dumbo doughnuts & coffee

Been wanting to try Dumbo Doughnuts & Coffee for some time now but their main shop is in Azabujuban and we aren't in that area too often

So, when I went to Jiyugaoka, I checked out that location instead 

order at the counter and pay

I tried their toasted coconut doughnut and iced coffee...950 yen (tax included)

Their doughnuts are huge! like 5 or 6 inches across!

The texture is airy and a little chewy

I enjoyed their coffee too.

they also have free wi-fi and places to charge your phone

I'm glad I tried this shop and look forward to trying other flavors in the future

I'll be back

Dumbo Doughnuts & Coffee

5-42-3 Okusawa

Setagaya, Tokyo

Open daily: 8:00-21:00 (Doughnuts are sold from 9:00)

takashimaya futakotamagawa

near my dentist is Takashimaya Futakotamagawa

I've always seen people sitting here

I recently learned that there is Wi-Fi here, so it is convenient when waiting for someone

or for your dentist appointment...ha! 

in the corridor that links the south building to the main building they always have flowers and often have contests to win the flowers that they have on display

I thought these begonias were interesting!

unusual too!

and I saw this guy carrying his furry one in this teeny carrier!

The chihuahua was barking quite a bit, I think it was mad that its carrier was too small!

so fun to people watch...

p.s. it is still raining in Japan.

Chiba had flooding again and many other parts of Japan too

I know Hawaii has a hurricane coming...stay safe everyone!

this and that

we saw these cuties at the big intersection outside of Tsukiji
 

their parents let us take photos of them

took a photo of this tall apartment building back in 2020

just learned they will tear it down soon...sad!

since there was a typhoon on Satoshi's birthday, I wasn't able to get him cake, so I took him to Cafe Vanni's this past Sunday

Danshari-ed (purged) my Hello Kitty collection (there were too many to upload)...Eco Ring bought them for 100 yen a piece...

this was the chili I used for the potatoes

It was made in Spain

I like the flavor of this but it was a little too salty

I halved the can with Satoshi but think maybe I should add some water to dilute it next time

found another bag that lets you tear it midway I prefer crispy apples, these weren't but happy that they were from Aomori prefecture

found this camembert cheese that has bleu cheese in the middle, tasty!

pikake (jasmine) season

and gardenia (kuchinashi) season

haven’t bought ketchup in many years, used some when we ate our hash browns, will use it to make hoisin sauce chicken/pork soon

checked out a new (to me) food court near my dentist

they had Pizza Slice, the pizza I enjoyed when friend Val was in town

This slice wasn't as crisp as the one I enjoyed but was still tasty

I want to go back to try the other vendors in the food court

Sunday, Tokyo started rainy season. Apparently this year is La Niña so we started rainy season with rain

The gloomy clouds has been a bit depressing, but the cooler weather has been nice

Hope you have a safe weekend

setagaya ume matsuri

Monday was a national holiday, the Emperor's birthday, so we headed out to Setagaya, to check out the ume festival at Hanegi Park

We had heard about this park from a tv show and V also went here earlier in the week.
 

There were many ume trees 

If the air were clearer, we would've been able to see Mount Fuji

Setagaya people

robai (waxy plum/wintersweet)...love the fragrance!

we were kind of hungry, so we bought these ume daifuku made by Kameya Shoten...300 yen each...bummer they never take out the seed!

Near the station was Kyo-azuma, another Japanese sweet shop that we had seen as we walked toward the park

(It wasn’t open when we passed by, but was open when we were making our way back to the train station) 

We tried their ume daifuku...250 yen each...way better because the ume did not have any seeds and instead of white bean paste, this version had azuki bean paste

Apparently their main shop was in Azabu Juban, but when I looked online it had gone out of business

Lunch was at Sekiya Spaghetti Express inside the JR Shinagawa Station, we've eaten here before

This time I tried their napolitan...love! not sickly sweet like some versions can be

I noticed they also have take out, so I hope to try it when I’m not in the mood to cook

The weather was nice, temps are up, up, up!

It was a nice way to end a 3 day weekend

Hanegi Park

4-38 Daita

Setagaya, Tokyo

Kyo-azuma

5-3-11 Matsubara

Setagaya, Tokyo

Closed: Tuesdays

Hours: 8:00-19:00

*cash only

craft chocolate works

From Flour & Water, I walked to Craft Chocolate Works, which I've had on my "to try" list for some time now.
 

