saturday

Since I usually wait while Satoshi attends his German class, I usually have a late breakfast and then I usually run errands.

This past Saturday, I had wanted to re-visit Talo Coffee to try their breakfast, so I headed to Tsuruhashi...only to find they were closed...boo!

I grabbed a curry pan at Cocoro, which is a couple doors down from Talo Coffee and ate it in the park across the street.

Then I walked to Namba and remembered I was near Westwood Bakers, so I stopped in for some iced coffee and an almond chocolate doughnut.

While their doughnut was good, their coffee was just so-so (what can I say?! I'm a coffee snob)

Satoshi and I met at Utsubo Park and had lunch at South Swell.

Instead of a burger, I tried their chili dog. The bun seemed to be nuked because it got quite gummy after the first couple of minutes...boo!

The sausage had a nice snap and the chili could've been spicier.

After lunch we went to check out the roses at Utsubo Park.

There were so many people that it was hard to enjoy the roses.

We then walked to Nakanoshima Park to see their roses.

It was so hot that many people were huddled under what shade they could find.

Summer is definitely coming.

this and that

Sorry it has been quiet here.

For a couple of days now, I have been trying to view a blu-ray DVD that my friend gave me. At first, I thought I could use the public library's player...nope they only allow you to view DVDs that are at the library, you cannot bring in your own...boo!

Then, I rented a player from Tsutaya, a CD/DVD shop...after getting the player set up, I still couldn't view it!

I called the maker of the player as well as Tsutaya....turns out the disc was bad...something about it not being finalized...have spoken to my friend and she said I could watch the shows at her house...whoo!

Fast forward to today, I had an appointment to fix my crown (this has also been ongoing). Today was putting the crown on...took all of 10 minutes and I have to go back next week for cleaning...boy, do these dentists like to drag stuff out!

While sitting in the waiting room, I noticed their flower arrangements...kind of harvest-y, autumn-y, foodie.

After my appointment, I walked over to Nakanoshima Park.

The rubber duck is back.

Mona received the giveaway box, so now I can show you what was inside...a Uni-Qlo Star Wars T-shirt (this won an award or something), Kabuki Face Masks, a Hello Kitty Moleskine notebook, a musubi holder, green tea, Japanese-y post-its, colorful furikake, oil blotting paper, masking tapes, and some candies and cookies (not shown).

Another 3-day weekend coming up, hope your week is going well.

foodie saturday in osaka

Met up with Tamakikat in Osaka before her appointment.

I had this croque monsieur thingy while she had a green smoothie.

Always nice catching up with her, she was also nice to share some Rococo chocolates (more about those later!) (Thank you!)

After Satoshi's German class, he wanted to go meet up with some classmates for a study session, so first we had lunch at South Swell Cafe.

The burgers are huge here! but the prices are super reasonable...800 yen. I had the South Swell Burger which came with bacon, bbq sauce and I think cheese.

Plus 200 yen and it came with a drink, I chose coke...

Satoshi ordered their Avocado Burger...900 yen and with 200 yen plus he added coffee.

While I waited for him, I checked out the Utsubo Park Rose Festa and read my book.

There were tons of families with kids all itching to play in the fountains...

There were also tons of furry kids!!

After Satoshi's study session, we walked to Nakanoshima Rose Park.

On the way, we bought some coffees and sat in the park.

It was dinner time. We checked out this mexican place I had bookmarked, Herradura.

We tried their guac with chips and ordered two orders of tacos (one with shrimp and the other with chile con carne). An order comes with two tacos.

Their food is quite good. We especially liked their chips which are fried to order.

We also had their queso con chile (melted cheese with tomato) and chips.

Their strawberry margaritas were meh. But we want to go back to try their plates.

It was quite a long day, but the weather is still quite nice.

Have a nice week!

South Swell Cafe
2-1-1 Nishihonmachi
Nishi-ku, Osaka
Phone: 0.6535.8852
Open 9:00-20:00 (weekdays), 10:00-20:00 (weekends)

Herradura
2-2-13 Nakazaki-nishi
Kita-ku, Osaka
Phone: 06.6361.1011
Open 17:00-3:00 (Monday-Friday), 17:00-5:00 (Saturday)

craft beer picnic

Saturday after Satoshi's German class, we grabbed something light for lunch, then headed to Nakanoshima Park to check out the Craft Beer Picnic.

There were about 13 booths and about 50 different beers from around Japan.

Even though there was a typhoon approaching, it was good to see everyone out and about.

For 1000 yen, you can buy "Drink & Food". You receive 10 tickets valued at 100 yen a piece. If you want to buy a 270 mililiter cup of beer you can use 4 tickets, or you can just use the tickets for foods.

For another 1000 yen, you can buy "Picnic Beer" tickets. You receive 4 tickets for 4-150 mililiter cups of beer, a paper tray, and a ticket to borrow a mat.

We bought one of each ticket.

I started off with Ise Kadoya's Stout (Mie prefecture) while Satoshi tried Shiga Kogen's African IPA.

