Tokyu Food Show, Shibuya

As a foodie who loves travelling on of my great pleasures is seeing the foodie meccas around the world. If you're in Shibuya in Tokyo to see the Scramble Crossing and Hachiko then take the time to visit Tokyu Food Show. It's a large food fair in the depachika basement of the Tokyu department store surrounding Shibuya station.

Here's a brief sample of the deliciousness inside!

High end meats like Kurobata Pork and Kobe Beef

Just about every fresh seafood you can imagine straight from Tsukiji. 

Top end precut sushi is available too, and the stock rotation is fast and fresh. 

If you're a tuna fan like I am this is the most amazing sight to behold!

Imported un-pasteurised French cheeses can be bought by the handful.

There's luxury chocolatiers including Swiss and Japanese delights.

If you're looking for something slightly more pedestrial prepared food of all kinds can also be bought to fill bento or provide for a picnic.

Omiyage are food souvenirs that can be bought throughout Japan, they're usually regional sweets packaged in beautiful ways designed to be shared with family and colleagues. A huge range is available including these freshly baked and spun sweets. 

Because we've arrived during the holidays there's lots of seasonal food like traditional New Years offerings. 

But also a few Christmas items creep in. 

My favourite thing to do in Japan is watch the chefs making food in public viewing windows, they're all over Japan and in this case it's someone pinching dumplings with amazing speed. 

Stopping at the Tokyu Food Fair is great for picking up omiyage souvenirs for Tokyo or gifts for visiting friends, wonderful for those who are self catering or just to have a poke at the hustle and bustle. It's also free entry if you're travelling on a budget but be prepared to be jostled by hungry shoppers and screamed at by hawking food vendors. 

Tokyu Food Show

Multivendor food fair, every day during Tokyu opening hours

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Review: Ko-hi-kan, Asakusa

One of the surprising things to many people on arrival in Japan is how good the coffee is. You might think being an Asian nation that they're tea-centric but while there are the occasional bubble tea joints coffee is truly king in Japan. Coffee chains are just about everywhere and they're usually a great place to stop while travelling as they often have wi fi access and power points available.

Most coffee in Japan is of the strong long black variety, brewed but espresso strength. European style coffee houses and the influx of Starbucks has also increased the availability of steamed milk espresso drinks.

Coffee is also ubiquitous, they have it for breakfast they have it with dinner, they have it hot and cold, they have it at cafes and they have it in vending machines.

Ko-hi-kan means "Coffee Museum" which is elevating it a little bit, it is a coffee chain just a damn good one. Their standard brewed coffee blend can be bought for 450Y but for an extra 50 - 100Y it's worth investigating their "specialty coffee" which means a choice of siphon brewed coffee or single origin specialty coffees.

Nicaraguan Single Origin Siphon Brewed Coffee 500Y

The coffee is served the same way everywhere in Japan - hot, strong and with cream and sugar. One strange thing I find is that despite the otherwise immaculate approach to coffee they use white sugar with everything, not a raw sugar crystal to be found. 

Nonetheless this coffee is frankly *delicious* and surprisingly so, so much so that I make delighted noises and look at my partner who is looking at his coffee in as much shock as I am. This is easily the best cup of coffee I've had in months, maybe years. Even the china and silverware is fine quality, this is 500Y worth of heaven. 

Kohikan blend Iced Coffee 450Y

Coffee is served the same way whether it's hot or cold in Japan, so be prepared to pick a temperature choice when asking for coffee. This means you are expected to add sugar and cream to your iced coffee to  taste, something I prefer over the 'death by sugar' approach to iced coffee in the US. Sweetness is provided for iced coffee using sugar simple syrup (or "gum syrup" as they call it) since granulated sugar won't dissolve in the cold liquid. 

Other drinks were available like green tea lattes, iced coffees with ice cream and other fancies but honestly that brewed coffee was so damn good we couldn't get past it and it looked like the other patrons agreed. The only people I saw with other drinks were children fed sugary sweet drinks while site seeing. 

