Sunday, February 05, 2006

dishes, gadgets and pans...oh my!!

If you're a "foodie", chances are you don't only like to eat good food--you like to make good food too. Well, in Osaka, there's a place just for you. It's called "Doguyasuji", "dogu" is tools/utensils, in this case gadgets, "ya" means store, "suji" means street = gadget store street....

From the Namba station, it's about 3 minutes to this shopping arcade. There are about 50 shops selling all kinds of things from utensils to the plastic food models you see in the windows of restaurants. These shops used to only serve businesses, but now anyone and everyone can be spotted here. You can find "takoyaki" molds--a snack food in Osaka, they are round dumplings containing bits of octopus, and "teppan"-hot steel plates to cook on. If you need something for your kitchen, this is probably the place to find it.

The "maneki neko" is a good luck charm often seen in stores and restaurants. "Maneki" means to invite, "neko" is cat. There are all kinds of forms and colors of this cat. If the cat holds up his left paw up it is to invite customers into stores/restaurants. If his right paw is up it is to invite money into your home. The maneki neko of the past used to be ceramic, the maneki neko of recent has an electric moving arm. This huge cat found in Doguyasuji had an arm that was moving...

From Doguyasuji, I walked to Shinsaibashisuji--another shopping arcade. In this shopping arcade there are lots of clothing shops and two department stores--Daimaru and Sogo. Sogo re-opened last November after being closed for about five years. They have a whole floor dedicated to fresh foods and a whole floor for Japanese and Western sweets. One area in this department is the Mariage Frères counter. They have all kinds of teas and are kind of pricey, but I got the number one seller, "Marco Polo". We had this tea for breakfast this morning--it has a very sweet fragrance of fruits and flowers. Also, in Shinsaibashisuji are many discount shops. I found these Cafe Tasse neapolitans (squares) at a discount shop called "Wa~h burashin".

After my foodie shopping adventure, I met Satoshi in Umeda. We stopped in for tea and dessert at Malebranche--a Kyoto dessert shop. I had the caramel chocolate cake.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

AWWW I would have SO much fun there!

K and S said...

Hi Clare,

I think you would too. ;)

Thanks for stopping by!

Kat & Satoshi

Anonymous said...

wow, so many nice goodies. I even see the Mariage Freres!!!

K and S said...

Bea!!
Aren't you supposed to be on vacation??

Enjoy yourself.

Kat & Satoshi

Anonymous said...

This store sounds tremendous! I could have used it this weekend as I have turned the City of Toronto upside down trying to find a sheet pan that is 9 x 13 inches with 1-inch high sides.

I could have also used your after foodie shopping treat ...

Journal Actif said...

This is my kind of shoping. :-)) What a great store.
The tea sounds perfect to finish off a light dinner.

K and S said...

Hi Ivonne & Zoubida,

Glad I was able to share it with you and you enjoyed it!!

Kat & Satoshi

Anonymous said...

I had a chance to visit Osaka earlier this year. I found Doguyasuji and just fell in love with all the stores down this alley. I'm heading back next week for my birthday.