My go-to lunch when on a run is a sandwich from Viron. Excellent baguettes with a chewy crumb that can stand up to the crispy exterior. The sandwiches are classic French-style including pate de campagne, rillettes, and jambon. The large window display case in the front of the store has a dizzying array of sandwiches…
Tag: Tokyo station
Tokyo Station Car Bento
I love shopping for bentō boxes. Bentō are convenient meals, be it for a picnic, while traveling on a train, or when I am too rushed to put a meal together. Japanese schools are now on their summer holidays and Tokyo station is busier than usual with travelers. Inside of Tokyo station there are several…
Tokyo Station’s Popular Ekiben 東京駅人気駅弁
Ekiben are literally bento from different eki or stations in Japan. Part of the pleasure of traveling by train in Japan is sampling a variety of local foods sold in bento boxes at major stations throughout the country. A bento from a coastal village most likely will showcase locally harvested seafood while a mountain village may feature vegetables harvested from the…
Food Gifts – Omiyage from Tokyo 東京のお土産
Omiyage most often describes gifts that you pick up while traveling that you bring back to your family, friends, and colleagues. For example, on a trip to Kyoto I may select some local jizake or wagashi for friends. For my colleagues at work I may pick up a box of yatsuhashi, a popular confectionary that Kyoto is known for….
Tokyo Station Omiyage – Nihonbashi Nishiki Hourin 日本橋錦豊琳
Karintou are traditional sweet confectionaries made from a flour based cracker that is fermented and then is deep-fried and covered with a sugar coating. The sugar coating can be a white sugar but many times it is a dark sugar coating that is rich in minerals. The cracker can have different ingredients folded into it…
Digging into an Ice Cold Kakigori
On summer visits to Japan as a child my favorite sweets were kakigori topped with milk. Only when I grew up did I realize that it wasn’t milk but it was sweetened condensed milk. No better way to cool down in the Tokyo heat than a bowl of shaved ice topped with a sweet syrup….
Kintame Kyoto Pickles Restaurant 近為
One of the great delights of dining in Japan is the cornucopia of restaurants that specialize in one type of cuisine, as in the recent reviews of ramen at Ivan Ramen. Another unique dining experience is a meal based on pickles. Kintame, a store based in Kyoto, has two restaurants in Tokyo where diners can indulge in…
Gotta Go – Nihonbashi Yukari
I am often asked for restaurant suggestions in Tokyo. There is one restaurant that I recommend time and time again. Chef Kimio Nonaga of Nihonbashi Yukari was the 2002 Iron Chef winner, and the trophy is displayed when you first walk in. I love this restaurant for lunch or dinner. For a multi-course kaiseki dinner…
Food Sake Tokyo 