virtual hugs

sending virtual hugs to New York and all the surrounding areas.

Never forget.
 

virtual hugs

Sending virtual hugs to New York and all the surrounding areas.

It's hard to believe that 19 years have passed.

Have a safe weekend everyone.

 

dough

Awhile back, I saw Su-Lin's photo of a doughnut she had while in NY from Dough.

I bookmarked it on Yelp and put it to the back of my mind.

Then Hankyu advertised a NY Fair...and Dough was coming!

The other day, I met up with Twitter friend, H, and we stood in line for these doughnuts...90 or so minutes. (oh and I closed my Twitter account, too much weird spam, sorry, hope you weren't following me there...)

I tried the Chocolate Salted Caramel, Hibiscus and Dulce de leche...459 yen each (tax included).

These doughnuts are huge! The ones in our area these days are usually cake type and they are about half the size (and price).

I was disappointed with the way they packed these though. The glaze was all smooshed. I'm glad I took pictures of the doughnuts in the showcase while we waited in line.

Our favorite was Dulce de leche. Lots of sliced almonds and the glaze wasn't sickly sweet.

Chocolate salted caramel was way too salty, I think they could've done without the sprinkling of salt onto the glaze (you can see all the salt in this pic).

Hibiscus was tart and also had a dried hibiscus on top. Love the vibrant pink color!

What surprised me the most, was that these doughnuts were still soft (and not greasy) even after I kept them in the fridge overnight.

I'm really glad we got to try these doughnuts.

Hope you have a nice weekend.

fat witch

I've known about Fat Witch for some time now. I just haven't been able to get to New York to check them out.

So I was thrilled that they were coming to me.

A local department store had a New York Fair and was selling all sorts of foods and goods, including these.

I tried their plain, walnut & breakfast brownies.

For the 3, I paid 1652 yen, they definitely were not cheap. I think the price on Fat Witch's website calculates me paying 2 or 3 times?!

Satoshi and I shared the plain one on our picnic, and we also shared the breakfast brownie the other morning.

I am glad I got to try these and especially liked the breakfast brownie, oatmeal walnut brownie on the top and a chocolate brownie on the bottom.

bellocq teas

I'm not too sure when I heard about Bellocq teas, but have been wanting to try them for awhile now.

Luckily, Dean & Deluca Japan started selling samplers online.

I picked up the Bellocq Blends line. 8 different teas, 10 grams each.

On the inside cover of the box, they note optimal brewing times and water temperatures for each tea.

I like the packaging.

They also give you these unbleached tea bags to brew your tea in.

We first tried No 01, Bellocq Breakfast.

Nothing out of the ordinary.

Next No 20, Kikuya.

A green tea base with rose petals and a rose essence. The rose essence is delicate and doesn't overpower the green tea, a nice combination.

No 35, The Earl Grey was no different from other Earl Greys I've tried.

No. 47 The Queen's Guard, had a delicate floral fragrance.

And when brewed the lavender stands out the most. A good tea when you want to sit and relax.

No. 52, Etoile de l'Inde, is made with Dragonwell (a pan fried green), Jasmine silver needles, flower petals and a natural essence.

To me it had a bit too much floral fragrance when first brewed, but by the second brewing the flavor reminded me more of a Yunnan tea.

Majorelle Mint, No 38, is perfect after dinner.

It combines Chinese gunpowder, green tea, mint, marigold petals and citrus essence.

No 29 White Nixon, white tea, lavender, flower petals and natural essence.

Is also a nice blend to sit and relax with.

And lastly, we tried No 12, Le Hammeau, a blend of lemongrass, lemon verbena, chamomile, lavender, rose petal, mint, sage, and a natural essence. This is also perfect after dinner.

I'm glad we got to try these teas and now that Dean & Deluca has opened a shop in Osaka, it should be easier to get.

Are you enjoying any teas lately?

knit cafe

Knit cafes are steadily becoming popular in Japan. This trend is not only for women, knitting has also become popular among male Japanese office workers too!!

A Knit cafe is a cafe where you can knit, make new friends, take a knitting lesson
--all while enjoying your cup of coffee.

The trend started in New York, Knit New York is just one of the cafes that I found on the internet. I think the reason it is becoming popular here in Japan is because knitting is a great way to relax and make new friends (if you've ever lived in or been to Japan, you'll know what I'm talking about).

Happy Knitting!!