The Tasty Traveler (2024)

30/10/2024

This menu is almost 300 years old!

Recently, I was invited to try a meal based on a menu written in 1728! This is the exact meal the Tokugawa Sh**un ate on his pilgrimage to Nikko on April 13th, 1728. This travel meal was served on the first stop the long walk to Nikko, at Shakujōji Temple in Kawaguchi, Saitama.

Recreated by Edo cuisine experts, this meal of rice, fish and tofu would have been considered pretty special in the 1700s. It was considered especially extravagant with the addition of pepper and sugar, ingredients only available to the upper class at that time.

Traditional Japanese cooking has developed a lot since 1728, but this travel bento is not so different from a bento you might pick up at the grocery store today. With a generous portion of rice, plenty of protein and attention to presentation, this meal is fit for both the Sh**un and modern day travelers.

13/06/2024

Kakigori at Parlor Vinefru 🍧

Here’s one of my favorite places to get kakigori, aka Japanese shaved ice, in Ginza.

Located on the third floor, the cafe looks out onto the street from its open balcony style dinning area. Parlor Vinefru offers kakigori and pancakes, but since I usually visit in the summer I always go for the kakigori!

While they have a few regular flavors, they also have a lot of seasonal specials to try. I really like their pistachio strawberry, and I also enjoyed the super refreshing chocolate mint kakigori.

They have an English menu available. The best time to go is during the day on weekdays; be warned the line can get very long on weekends, especially on hot summer days!

📍Parlor Vinefru 銀座
〒104-0061 Tokyo, Chuo City, Ginza, 1 Chome−20−10 3F

📷 2020, 2024

13/04/2024

Yakiniku in Ginza 🥩

No trip to Japan is complete without sampling wagyu, aka Japanese beef! And the best way to try some of the highest quality beef in the world is by enjoying yakiniku.

Visiting a yakiniku restaurant like Yakiniku Azasu in Ginza is a great introduction to the world of Japanese beef. Up on the 11th floor, Yakiniku Azasu offers DIY yakiniku with a city view.

The counter along the windows are lined with round grills, so customers can cook their premium beef to their liking. However, when beef is this good, sometimes the best way to enjoy it is raw!

Here’s the course we got to sample: it started with a salad, complete with little slices of cheese in the shape of a cow. This was followed by “mille-feuille yukhoe”, an interesting take on a beef tartar, and some fantastic beef sushi.

After that, we enjoyed three different grilled dishes: one with lemon, premium cuts of beef, and a “sukiyaki” style dish with beef dipped in raw egg. We ended the meal with a beef ochazuke, aka beef over rice with broth.

The beef sushi was my favorite part, it was so buttery and delicious! But I’m also such a sucker for sukiyaki, so I really enjoyed that too.

Despite the high end beef, the restaurant is comfortable with friendly staff and cheeky “moo” sound that’s triggered by people arrive at the entrance. Menus and explanations are available in English, and Yakiniku Azasu is eager to welcome visitors to experience Japanese beef!

You can book Yakiniku Azasu through the affiliate link in my bio. If you visit, be sure to tag me and let me know what you think!

📍Yakiniku Azasu, Ginza

📷 11.04.24

12/04/2024

Sakura fubuki in Nagoya 🌸

This week we went to visit Nagoya. Despite the forecast calling for rain, we were greeted with a beautiful, sunny day as we explored Nagoya castle.

Even though it didn’t rain, it was super windy, which made the sakura petals blow off the trees. Sometimes the wind was so strong we saw little sakura tornados.

When the cherry blossoms start to fall, it’s call “sakura fubuki”. It’s a beautiful thing to experience, and it’s fun to try to catch the petals as they fall.

I’m very excited to share all about our trip to Nagoya, and all the tasty treats we ate there!

📍 Nagoya Castle
1-1 Honmaru, Naka Ward, Nagoya, Aichi 460-0031

📷 09.04.24

16/02/2024

Birthday wish at Sakura Jingū Shrine 🌸

The two beautiful early blooming Kawazu-zakura trees at this pretty shrine may not be in full bloom yet, but I wanted to stop by today to visit and pray for good luck on my birthday.

I bought a cute pink ribbon to tie onto the tree, but realized while writing out my wish that I didn’t have much to wish for… because I’m already living my dream life. So I just wrote a message of thanks instead.

Ten years ago was one of the lowest points of my life- if that 24 year old version of me could see where I am now, she wouldn’t believe it. I’m so thankful to be where I am today.

Thank you to everyone for all your support and kind words.

📍 Sakura Jingū Shrine
3 Chome-21-3 Shinmachi, Setagaya City, Tokyo 154-0014

📷 16.02.24 .f

#桜神宮

16/02/2024

Strawberry and pistachio croissant 🍓

The other day I stoped by Yellow, a cute little cafe in Setagaya that makes fresh croissants. I ordered their winter special, which is this delectable croissant with fresh strawberries and pistachio cream, along with a hot chai latte.