Both were delicious!

For something to snack on, we bought this currywurst...600 yen.

Even though I like the snap of sausages in Japan, I like that the guy cut these up for us, it was easier to eat! That bread that came with it was good for mopping up that homemade sauce.

We also bought a large cup of chips...200 yen.

And a small bag of popcorn...200 yen.

Next I tried Dotombori's Osaka Dark Ale and Satoshi tried Tazawako's Pilsner (Akita prefecture)

Both of Satoshi's beers were really fruity!

A little bigger than the World Craft Beer Tasting event, we thought this event was nice too.

I hope we can check out more of these types of events in the future.

weekend of roses

Saturday was a beautiful day. After Satoshi's German class, we grabbed some things for lunch and headed to Utsubo Park.

There were tons of people as they were having their Rose Festa.

After eating and walking around the park, we headed towards Nakanoshima Park.

It's been so hot that I've been drinking iced coffee.

Nakanoshima's roses were beautiful and many people were out and about trying to get the best pictures.

Sunday, I packed us some things for breakfast and we headed to our favorite park, Aramaki Rose Park.

Besides the bento, we also had rice balls filled with aburamiso and some topped with preserved sakura (cherry blossoms). We also had some fruit (bing cherries, strawberries) and shared a brownie by Fat Witch (I'll post about this another time).

This park never disappoints.

(panorama of Aramaki Rose Park)

We walked to Takarazuka after this and found ourselves in a bit of a timeslip, I'll post about this too, soon!

Have a nice week!

louloutte

Located behind of Takamura Wine is Louloutte, a cute bakery.

I picked up half a loaf of this macadamia bread (300 yen tax included) and this gorgonzola honey bread (270 yen tax included) for us to try.

The macadamia bread doesn't skimp on nuts.

The gorgonzola bread has lots of cheese in it too. We also had these the same day we had the bread from Paris H, so good!

I froze 2 pieces of the fruit bread & 2 pieces of the fig one. I also froze a piece of the macadamia one too, but ate that for lunch the other day.

I'll be back.

Louloutte
2-3-17 Edobori
Nishi-ku, Osaka
Phone: 06.6136.7277
Closed Mondays & Tuesdays
Hours: 9:00-19:00, Take-out only

paris h

I recently checked out Paris H.

They are located in this building near the National Museum of Art Osaka.

The shop used to be called "Four de H" and used to be located in Honmachi. I thought I posted about them but maybe it was pre-blog that I tried them.

Anyway, the shop is brightly lit and I like how you have to tell the person working behind the counter what you want.

I picked up this dried fruit bread and this fig bread...both 380 yen each plus tax.

I liked how these breads were packed with fruits.

The one on the left had dried fruits and nuts and the base was strawberries.

Not sure if this is what made it bright pink (I think they used a food coloring).

The fig bread was really moist and figgy...so good with a schmear of cream cheese.

We had these with some wine and salad.

I'll be back.

Paris H
3-6-32 Nakanoshima, Nakanoshima Dai-Bldg 1F
Kita, Osaka
Phone: 06.6479.3577
Closed Sundays & Mondays
Hours: 10:00-19:00, Take-out only

sunday

Sunday we finally got some flurries!

I was so hyped while Satoshi kept rolling his eyes...what can I say, I'm from Hawaii...

While Satoshi went to his German class, I walked from Umeda to Filter, for breakfast.

I ordered their BLT sandwich set...550 yen, this came with a small salad and coffee.

I think their bacon was actually pastrami, but it was still delicious.

When I got there, a man was just leaving, and after I finished eating, another man stepped in for coffee.

With the place so quiet, it kinda irritated me how he would slurp his coffee.

Anyway, after using their free wifi and reading some of their coffee/cafe magazines, I went to check out Takamura Wine.

A huge warehouse filled with all sorts of wines, coffees and some snacks.

This place is actually owned by Marukai. Yup, that Marukai. For those that don't know what Marukai is, it is a popular Japanese import shop in Hawaii and some areas of California.

I bought two bottles of wine, I'll post about it when we drink them.

And then I started to walk back to Umeda.

Along the way, the flurries started again and I also stumbled upon this building.

Doesn't it look like it should belong in New York or somewhere like that?!

And then I stumbled upon the Dallmayr Cafe (inside the cool building), so I stepped in for a little snack...baum kuchen and coffee...1200 yen.

They served the baum kuchen with some whipped cream & apricot jam.

This baum kuchen wasn't sweet, in fact it was quite dry, so the cream & jam really lifted it up.

Don't know if I'll be back to Dallmayr, but I'll definitely be back to Filter & Takamura Wine.

How was your weekend?

Takamura Wine
2-2-18 Edobori
Nishi-ku, Osaka
Phone: 06.6443.3519
Closed: Wednesdays
Hours: 11:00-19:30

Dallmayr Cafe
3-6-32 Nakanoshima
Kita-ku, Osaka
Phone: 06.6479.0202
*call before going, their website says they are closed on Sundays but they were open

foodie friday in osaka

On Friday, I got a chance to meet P of FoodPorn.Osaka.

