Japanese culinary adventure in both Japan and USA.
May 10, 2018
I visited Sushi Keita (鮨桂太 ) on the second day after landing in Tokyo, and while slightly jet-lagged, I was amazed by his sushi. It was a place recommended by Akira Yoshizumi who is owner and chef of the of my favorite Bay Area’s renown Sushi Yoshizumi. The quality and execution of the Edomae sushi here rivals some of the best I had in Tokyo, and at about half the cost.
After a restful and peaceful first night at Zaborin, you truly appreciate the brilliance that this contemporary, yet zen-like ryokan offers. While there were other guests staying at the same time as our stay, the ryokan is large and the feeling of luxury and exclusiveness permeated throughout our stay. As previously mentioned in the last post, Zaborin is nestled in a quiet forest in Hanazono of Niseko and the kanji characters for Zaborin (坐 忘 林) means “to sit and forget amongst the woods”, and it is a perfect description of our experience as we forgot about the troubles of the world and just enjoyed ourselves nestled in the white-birch forests. Continue reading “Tabemono Summer Vacation- Hokkaido/Tohoku 2016 Day 9- Rusutsu Amusement Park, TreeTop Trekking, and Zaborin Part 2”
After finishing our hike along the beautiful and scenic coastline of Cape Kamui, we drove about an hour and half to the highlight of our trip, Zaborin Ryokan. Nestled in a quiet forest in Hanazono of Niseko, the ryokan is deliberately remote and secluded to provide a refuge of serenity and tranquility. In fact, per the ryokan’s website the name Zaborin (坐 忘 林) is a combination of zabo (坐 忘 – to sit and forget) and rin(林 – in the woods or forests) which combined together translates “to sit and forget amongst the woods”, which is an accurate description of our experience here as time seemed to slow down and allowed to appreciate the surrounding nature and simply unwind and be at peace with ourselves. Continue reading “Tabemono Summer Vacation- Hokkaido/Tohoku 2016 Day 8 – Zaborin Ryokan in Niseko Part 1”
The last several years have been amazing in the ramen scene in Bay Area. From Japanese imports to local chefs striving to continually evolve their ramen, the landscape is forever changed around this comfort food. How then can a pop-up serving their home-grown ramen for a $50-$52 course menu compete with several of these heavyweights? After trying Noodle in a Haystack’s 5 course yuzu shio ramen dinner, I would gladly go back regularly, if only they offered that more spots in their limited pop-up seating. It truly is one of the best ramen I had in the states. Continue reading “Tabemono in SF Bay Area – Shio Ramen at Noodle in a Haystack”
Continued from post here.
After our uni-don lunch at Misaki, it was time to walk off all the food. Our next destination was Cape Kamui, which is a beautiful headland area that extends into the Sea Of Japan along the Shakotan Peninsula. It has an amazing maze of trails that weaves along the ridge of the hillside with stunning views of the coastline. Continue reading “Tabemono Summer Vacation- Hokkaido/Tohoku 2016 Day 8 – Shakotan – Cape Kamui”