Lost in Tokyo (and other japanese cities)

I am here to highly recomend a trip to Japan to anyone who wants to find some food inspiration and excitement that has been lost in the mondain day to day ritual.

I have just returned (and by just I mean it's been a little while, but I've only just gotten round to talking about it) from a trip to Japan. My mother and I went to Uji, Kyoto, Ossaka, Nara, Tokyo and Kyoto again for 10 days and spent as much of that time eating as we possibly could.

I must start by saying that I'm going to focus here on the food, but of course the scenery was absolutely fabulous: the bamboos, the shreins, the zen gardens (with all the moss that I have now realised is one of my favourite things in nature), the temples... and also, the people who were always so very kind. All in all it was a fabulous trip, but lets get down to the food.

I think what I enjoyed the most in Japan, was finding remote typical places to eat and ordering off the menu according to the pictures or simply  pointing to something and hoping for the best. These soba noodles with tempura shrimp were my first experience of barefoot eating. They were delicious. Not only was the food nice but it turned out the restaurant had a view of a river and cherry trees, could this have been any more idyllic?

I love finding new ways to eat food. I think that's one of the reasons I loved Japan so much, everything was done very differently. I particularly enjoyed restaurants were food was ordered on a vending machine at the entrance. This pork donburi was probably one of my favourite meals throughout the trip, accompanied by a yuzu lemonade which actually complemented the fattiness of the pork beautifully.

It turns out that going for a Coconut Coffee Frappucino at Starbucks every morning did bring us of occidental joy, i'm sorry to say we did get a bit homesick, but this morning stop was just the ticket.

Takoyaki from the market - not a fan. Where they fun to see being made? Yes.
Are they an ingenious idea for food on the go? Yes.
Do they technically contain all umami flavours you could wish for? Yes.
Was the runny custard egg texture mixed with a fishy taste for me? No.

Chazuke - This dish was a completely new discovery, and  it was undescribibly good.
This version was quite intricate yet simple.
Three bowls are presented to you: Rice, Vegetables (greens, sweet potato, tofu, mushroom), and White Fish in a Sesame Marinade. And on the side you are served green tea, so far nothing out of the ordinary.


But then, you are given instructions on how to aet what is in front of you.
I can't remember the exact order, but the important part is you end up with rice, marinaded fish and green tea in one delicious spoonful. 
10/10, would eat again, and again, and again

Had to throw in the amazing imitated raindrop dessert with brown syrup and bean powder, although this one wasn't in a rain drop, just strips.

Couldn't resist... look at all that moss!

One dish I did not adhere to at all, were the cold noodles you reheat mouthfull by mouthful in a bowl of broth. But perhaps it was just a particularly unflavourful one...

Traditional breakfasts were... interesting.. Soy marinated runny eggs with pickled seaweed and smoked fish is probably extremely nutritious and quite the umami experience. I can completely understand how you could find this very luxurious and deliciuos if you were brought up with it. However, I'm already not a morning person and not the biggest fan of fishy tastes, therefore coffee and buttered baguette is sort of what I've been used to my whole life.

If you have time, go to a good cocktail bar. This one in Nara was an amazing and relaxig experience with tailor made cocktails.

Are they strawberries? Are they pineapples? We'll never know...

Had to stop for some Wagyu beef in Kobe. 100% worth it if you like butter that tastes of beef, which as it turns out... I DO.

Ichibancho Teruya - A Sushi Master in Tokyo.
I will never be able to eat sushi the same way again. In fact, I have yet to encounter a worthy adversary for the sushi we ate in this restaurant. 
I also discovered sea berries are my favorite seaweed... who knew?!

Had to mention these gyoza meals in Kyoto, because gyoza are just mouthfuls of love really. Let's be real.













And there you have it. Other highlights included a lobster roll in Tokyo and an Omakase meal in Osaka where my mum had a lotus root Congee she still thinks about to this day.
Also a speacial shoutout to Bob in Nara who introduced us to Shu, my new favourite drink. If you ever come across YuzuShu, just trust me and pour yourself a glass.

One thing's for sure, We'll be going back to Japan.