Morning Set 150Y with a coffee

If 500Y sounds pricey for a coffee then consider getting it with breakfast. 150Y on top of your coffee will get you a decent sized breakfast. In this case that means 650Y (around 7USD) for toast, salad, eggs and coffee. Delicious coffee. 

Lunch set 780Y including coffee

We came back to Kohikan for the coffee a few times so we investigated their lunch menu as well. It's not as good value in my mind but if you're looking for something predictable and good quality or you're just sick of Japanese food this would make a good option. In this case it's a ham and egg salad toasted sandwich, salad and a drink for around 8.50USD. 

All in all? Amazing coffee, worth stopping for if you find a location, good service and immaculately clean (but you begin to expect that everywhere in Japan). If you're looking for a decent quality breakfast with a good cup of coffee to fuel you before site seeing I almost can't recommend better in Japan. A++ would buy again. 

Ko-hi-kan

http://www.kohikan.jp

High end chain coffee

Multiple locations throughout Japan

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Review: La Tasca, Baltimore MD

I am always excited when I find decent food near tourist centres, it affords a great place to rest after a long walk and usually affords some great people watching.

In the US it can be difficult to find genuinely Spanish food as you usually end up with some Latin hybrid. La Tasca then surprised on two counts! We were here at lunch time so we decided to get a range of tapas to pick at.

Charcuterie and cheese with 5 Choices $22USD

Who doesn't love a big pile of meat and cheese? The choices here are good imported Spanish and French products. 

Chorizo alla Parilla $7USD

Simple but delicious, the hot paprika oil dripping off is always a good sign. 

Panceta de Cerdo $8USD

A big crispy serve of pork belly for $8, I'm a little surprised by the size but it's possible I'm still not used to US food servings. 

Albondigas alla Jiardinera $6.50USD

Albondigas are the Spanish version of Polpette and like all meatballs are a comfort food classic, this one is served in a Spanish style sauce made with red peppers and herbs. 

Espárragos Verdes a la Plancha $6.50USD

Again I'm surprised at the size of the plate for under $7 but the combination of cheaper US food and the lower cost of locally produced asparagus make for one happy foodie. Simply grilled with salt and lemon, it's a great offset to all that meat. 

The food was pretty good and the prices excellent, particularly when you think that La Tasca is right on the Inner Harbour in Baltimore and stones throw from tourist delights like Ripley's Believe it or Not. Usually this kind of area is home only to Ruby Tuesday's and chain BBQ joints so I'm happy that there's real food and it's reasonably authentic. 

That being said despite the fact that there's a lot of staff in the restaurant the service is spotty at best, it takes me a long time to get attention for drink refills and the person I do talk to blinks at me in lack of comprehension regardless of what language is used. Not a good sign. 

Given that we were in the restaurant on a gloomy quiet day I would hate to see what the service was like when they were busy, but if you're in the area for site seeing then poor service is better than eating at The Cheesecake Factory!

La Tasca

http://www.latascausa.com

Casual tapas and homestyle Spanish cooking

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Snapshot: Hidakaya Asakusabashi

Want reliable cheap food in Japan? Hidaka-ya is a budget delight peppered all over Tokyo in convenient locations.

We discovered this chain on arrival in Asakusa, it was freezing and we'd spent a day in transit from Australia so the brightly lit signs and packed dining house seemed like a good sign. 

Spicy minced pork ramen 490Y

The ramen here is cheap, not great but warm and decent quality. There's plenty of spices and oils to mix to your delight. 

Tantanmen 580Y

They have a Tantanmen, the broth is a little thin on collagen but it makes up for it with great chilli sesame flavour, chewy noodles and fresh vegetables. 

Gyoza 200Y for 6 or 300Y for 12

The gyoza here are the real winner though, the first trip to a Hidaka-ya we got them in a ramen set for the steal of 600Y a meal for noodles and dumplings but on their own they make a great cheap snack. They're not too oily, have a light thin wrapper and a mild pork and cabbage filling. 