The croissant was so flaky and buttery! And the fillings were the perfect blend of sweetness without overpowering the light pastry.

The lighting inside the cafe was beautiful, and I enjoyed a nice break from my walk here.

📍 Yellow CAFE
Tokyo, Setagaya City, Daizawa, 4 Chome−17−19 Ｎビル

📷 13.02.24

#東京カフェ巡り #東京カフェ

31/12/2023

Happy New Year everyone!

I hope your year was full of fun travel and delicious food! Feel free to share a photo of a cool place you visited or a tasty meal you ate in 2023.

I’ll start- one of the coolest places I traveled to this year was the Tsumekizaki columnar joints towards in the southern part of the Izu peninsula! I really enjoyed scrambling around these rock formations.

23/10/2023

My favorite temple in Kyoto.

Visiting Kyoto can be overwhelming. Since it’s such a popular tourist destination, many are disappointed to find that the serene, photo-perfect Arashiyama bamboo forest looks more like a packed commuter train than a peaceful path though greenery.

For a more peaceful experience in the Arashiyama area, I highly recommend visiting Jojakko-ji Temple after walking through the bamboo forest. You’d be amazing how many tourists a 500 yen entrance fee keeps out! Quit and beautiful, Jōjakkō-ji boast an impressive and diverse mix of greenery, from rare flowers to their own mini bamboo path. Climb the stairs to the top for a great view of the city below.

No matter how many times I visit and explore Kyoto, I often find myself coming back here.

To find this temple, head north for about five minutes after exiting the Arashiyama bamboo forest. After visiting the temple, be sure to take a break at the nearby Ogura Chaya cafe .ogurachaya for a delicious bowl of udon or a sweet treat and matcha drink.

📍 Jojakko-ji Temple
3 Sagaogurayama Oguracho, Ukyo Ward, Kyoto, 616-8397

📷 06.10.23

05/10/2023

The art of yakiniku. 🔥

I was kindly invited to try a recently opened 焼肉割烹ノ音 , a yakiniku restaurant in Azabu. Yakiniku literally just means grilled meat, but at a high-end restaurant it becomes so much more.

Featuring sanriku kinka wagyu from Iwate prefecture, we were able to try a wide variety of cuts, including tenderloin, filet mignon, sirloin, and even raw heart (photo 4). The preparation methods included grilling, slow cooking, and sumi-yaki (first photo- pressing burning wood to the surface of the meat).

Every dish was an explosion of thoughtful flavors. Each preparation method of the wagyu highlighted the beefs tender texture and rich taste. Being able to watch the preparation from the counter helped enhance the anticipation for each dish.

It was a truly enjoyable meal. I highly recommend trying a luxury yakiniku experience in Tokyo, and take this chance to enjoy this place before it becomes members only!

My favorite photo is the last one; let me know which one you like!

📍焼肉割烹ノ音
〒106-0045 Tokyo, Minato City, Azabujuban, 2 Chome−9−5 遠上ビル 1F

📷 13.10.23
Photos by myself and .f

01/09/2023

Kuro wagyu on a 💙 shaped island!

We took a day trip to Kuroshima, the small, heart shaped island south of Ishigaki, to bike and explore.

Kuro wagyu, aka Japanese black beef, is the specialty of Kuroshima. There are more cows than people on this small island, with 13 cows for every one resident. Calves of these black cows are sent across Japan to be raised for high quality wagyu.

While biking around Kuroshima, we stoped at Undoya, a local cafe serving up the islands beef in a tasty homemade curry! They also offer asa soba, a noodle dish served with a heap of asa seaweed.

The curry was super flavorful, and had lots of shredded local Kuro beef. The lemon soda I ordered with it was refreshing and helped cut some of the spice. Everything we had was tasty, and it was fun to chat with the man who ran the place.

📍 Undoya
1552 Kuroshima, Taketomi, Yaeyama District, Okinawa 907-1311

📷 18.07.23

11/08/2023

Happy Mountain Day 🗻🇯🇵

Mt. Fuji has countless beautiful views, and seeing sunset over the mountain framed with early sakura was particularly colorful and picturesque.

📍 Nishihirabatake Park
2951 Matsudasoryo, Matsuda, Ashigarakami District, Kanagawa 258-0003

📷 22.02.21 .f

15/06/2023

Bye bye East Tokyo. 💙

I know I haven’t shared a post in a while, but that’s because I’ve been going through a lot of big life changes.

The first was moving! After 5 years of living in East Tokyo, I’ve packed up and moved to another part of the city. I will miss the Sh*tamachi (downtown) area, but I’m excited to explore new places and experience a new side of Tokyo.

