this and that

My foreigner card's expiration date is coming up, so last Friday, we went to get it renewed before we left for Kyoto.

We appreciated that we didn't need to wait in the long queue that was was snaking around out in front of the building, but what a mess it was inside!

No signage as to what needed to be done (probably more so because of the pandemic)...thankfully though we were in and out rather "quickly" (30 minutes give or take)...

These days whenever we go to Kyoto, we always pick up some doughnuts from Kamo Donuts.

They are kitty corner to where MIL lives, so we just run across the street and get our fix.

Since I was cleaning all day with SIL, I totally forgot to wear a mask when I went to get these (though I probably should have worn one with all that dust)...luckily the guy working there let me just cover my mouth with my hand and point at the showcase.

Another thing we eat whenever we are in Kansai is 551...

Since BIL had bought pizza for our lunch on Monday, Satoshi picked up an assortment of items from 551 for our lunch on Tuesday.

I was impressed that Satoshi remembered that MIL loved these anpan from Kokoroniamai Anpanya and picked some up for her.

We placed some on MIL's altar and we also enjoyed some too.

SIL said she has always wanted to try these but was never willing to line up for them, I'm glad she got to try them.

I thought I was pretty good at purging, but my SIL has proved that she is the queen of purging, so I brought back a few dishes from MIL's stash as they may not be there the next time we go to Kyoto for MIL's 49 day service in April...

Itami Airport got a face lift just as we moved to Tokyo in 2018, it was our first time seeing all the changes and we loved how spacious (and new) everything looked.

Tokyo's numbers seem to have plateaued in the 300 case range. 

When we went to Kyoto/Kansai by plane, I was shocked that it was a full flight.

Even if we all wore masks during the funeral and cremation, we did have meals with family (which was totally out of my pandemic comfort zone), so hopefully we all will be okay.

Have a safe weekend.

anzu shiso fuumi

Recently Hankyu Department Store had a Tohoku fair.

We picked up some bento for dinner (Yonezawa beef for me and salmon for Satoshi), iburigakko and anzu shiso fuumi.

If you recall, the iburigakko is a smoked pickle from Akita.

The anzu shiso fuumi (literally means perilla flavored apricot) and is a sweet-sour pickle/jam of sorts.

The taste reminds me of prune mui, a preserve we have in Hawaii.

We first tried this in Aomori, and reconnected with it at the fair.

This version is made by Kariya Shokuhin from Akita.

The owner, Mr Kariya, was a very friendly and good salesman.

So far, we've eaten it as is with breakfast and also chopped it up and added it to yogurt.

These apricot are also grown by Mr Kariya and he makes these with honey and shiso (perilla).

I think the syrup might be good on ice cream or pancakes.

What are you enjoying these days?

white bird coffee stand

Recently had my biennial ob-gyn (pap smear) appointment.

According to the doctor, everything looked okay except that I may have a fibroid.

She says there is nothing to worry about, but that I should still wait until all the results are back.

Lunch was at Whitebird Coffee Stand which was near the doctor's office.

They recently had biscuits and gravy on their menu, so I gave that I try.

Comfort food.

The gravy could've been warmer and a little less thick, but I enjoyed this.

kyushu fair

We shared this kuri (chestnut) sundae by a Kumamoto dairy at the Kyushu Fair being held at Hankyu Department Store.

Chestnut bits folded into the soft serve topped with two halves of a roasted chestnut.

We also came across a vendor from Oita prefecture selling fresh bambucha (huge) shiitake.

There were 3 of these in one styrofoam tray and we bought 2 trays.

The first time we cooked it in a non-stick pan then topped with a little butter and shoyu.

The second time was with a little shoyu and squeeze of sudachi (type of lime).

So good! and I'm glad we were able to help a little to get Kumamoto and other Kyushu areas get back on their feet after their natural disasters.

ringo

While I was in Hawaii during the summer, BAKE, opened up a new shop called Ringo, which means "apple" in Japanese.

These hand held apple pies are filled with apple and custard cream.

The crust is buttery and flaky.

The limit when buying is only four and the lines can be krazy.

But, I think the lines aren't as krazy as when BAKE opened just because they limit how many you can buy.

Anyway, we were lucky to be first ones in line the other day.

