From the category archives:

Food and Drink

Tranquil time out #71

by Lee on 5/12/2010

When it comes to tranquilness, or merely taking some time out, a big cup of tea always takes some beating.

Japanese tea/kettle

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Nero-esque noodles?

by Lee on 3/3/2010

It’s difficult to know whether the owners of this restaurant were looking to recreate some sort of roman-esque banquet space, or the lounging noodle lover is a nod to something I simply know nothing about, but either way, as far as promotional pictures go, it’s arguably not particularly appealing.

old Japanese noodle restaurant

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Food for thought

by Lee on 2/24/2010

One of the truly great things about Tokyo is the capital’s absolutely enormous amount of eateries, with many streets in the suburbs let alone the city centre offering more variety than even the most voracious of eaters could conceivably call for — let alone consume.

And yet there is, however, a downside, as, with such a staggering amount of sustenance on offer, it can be decidedly difficult indeed to decide where to dine.

Shinjuku

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Crowded New Year customs

by Lee on 1/4/2010

Apart from the homes of their parents, and possibly even pachinko, the place most Japanese people will set out to visit over the New Year is the shrine. An event that, apart from a quick pray, invariably involves coughing up for a new collection of lucky charms.

Japanese new year

And, more often than not, an omikuji (random fortune), which, after the fun of finding out if it’s a good or bad one,

Japanese new year

can be securely fixed to something suitable and swiftly forgotten.

Japanese new year

Thus allowing for arguably the most favoured part of most Japanese festivities, the food, which invariably comes from a fascinatingly varied selection of vendors, serving up equally varied victuals.

Japanese new year

All the way from the savoury,

Japanese new year

to the sweet.

Japanese new year

Plus, for a bit of continuity, below are a couple of the same characters from last year, although one of them seemed decidedly dejected about the new decade.

Japanese new year

And cooking with what appears to be his replacement, this still spritely old fella could well be tackling 2010 as a retiree.

Japanese new year

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Japanese whale on sale

by Lee on 12/16/2009

The almost laughable nature of Japan’s ‘scientific’ whaling programme is so infamous that it needs no further explanation here, but possibly (albeit at a very large push), it would be a little more understandable if there was more honesty in regards the vast amount of post-science produce on the market, as, for Japan’s ever-growing older generation at least, whale is something of a special treat — the smell and taste of it taking them back to their younger days, when whale was not only standard fare, but also a staple of school lunches.

And yet that said, when presented with a plate full of the stuff,

raw whale meat

such knowledge doesn’t necessarily make it any more palatable.

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