He is leaving Japan at the end of the month and was nice enough to contact me to meet up.

After exchanging several emails, we decided to have lunch at Il Beccafico.

The restaurant has 2 seatings for lunch (12:00 & 13:00), P got their 1st seating at 12:00.

It is a teeny restaurant located on the 2nd floor of a building that is about 100 years old! (seriously)

The steps were very steep and narrow.

Their lunch menu is pre-set...assorted appetizers & pasta...1000 yen.

If you wanted coffee and/or dessert after lunch or a drink during lunch that would be extra.

Appetizers: chicken with fennel seed, tuna & green onion fritatta, mortadella salad, potato soup, crostini with cream cheese, tuna(?) & apricots, broccoli aglio e olio, root vegetable arrabiatta, squid simmered in squid ink

My favorite was the chicken cutlet. The breading was really crispy and had fennel seeds here and there.

The pasta was an Amatriciana style.

After lunch, we walked to one of P's favorite coffee spots in the area, Filter.

It is a cozy cafe with sofas and coffee tables (like a living room), perfect for chatting or just "zoning out".

Before walking back to Umeda, we stopped into Boulangerie Takagi.

I picked up these breads, which Satoshi and I had for breakfast the next day. I hope P enjoyed the ones he picked up.

It was fun to finally meet P in person and talk about this and that.

Thanks for a great day P!

Il Beccafico
1-23-30 Edobori, Dakota House 2F
Nishi-ku, Osaka
Phone: 06.6449.9611
Closed: Tuesdays
Hours: 12:00-14:00, 18:00-24:00

Filter UPDATE: 3/2014 closed
3-5-20 Nakanoshima
Kita-ku, Osaka
Phone: 06.6447.8550
Closed: Mondays
Hours: 9:00-20:00

autumn roses

The other week I went to have my teeth cleaned. Afterwards I took a little walk through Nakanoshima Rose Garden. I was surprised that there were many roses still blooming...Like Mme Figaro.

This one had a spicy fragrance.

Grisbi

Mme Albert Barbier

Mme Pierre Euler

Mme Melanie Soupert

The weather wasn't the greatest this day, but just to stop and smell these beauties made it a good day.

brooklyn roasting company

Not too sure how I heard about Brooklyn Roasting Company, but I do remember wanting to check them out.

Since they were near my dentist, I went after getting my teeth cleaned.

Although the weather was a bit too hot for cappuccino, I was still interested in trying theirs....400 yen.

I enjoyed this cup.

I also tried their orange muffin, which I found out is made by West Wood Bakers. A shop in Nishi-ohashi.

I liked how there were lots of candied orange pieces on the bottom half of the muffin...280 yen.

The cafe faces the Tosabori-gawa (Tosabori-river), and they have many seats on their terrace too.

I'll be back.

Brooklyn Roasting Company
2-1-16 Kitahama
Chuo, Osaka
Phone: 06.6125.5740
Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00-20:00, Saturday-Sunday & Holidays 10:00-19:00

it's back

It's been awhile since I have seen the rubber duck. Apparently it was back in Osaka last year, but I missed checking it out.

This year they had the rubber duck as part of a festival. Since Osaka has many rivers running through it, they wanted to showcase the rivers and had an event with many areas lit-up as well as areas along the river to picnic in the evening.

There were many food booths and food trucks too.

Besides the duck, they also had this...

A huge kokeshi doll.

I think someone said it is 10 meters tall (about 32 feet). It was inflated but would've definitely been more impressive if it were made of wood like the kokeshi dolls are.

Too bad Satoshi couldn't meet me for dinner near the water, still, I'm glad I was able to get out and see these.

on a walk (or two)

Even if we've not been "declared" to be in rainy season by the weather dude, I swear we are.

Yesterday, it was so humid and then we had a thunder AND lightning show plus a huge downpour TWICE!

I even saw a bolt of lightning above the condo across of ours...I'm glad I got my walk and grocery shopping in before all the excitement happened.

I guess I should be thankful, there were other areas of Japan that had hail?!

Anyway...on one of my walks last week, it was drizzling but the azaleas were in full bloom and very pretty.

Then on another walk, I walked along the Ookawa towards Nakanoshima.

I noticed this winding ramp.

It turns out this ramp is great for bicycles & wheelchairs to get on and off Nakanoshima.

As I was making my way down the winding ramp, I noticed this boat with 1 passenger and a driver.

The guy riding was filming something.

This was the bridge from the underneath.

Huge!

A little further down was the Nakanoshima rose garden.

We've gone here in the past and enjoyed the roses.

This year I went a little late so the roses seem to have been past their prime. Also, it was so hot on this day that most of the flowers looked limp.

I loved the names of these roses...Gina Lollobrigida.

And this one was Yellow Queen Elizabeth.

What have you been seeing on your walks?