me time

I often have a lot of me time, but recently I've had more than usual.

Satoshi has been helping with a little league tournament, and he's had drinking thingies with various school baseball alumni so he's been MIA many weeknights and the past two weekends.

Anyway, since the ume was blooming at Hattori Ryokuchi, I decided to check it out on Saturday.

Finding where the ume was blooming in the park was tricky as the map of the park does not specifically indicate "ume forest" or anything like that.

So I was walking towards the Japanese garden where I thought it might be but stumbled upon the trees in their "round flower bed" area....

Click on this photo to see the short video.

It was definitely nice to get out and about.

Especially since we've had dreary rainy weather and the temps dropped back down to single digits.

Even with the sun out, the wind was still very icy.

The weather dude says that we will have warmer "almost summer-like" temps next week...which I hope he is wrong because the sakura (cherry blossoms) will start blooming and then we really will nose dive into summer...

Lunch was at Zenigata.

The only thing I order here is their keema curry udon.

I forgot how spicy it was...and it is still delicious.

Almost halfway through March...too fast!

zenigata

The weather has been quite dreary, kind of cold, with showers here and there.

While it is not perfect weather to be out and about, it is perfect for curry udon.

Yesterday, we headed out to check out the curry udon at Zenigata.

This tiny shop near the Hankyu Hattori station serves sanuki-style udon. Sanuki-style is a firmer noodle. They also make a thinner noodle too, so if you like your noodles on the thinner side, just ask.

Be prepared to wait for your food, everything is made after you order. It is a great time to take in all the rules the owner has, like "no smoking" and his sign that explains how everything is made from scratch so you need to wait for your food.

You can also take in all the photos of famous locals that have eaten there and introduced his shop on their television shows.

I had my eye on their keema curry udon....1000 yen.

A bowlful of freshly made udon topped with spicy keema curry. They aren't kidding about it being spicy! My mouth was "on fire" from the start.

It made me cough, it also made my nose run, but it also made me want to eat more.

Satoshi went with their curry udon set...1100 yen.

Their curry udon is a little different from their keema curry. It is a Japanese style curry with just a touch of heat, which is "diluted" with a savory and very flavorful fish dashi (stock).

I liked the taste of his broth. Perfect for the nip that was in the air that day.

We agreed we would go back on a weekday to check out other items on their menu...we'll be back.

Zenigata
2-2-21 Hattorinishi-machi
Toyonaka, Osaka
Phone: 06.6862.9090
Open: 11:30-15:00, 17:30-22:00
Closed Wednesdays and the 3rd Tuesday of every month

foodie kind of weekend

Saturday, the sun was out but the temperatures were way down.

Since Satoshi had to work, I went for a walk.

There was a Mini that I spotted from the train and wanted to check out in person.

You should know that riding the train in our area gives pretty much a bird's eye view of things. Most of the time you get views that you would not see while walking.

This Mini was the first left-sided steering that I've seen here. It also had a nice gas flap.

On the way home, I stopped by Suigetsu Park and caught this group of grandpas chatting and having fun.

I then stopped into Family Mart and came across Muji's Banana Baum Kuchen drizzled with dark chocolate. after seeing Manju's post, this was the perfect snack.

Sunday, Satoshi had the day off and we decided to visit several temples for hatsumode (first prayers of the year).

In Sone, we stopped at Hagi-no-dera, which is known for their god of promotions & success.

Then we walked to Hattori, about 15 minutes.

On the way to Hattori, I told Satoshi that I wanted to stop to photograph another Mini that I always see from the train in a parking lot.

Unfortunately, the parking lot is manned, so I couldn't actually go into the lot to get pictures.

Instead, I stood outside the lot and took photos from under the fence.

I think these were the first photos I got of a MINI that were up close.

At Hattori Tenmangu, we prayed to the foot gods and thanked them for keeping our feet in good shape.

Then we walked from Hattori to Shonai, about 25 minutes.

Satoshi was feeling hungry so we picked up a curry croquette (80 yen about US$.80) & a wagyu (Japanese beef) (70 yen about US$.70) croquette from Niku Fuji.

These were right out of the fryer, hot and delicious, not to mention reasonably priced.

After our snack, we walked around Shonai a little more.

There is a music university and Satoshi wanted to see it.

I was impressed because they even have an opera house.

Lunch was at a tiny shop called Boss. Their specialty is curry.

On a cold day like Sunday was, hot spicy curry really hit the spot.

Satoshi couldn't decide and finally ordered the fried shrimp with curry set (950 yen about US$9.50), this came with a salad, fried shrimp and curry with rice.

Whenever you eat curry in Japan, it seems that most do not have "stuff" in it, just sauce.

This curry had bits of beef but not a lot more, t is quite spicy and you can ask them for a milder version if you like.

I chose the gyusuji nikomi (simmered beef gristle/nerf) curry set (800 yen about US$8), this came with a salad, a huge serving of curry with gyusuji pieces and a tiny lassi (yogurt drink).

Satoshi wants to go back on a weekday to try some of the other items on their menu.

The weekend flew by but there was lots of walking and eating.

Boss
2-1-23 Shonai-higashimachi
Toyonaka, Osaka
Phone: 06.6332.9550
Open 11:30-21:30, Days off not set, call before going