Here are just a few snapshots from the many, many walks I went on during my time living in Katsushika and Edogawa.

19/03/2023

Yellow plum blossoms 💛

I know it’s already time for sakura, but frengence wise nothing can beat plum blossoms! The Fuchu Forest Park has a wide variety of plum blossoms, including these early blooming and sweet smelling yellow plum blossoms.

I really like the Fuchu Forest Park because it’s 1) huge 2) not too crowded and 3) beautiful in any season! Along with many plum trees, the park also has sakura, hydrangeas, and spider lilies.

📍 Fuchu City Local History Museum of Forest 府中市郷土の森博物館
〒183-0026 Tokyo, Fuchu, Minamicho, 6 Chome−3-2

📷 12.2.23 .f
Edit by yours truly

10/03/2023

Pretty mimosa and early sakura 🌸

Kurumae shrine has one of the prettiest combinations of early spring blooming trees- the bright yellow mimosa and deep pink Kawazu sakura. Mimosa is a symbol of international women’s day (May 8th) since it blooms around the same time.

This gorgeous spot attracts many photographers and can get very busy. My friend and I arrived around 7:45 am, and by 8:15 am the place was already buzzing with people!

As this is a quite, neighborhood shrine please remember to be respectful of the area while visiting!

And an important note- the mimosa I’m holding was purchased by my friend at a flower shop- never rip, pull, shake or damage the beautiful trees when trying to get a photo! Bringing props along and using unique perspective can help you take great photo without damaging the trees or flowers.

📍 Kuramae-jinja Shrine
〒111-0051 Tokyo, Taito City, Kuramae, 3 Chome−14−11 蔵前神社

📷 10.03.23
Edit by yours truly

10/03/2023

Wrote up a quick article for work, but it’s full of good news and pretty photos from the Nakameguro cherry blossom festival!

20/02/2023

Feeling very grateful 🌸

Thank you to everyone who helped celebrate my birthday! I had an amazing time and am so grateful for all the wonderful friends I have, both in Japan and around the world. ❤️

📍Gongendo Tsutsumi 権現堂堤
887-3 Uchigouma, Satte, Saitama 340-0103

📷 04.22 .f

08/02/2023

Hospitality in Ouchi-juku 🌨️

It was so nice to visit this shop in Ouchi-juku, Fukushima! Kanouya is a shop selling tsukemono, aka pickled vegetables, other fermented foods and cute handmade souvenirs.

It was snowing heavily during our visit, so it was great to warm up with a free cup of tea and sample all the tasty tsukemono at the shop. The tsukemono is very tasty, and the owners are so friendly to talk to!

We bought this tasty spicy miso mix to enjoy with rice, and were gifted a cute little negi magnet and some mikan. The generosity and friendliness of the people at this shop was really touching, and I really appreciate having experiences like this while traveling!

Big thanks to Donny, who introduced me to this shop!

📍本家叶屋大内宿お土産
〒969-5207 Fukushima, Minamiaizu District, Shimogo, Ouchi, Yamamoto−4 8

📷 02.22

06/02/2023

USA style brunch at Jade5 🥞

To all my ladies who love brunch, and my fellow North Americans missing a taste of home, Jade5 is the perfect spot to satisfy that craving.

Offering up western brunch favorites like breakfast burritos, omelets, eggs Benedict, waffles and pancakes, as well as lunch options like sandwiches and burgers, it’s tough to choose what to indulge in.

But I’ll make it easy for you- order whatever you want, but don’t miss out on adding bacon and a side order of plain pancakes! The bacon is nice and crispy, and the pancakes are the perfect, buttery USA style pancakes that rival any good pancake place in the States. Trust me on this- you’ll thank me later!

Ofc, we love a Japanese fluffy pancake here, but just like Italian pizza and USA pizza they might as well be different foods, and both are delicious in their own way.

I’ve tried the eggs Benedict, breakfast burrito and pancakes. My friends have enjoyed everything they ordered there, excepting the omelet which one friend was not a fan off. I’ve also tried their banana bread (sold for takeout) which was solid.

One thing to be aware of: this place is tiny! They only have seats for about 10ish people, so it’s best to just go with one other person, and a group larger than 3 is a squeeze. Expect a wait, especially on the weekends.

If you’ve tried Jade5, let me know what your favorite dish is!

📍 Breakfast & Brunch Jade5
5 Chome-17-6 Hiroo, Shibuya City, Tokyo 150-0012

📷 02.23

The Tasty Traveler

30/10/2024

13/06/2024

13/04/2024

12/04/2024

16/02/2024

16/02/2024

31/12/2023

23/10/2023

05/10/2023

01/09/2023

11/08/2023

15/06/2023

19/03/2023

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