We'll be back.

Ringo
Lucua B1F
Umeda, Osaka
Phone: 06.6151.1284
Hours: 10:00-21:00
Open when Lucua is

refreshing

Hankyu Department Store in Umeda is having an Asian Fair.

All sorts of foods and knick-knacks from countries like Thailand, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Vietnam.

I recently tried this...called Ku-lon in Japanese, the kanji (chinese characters) translated to English is Kowloon.

The dessert is made by a shop called Hong Kong Sweets Ka Ka, apparently a Japanese company with shops in Tokyo.

Kanten (agar) orbs hold tiny pieces of fruits...blueberry, kiwi, mango, watermelon, as well as many others (in some photos online I spotted raspberries, strawberries) floating in a simple syrup.

I'm glad I tried this, I don't know if they actually have a dessert like this in Hong Kong but it was so refreshing and hit the spot on such a hot and humid day....540 yen (tax included).

saturday

Saturday I went to check out Kissa Sunshine. Kissa in Japanese means coffee shop.

On Tabelog, the reviewers mentioned that the place is usual filled with "salarymen" (business men) during the week which equals smoking...which equals "blah".

So, I went to check them out on Saturday...well, the hot cakes while delicious, there were people still smoking...I'm glad I checked this place out though, but won't be back because of the smoking.

To end on a happy note, I had this refreshing mango sparkling tea at All Day Coffee on Saturday too.

What made it even more delicious were the bits of fresh mango in the tea!

It is blazing hot, we even had to put the a/c on already and it is only May...summer is gonna be brutal.

lego

Since today is Children's Day, I'll post about the Lego exhibit we saw...

An area of Umeda was renovated and they had a Lego exhibit....

The Lego artist, Jumpei Mitsui recreated Koshien Stadium.

And a huge statue of Sanada Yukimura.

So cool to see.

From the Lego website...a photo of the artist, Jumpei Mitsui, holding a 5000-something piece maguro...amazing!

Have a nice weekend!

tempura makino

Friday, Satoshi had an appointment and would finish early, so we met up in Umeda for dinner at Tempura Makino.

This is part of the Marugame Udon chain except that this place only does tempura.

I ordered a beer while Satoshi ordered cold sake...boy, do they fill the container up to the rim!

Closer look.

In fact, when Satoshi moved to pour some into his ochoko (cup for sake), he spilled some...mottainai (what a waste!)

Satoshi's dinner had 8 tempura items plus asari-jiru (clam soup), while mine had 7 tempura items.

Satoshi had some different tempura items, so what I'm showing you is the ones I got to try.

Total for our dinner with our drinks was about 4200 yen (tax included).

A nice feature of our meal was this sakura salt...dehydrated sakura blossoms and salt...crush and use with your tempura, so delicious!

First up...shungiku (chrysanthemum leaves) with tiny shrimp...fried perfectly!

Sayori (half beak) & madai (red seabream)...forgot to take a photo before I started eating the madai...oops!

Highlight of the meal...tempura-ed...soft boiled egg!

Crisp around the edges and oozy yolk! so good!

bamboo shoot & nanohana(rape blossom).

Bummer that the bamboo shoot was on the tough side!

There was also a perfectly cooked shrimp but I forgot to take a photo of it...eep!

And Satoshi's asari-jiru (clam soup)..so many clams!

We really enjoyed this dinner. Everything is fried to order and comes out pretty steadily as you eat.

We'll be back!

Tempura Makino
Sanbangai 2F
Umeda, Osaka
Phone: 06.6372.0501
Hours: 10:30-23:00

le sucre-coeur

Last March, Le Sucre-Coeur moved from Kishibe to Umeda. (I've seen different sites that say they still have their Kishibe store...)

I visited them in Kishibe back in 2008.

Of course when they moved to Umeda, "everyone" went to check them out...so the lines were krazy.

Some waiting for over 2 hours to get in.

Last week, after my dentist appointment, I finally went to check them out.

I got there 10 minutes before opening and there was a line.

Not a huge line, but still a line.

I picked up their quiche dauphinoise (potato quiche), pâté and tuna sandwiches and half of their fig bread.

The quiche was so creamy and cheesy! They also added some bleu cheese to it...so good! The crust nice and flaky.