I purchased their blood orangette and cacao nib financier...2750 yen (tax included) for both

The blood orangette was delicious, they candy the blood orange peel and then dip it into chocolate

The cacao nib financier was delicious too, not too sweet and lots of nibs on top

Walking to the shop, this area reminded me of some areas in Minoo that I used to walk through

Found some wisteria too.

Setagaya Park was huge!

I stumbled upon Jakuzure River Green Way, a 3 kilometer (1.86 mile) walking route

I didn't walk any of it, I just wanted to see...

this huge wisteria that seemed to be dangling from a cherry (blossom) tree

Spotted more wisteria in front of someone's house

Blazing! but lots of walking and exploring

I’ll be back to the chocolate shop whenever I am nearby

Craft Chocolate Works

2-7-4 Ikejiri

Setagaya, Tokyo

Closed: Mondays & Tuesdays

Hours: 11:00-18:00

amicono gelateria

Have been wanting to try Amicono Gelateria ever since seeing them on “7 rules”, a television show that showcases females (mostly businesswomen) and shares the 7 rules that they follow in their daily life

This shop is in Jiyugaoka, but with the pandemic plus their opening time (12 noon) we’ve have never been able to eat there.

The owner believes that you should eat her gelato with both hands, so she doesn’t open on rainy days

She was recently selling a Valentine’s set, so I ordered it for us to try.

The set of 4 is about 1/4 cup each.

Cioccolato (top left) dark cocoa (black) mixed with Valrhona chocolate…super rich

Amor (top right) this is chocolate mixed with organic lavender. I know there are people who don’t like the taste of lavender in their food, but we loved this! super floral

Bacio (bottom left) chocolate and hazelnut, this is her Italian mentor’s recipe. So much hazelnut flavor, love!

Cacao Sale (bottom right) Milk based gelato with chocolate cookies and hints of Nagasaki Goto Island salt, delicious!

I’m glad we tried these and hope to get to try more at her shop

Amicono Gelateria

5-27-9 Okusawa

Setagaya, Tokyo

Hours: 12:00-18:00

*check social media to be sure they are open

oxymoron

Tried Oxymoron's Ethnic Soboro Curry the other night.

We tried Oxymoron when we were in Osaka, their main shop is in Kamakura and they also have one in Tokyo.

And we've tried their caponata , spice cereal and caramel custard recipes from their recipe books.

The Tokyo department store they are located in is renovating, so they are only selling takeout these days.

The fish sauce and the greens are chinese parsley, shiso, green onion and mizuna made this fragrant

Just heat up the rice and soboro (minced meat) and sprinkle the greens, squeeze the lemon and enjoy!

Would get this again, and look forward to eating at the restaurant when the renovations are over.

boulangerie sudo

Boulangerie Sudo has been on my “to try” list from back when we lived in Osaka.

Since moving to Tokyo, we've passed by this bakery several times and it always had a line, especially on weekends.

And then the pandemic hit, now they don’t have enough workers, so they had to cut back the days they open.

Which means they now have lines all the time.

Recently they posted on IG that they would start taking orders for their stollen.
 

You could order online, but there would be additional costs.

So I decided to go stand in line… I got there a little before opening time and there was at least 40 people in front of me!

They only allow 7 people in at one time, little did I know that it would take me almost two hours to get into the shop!

By the time it was my turn, pickings were slim.

I chose their potato grilled chicken tartine, chestnut financier, coconut sable & curry cube...1425 yen (tax included)

FYI this was the line outside the bakery as I was waiting for the train, hope everyone still had something left to buy.

The chicken tartine was delicious!

Large slices of potato and grilled chicken with bechamel sauce and cheese on a crisp toasted baguette...love!

side view

Chestnut financier, this had a whole chestnut in it.

Curry cube was super savory and coconut sable had lots of coconut in it

Would definitely try to go early to be able to try other items.

Looking forward to trying their stollen which I’ll go pick up in a couple of weeks.

Boulangerie Sudo

4-3-14 Setagaya

Setagaya, Tokyo

Hours: 11:00-19:00

*only open Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays

*cash only