Kirin Ichiban Shibori Beer 300Y

Hidakaya became easier to find than public smoking areas while site seeing and so it became our default pitstop. At 900Y (around $10USD) for 2 beers, 12 dumplings and a warm place to sit and smoke? Just perfect on a cold Winter vacation. Not a smoker? No worries they have smoke free areas and all their shops are smoke free before 5pm.

Hidakaya

http://hidakaya.hiday.co.jp 

熱烈中華食堂 日高屋

Ramen and pan Asian comfort food chain

Cheap and cheerful!

チュウカショクドウヒダカヤアサクサバシテン

1-13-4 Yanagibashi Taito

Tokyo 111-0052 Japan‎

+81 3-5835-1531

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Snapshot: My first Thanksgiving Dinner

It turns out one of the problems with travelling on Thanksgiving is that Americans all go home for the holidays making dining options extremely limited. Thankfully we happened across a country hotel just as cute as a button.

The dining room was exactly as you'd imagine an older country proprietor thinks is elegant. White table cloths, silver cutlery, heavy scrolled paintings and Autumn accents.

For $39 for a 3 course prix fixe Traditional Thanksgiving dinner it was a bargain of heavy calorie laden delights.

Autumn Harvest Soup

Turkey with all the trimmings; cranberry sauce, gravy, green bean casserole, potato gratin, sweet potatoes (with marshmallows... oh America) and stuffing.

And of course Pumpkin Pie

We waddled home very satisfied and feeling like we'd tasted a true piece of American culture.

Review: Kalani's, Lake Tahoe CA

After a long drive in the dark from San Francisco we arrived at our lodge in Heavenly Village South Tahoe and asked the concierge where we could eat without venturing too far into the cold. They recommended Kalani's which is in the village itself.

When they said it was Hawaiian we were thinking Teriyaki Chicken and Loco Moco but instead found a delightful high end surf and turf. We were offered a choice of sushi window, bar or dining room seating but opted for the more intimate dining room. 

2008 Sonoma Cutrer Pinot Noir $61

The wine list was extensive but since we wanted both seafood and meat we opted for this Sonoma Cutrer Pinot Noir. You may see a range of Californian and New World wines appear in my blog in the near future as I'm learning the local wines now that I live in the US ... doesn't that sound like a tough job for a foodie ;o)

Blackened Ahi Tuna with Wasabi Mirin Aioli and Soy Mustard $15

Good quality Hawaiian Ahi perfectly seared is good enough on its own but the Wasabi Aoili is enough to make me weep and even the crisp dressed "coleslaw" it sits on is beautiful. 

A la carte sushi and sashimi

I'm handed a full al a carte sushi menu by my boy with a twinkle in his eye and I am not disappointed, it's full of pure deliciousness. We order a sampling of a number of items.

Kim chee pickled cucumber $8

The perfect mix of crisp and hot with umami, sweet and sour. 

Spicy Hamachi Roll $12

The Hamachi was a little fishy for my partner but the sushi was well made, the key here is to avoid "spicy" fish roll in the US since this is often minced fish pieces rather than whole fillet.

Maguro Sashimi and Seared Ahi $14 each

Tuna is my greatest weakness and so we ordered one of everything, you can also see the maguro presented as nigiri in the background. Excellent quality, fresh and the perfect temperature. Just gorgeous. 

Walu Sashimi $16

With such delightful tuna we assumed that that would be the highlight of our meal however we were convinced by the waitress to order this sashimi. Walu is also known as Hawaiian butterfish and this describes it completely, buttery, fatty and delicious this now rivals otoro as my favourite oily delight. Like all truly excellent foods it comes at a risk, the high oil content can cause severe stomach issues so only order a small portion. 

Caprese Salad $16

I'm a sucker for Caprese even in the cold and this doesn't disappoint. Excellent quality tomato and basil are topped with a fresh puffy mozzarella and a truly delicious home made sweet chilli dressing. 

