an appetizer with it as well. I received a small bowl of grated daikon radish with small worm-like fish on top. Yes, they are a little creepy, but they tasted fine.

Our yakitori was amazing! We ordered one with ponzu sauce, one with natto, and one with green onion and bonito flakes.

We also ordered something called “Grilled Hokkaido Potato”. It was very creamy.

This is my first time having grilled onigiri. Instead of a filling, the rice is mixed with seaweed and seasonings, grilled, and served with picked radish. I’ll have to try this at home.

McDonalds

I hardly ever eat at McDonalds, but I always try to go to a McDonalds when I travel. I think McDonalds is more flavorful overseas than it is here, and there’s often more meat alternatives. It’s hilarious how McDonalds is pronounced in Japanese – “Ma-ku-doh-nah-lu-doh”.

Here’s the dollar menu in Japan: Shaka Shaka Chicken, McPork, McShake, Cheeseburger, Hamburger, and the Soft Twist (frozen yogurt).

We had try the oddest food there. One of them was Shaka Shaka Chicken, which is a thin, flat, and very crispy chicken nugget. I thought it was called Shaka Shaka to be appealing to children, but it actually has to do with the way you eat it.

Shaka Shaka sounds like “shake, shake”, which is exactly what you’re supposed to do with Shaka Shaka Chicken. As the instructions say, you open the bag, sprinkle your chosen seasonings into it (we received one lemon packet and one black pepper packet), you shaka shaka the hell out of it, the you tear it open halfway to eat it.

I have to say, it was pretty good.

Another thing that we had to try was the “iCon’ Chicken”, which is heavily advertised at all their McDonalds. Unlike the Shaka Shaka Chicken, I couldn’t find a reason for the name “iCon”, or why there’s an apostrophe after it. Anyway, it comes in four different flavors: Cheese Fondue (uhhh GROSS), German Sausage, Diavolo, and the Carbonara.

The Carbonara looked the most edible out of the bunch so that’s what we got. It tastes a lot different than American burgers, but not necessarily in a bad way. It had that strange sweet-salty-umami thing going on, and the bread was really soft – kind of like a Hawaiian bread roll. I think the Carbonara part comes from that gross yellow “cheese” they put on top, but who knows.

Yummy Restaurant

My absolutely favorite meal in Tokyo was when we ate at a tiny hole in the wall shop in Shinjuku. The food was truly Japanese, and the atmosphere was peaceful, dark, and quiet – a total contrast to the bright city outside.

I had some of the best cold sake here. It was served in this crazy handthrown sake set. All the pieces had four little feet, and looked like little creatures.

The sake was served with a cold appetizer, which was soft tofu in a sweet mirin broth, and garnished with a single shittake mushroom and a little bit of fish roe. There was also some kind of clear jelly on it that didn’t taste like anything.

Mike ordered grilled chicken with a yuzu-chili sauce. It was out of this world. It actually tasted a little bit like Mexican food.

I ordered a fish and vegetable stew. It tasted like fresh cod, and the broth had so much flavor.

Chinese Food

I also tried Chinese-Japanese fusion food while I was there. I ordered some shoyu flavored ramen. It was so nice on a cold day.

I also had the best gyoza I ever had. It looked and tasted like gyoza, but the filling learned more towards Chinese pot-sticker filling.

Japanese Pastries

I’ve loved having Japanese pastries (wagashi) and tea since I was a little girl, and it felt like heaven to see Japanese pastries everywhere in Tokyo. The thing I love most about Japanese pastries are how they’re never too sweet.

We went to a part of Tokyo a little off the beaten path, where they sell a lot of pastries. Here’s one of the stores that I wandered into.

I bought something that I’ve never had before – plain mochi wrapped with a thin pancake-like piece. As soon as I bought it, an elderly woman appeared out of nowhere with a tray of green tea. She motioned for us to sit down and stay awhile to enjoy our tea and newly bought pastries.

I want to get a hot iron to brand my own pastries at home, too.

It’s funny how they’re just as into food coloring as they are into using pure ingredients. I would have loved these as a kid.

The Japanese are obsessed with packaging. Even bakeries there have all their treats individually packaged. For example,eEach chestnut mochi is enveloped in plastic case, carefully placed in a cardboard box, wrapped up in gift paper, and placed in a gift bag. Everything gets gift wrapped whether you’re buying something for yourself or for someone else, and they clerk will feel embarrassed or bothered if you don’t want it done that way. Which I have to admit, I did several times. It was just too much.

Strawberry daifuku – but taco style. It was my first time seeing it made that way.

Chestnut is popular in the winter, so I bought another “taco” pastry with chestnut filling. That’s a roasted chestnut on top.

Azuki/red bean paste with a roasted chestnut.

I want to go back to Japan to eat.

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