The sandwiches were delicious too. Very flavorful and there were also caramelized onions in the pâté sandwich too!

We tried the fig bread before and it didn't disappoint. Lots of dried figs in it.

I'm glad they are closer and hope to be back soon!

Le Sucre-Coeur
1-2-1 Dojimahama, Shin-Dai Building 1F
Kita-ku, Osaka
Phone: 06.6147.7779
Closed Sunday & Monday
Hours: 11:00-21:00

tsukasa

Met up with Mayumi the other day for lunch at Tsukasa.

Satoshi and I have eaten here a couple of times, and I thought I blogged about it, but apparently I never have.

This restaurant specializes in cuisine from the Tosa area (Kochi prefecture).

I ordered the yakisabazushi set...1280 yen (tax included).

The sushi rice has lots of yuzu in it.

Yuzu is also grown in Kochi prefecture.

The saba (mackerel) is grilled.

It was unusual to have a "warm" sushi but this was delicious!

The saba was smoky with lots of flavor.

My set also came with some simmered veggies, chawanmushi (savory custard) and miso soup.

Mayumi had their katsuo tataki set...1280 yen (tax included).

Katsuo Tataki, a specialty of the area, is bonito that is seared on the outside but keeping the inside raw.

The tataki is usually served with sliced onions, sliced garlic and ponzu (citrusy soy sauce).

This is also Satoshi's favorite.

Her set also came with grilled eggplant, simmered veggies and some other items I didn't catch.

It was nice catching up with her and I'm glad she invited me to meet up.

Thanks for a great day!

Tsukasa
Hankyu Sanbangai B2, South Wing
Umeda, Osaka
Phone: 06.6372.8815
Hours: 11:00-22:00
Open when Sanbangai is

tsukada farm

Yesterday, it was blazing! Satoshi went to watch the Hanshin Tigers minor league at Koshien Stadium.

I decided to hang out at the mall across the street.

Since the game finished at about 16:30, we headed back to Umeda for an early dinner at Tsukada Farm.

Dinner started out with tsukedashi (stuff you don't order but have to pay for)...a chicken meatball soup. The meatball was super moist and the soup really flavorful.

We ordered their Ramen salad...the last time we had ramen salad was in Otaru.

This one had spicy meat topping. I liked this version better than the one in Otaru.

Pork ginger. They actually called it a ginger Genghis Khan. But it was more like a skillet type of pork ginger.

Deep fried squid legs with a dollop of mayo and sprinkle of shichimi (7-spice chili powder).

And a really mini Tokachi slider. Super juicy and moist burger.

Dinner was tasty and costed WAY less than the night before. Not sure that we would go back here though, as it was quite noisy...every time someone ordered something or came in and out of the restaurant the waiters/waitresses would shout out something...

Hope you have a nice weekend!

Tsukada Farm
Hankyu Grand Building 30F
Umeda, Osaka
Phone: 06.6316.5010
Hours: 17:00-24:00

white bird coffee stand

I've had this place bookmarked for a while now.

It doesn't open too early so I usually end up having coffee at other places.

Saturday, since I had some time to spare, I finally went to check them out.

The GPS on my phone got me a bit lost.

Tucked on a corner under large highways and walkways, I finally found them.

Since it was about lunchtime, I tried their hot dog.

This is served on a toasted rye bun.

They also put a lot of ketchup and yellow mustard on.

And aonori (green seaweed)...at first I had thought it was parsley but realized the nori gave the tangy mustard and ketchup a sweetness...kind of like baked glazed ham.

As always, Japanese sausages have a nice snap.

Since the weather during the daytime is still rather stiffling, I had an iced coffee.

While I was there, there wasn't much foot traffic, I liked the quietness of the place.

I'll be back.

White Bird Coffee Stand
2-1-12 Sonezaki, Kokudo Building #102
Kita-ku, Osaka
Phone: 06.6809.3769
Open Everyday: 11:00-23:00 (M-S), 11:00-22:00 (Su)

que rico

Dinner was at Que Rico which opened a shop in Lucua 1100. I've had this place on my list "to try" for awhile.

Their amuse bouche (the stuff that comes out without you ordering it) were these chips and salsa...200 yen per person...um, for that price I think we should've received at least another plate.