14oz Rib Eye $36

Simple but well done and cooked to perfection served with butter and grilled asparagus and wasabi mashed potatoes. 

Full Rack of Beef Ribs with Mashed Potato $32

Dripping in kalbi sauce with wasabi mash and bok choy. Messy, fun, excellent.

Banana Bread Pudding $12

There's no way I could eat this on my own, I got about halfway through before giving up. Banana bread is layered with macadamia nuts and covered in creme anglaise before baking. Served with more custard and more chopped macadamia nuts. Warming but tropical.

Coconut Creme Brulee $12

A traditional creme brulee with a twist - coconut oil through the custard. 

2009 St Supery Moscato $15 a glass

If you're going to go all out, you may as well have a dessert wine on vacation. This moscato was perfect with the heavy desserts. A little sweet but light and cut through the richness well. 

All in all the meal was absolutely delightful and far exceeded our expectations for resort food. Easily the best Hawaiian food I've had with top quality produce and excellent service, we'll be back. 

Kalani's 

http://kalanis.com/

Shops at Heavenly Village

1001 Heavenly Village Way

South Lake Tahoe, CA

(530) 544-6100

High end Hawaiian food

Casual at the bar or formal in the dining room - your choice!

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Snapshot: Wolfgang Puck at Universal Studios

I recently went to the Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios, afterwards we decided to stop and eat at the City Walk Hollywood complex next door.

Wolfgang Puck runs a bistro there with casual dining options such as pizzas, salads and family favourites.

Roasted Beet Salad, goat cheese, oranges, pecans, fresh greens, balsamic vinaigrette   $7USD

Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, port wine sauce, crispy onion rings   $14USD

Now doesn't that look better than hot dog on a stick and hamburgers? Definitely recommended for theme park dining at its best.

Wolfgang Puck Bistro - Universal CityWalk

http://www.citywalkhollywood.com/dining/wolfgang_puck.html

100 Universal City Plaza,
Los Angeles, CA
(818) 622-4455

Casual dining, family friendly


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Streatfood Fair, San Francisco

One of the great things about the food landscape in the US that is yet to take hold in Australia is the rise of the food truck. One can only assume the issue is related to the lack of available vehicles since we are as a rule lovers of street food and festival stalls.

San Francisco is run amok with reasonably priced food from a range of vendors. This obviously makes setting up for festivals much faster and cleaner and means a quick start for tasty food from any number of cuisines.

On top of this there's also a great little foodie's paradise in SOMA (South Of MArket because Americans need to nickname every postage stamp of land) "Streatfood Park" is a strange little blob of bitumen next to a freeway over pass. What was obviously a patch of land even the most hearty of estate agents couldn't sell has become a gathering place for local food vans.

At any time there's about 8 food trucks parked around the space - on the day we're there there's BBQ, Burgers, Japanese, Mexican and more. Being a recent immigrant to the US means that my love affair with pulled pork is still in its hot blooded honeymoon period, so I head to the BBQ stall. 

Getting food from a food truck is a pretty simplistic affair; choose your main from the board or list. If you're not there super early make sure you have a back up choice since items frequently sell out during the day. 

Make sure you have cash, and hopefully change and order at the window making sure to pick up drinks, sides and cutlery from the front of the truck. Many food trucks in the US offer a snack window like this with drinks in ice and easy to access. Most food trucks don't have a license to sell alcohol however the Streatfood Fair has a dedicated stall where one can buy beer and margaritas.

 It's not great weather when we visit so we go sit in the convenient shed, but otherwise there's charming picnic tables and umbrellas at which to eat. Unfortunately I discover too late that there's a baseball game on and everyone inside the shed is watching it.

But who cares really in the face of a spicey sweet pulled pork sandwich loaded with coleslaw?

SoMa StrEatfood Fair

http://somastreatfoodpark.com/

428 11th Street
San Francisco, CA USA

Street food, Casual beyond casual
Go early or have a few choices


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