Satoshi ordered the SOL beer 650 yen...meh, he wasn't impressed and switched to Sapporo beer (450 yen) afterwards.

I ordered a strawberry margarita...600 yen (cute, yeah?!)

We ordered a plate of nachos...650 yen. Good flavor, just not enough food...

Tako ceviche...500 yen. Super spicy.

More tomatoes than tako.

Shrimp Ajillo...500 yen.

Two large shrimps and some teeny shrimp and some mushrooms.

Overall, the flavors were good just not enough food for the price.

Sadly, I don't think we'll be back here again.

Que Rico
Lucua 1100 Bar Chika (B2F)
Umeda, Osaka
Phone: 06.6151.1546
Hours: 11:00-24:00, open when Lucua 1100 is.

le weekend

Recently, a huge Tsutaya opened up at the new Lucua 1100.

Tsutaya is mostly known for its video rental shops but has recently emerged with bookstore/cafes.

This particular Tsutaya is a bookstore/cafe. The interior is rather dark but there are tons of seats for you to grab a coffee and browse their books.

I particularly like that they open at 7:00, perfect for when I go to Umeda when Satoshi has his German class. We usually get there before 9:30 and the amount of places serving breakfast at this time is quite limited.

In Tsutaya there is a Starbucks and a cafe called Le Garage.

I tried Le Garage's blueberry bread pudding and an iced coffee...650 yen (tax included).

The bread pudding was dense and not too sweet and there were lots of blueberries in it.

The iced coffee was good.

I hope to hang out here more often.

Krazy salaryman (businessman) left his bag at the table next to mine and went MIA for over 30 minutes...he should've paid me to watch his bag!

People in Japan way too trusting...

Sunday we went to check out the roses at Aramaki Rose Park. We've been coming here since 2006.

We love getting to the park right when it opens so we can eat our breakfast in peace and quiet.

This place is getting quite popular, there were tons of people when we arrived on Sunday!

Our breakfast was spam egg onigirazu, cherries, pickles, cherry tomato & island lava cookies. I also made hot coffee for Satoshi and a coldbrew for me.

Am loving the fish eye lens.

How was your weekend?

craft beer house molto

Yesterday was a holiday, but Satoshi had to work so I met him for dinner in Umeda.

We checked out Craft Beer House Molto.

They have many craft beers from around Japan on tap.

You choose how much you want to drink...small (about 240ml), medium (about 450ml) and large (about 660ml)

And which beer you want to drink.

I started with Iwatekura's Oyster Stout (small) I liked the full body of this beer.

Satoshi also ordered a dark beer called Schwartz (medium), his seemed a bit watery.

The amuse bouche (tsukidashi--stuff you didn't order but are expected to pay for) was a jar of mixed nuts (pistachio, cashew & corn nuts)

Haven't eaten corn nuts in awhile, so good!

Buri (amberjack) carpaccio was the carpaccio of the day.

I liked the oiliness of this fish. They serve it with a gelee type dressing.

Assorted smoked items.

These come to the table on a smoking platter. Most of the items have been smoked previously keeping the meats/seafoods half raw.

This platter had tako (octopus), hotate (scallop), sasami (chicken breast), pork and salmon.

Under the salmon is a dollop of their potato salad.

Margherita pizza...tiny 4 or 5 inch.

The bottom was super crispy and the crust chewy.

Delicious.

By this time, Satoshi had had another beer (medium) (I cannot remember what) and ordered another one (medium) with my Isekadoya's Yuzu beer (small).

The yuzu beer started off with a nice yuzu aroma, but then the yuzu got to be too perfumy for my liking.

The view from the 31st floor was wonderful.

The weather was overcast, so the sunset was meh!

Total damage was a little over 8000 yen (the beers are what makes this place pricey). If you aren't a beer drinker they also have wines and cocktails too.

Make reservations if possible, they don't have that many seats and especially if you want to be seated by the windows!

We'll be back for special occasions...

Craft Beer House Molto
Hankyu Grand Building 31F
Kita-ku, Osaka
Phone: 06.6809.2641 (info), 050.5868.3983(reservations)
Lunch: 11:30-15:00, Dinner: 17:00-23:30
Open when Hankyu Grand Building is