Just a few more images of this tachi-nomi hole-in-the-wall bar/taqueria, as mentioned in the Tokyo Food File last week.
I like the style. I like the hours. I like the prices. I like the hand-rolled/grilled cornmeal tacos (though the soggy burritos are rather less successful). But as for the 'cocktails' — thank you Coca-Cola but I can live without kalimotxos.
Here's a map link...
Greg Doyle, chef/owner of Pier restaurant in Sydney’s Rose Bay today renounced his three chefs hats in the Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide.
This is an interesting development on several levels, and requires a bit of discussion.
With this announcement, he implies that it is his decision whether he keeps his three hats or not, which of course it isn’t.
via blogs.smh.com.au
Plenty of comments and kerfuffle on this piece by Terry Durak in the Sydney Morning Herald... I can't imagine any of Tokyo's 3-star establishments handing back their stars to Michelin...
Time for a Japan Times 'Good Food Guide' — perhaps with 3-chopsticks awards?
It's an ordinary-looking outlet on the basement floor of Tokyu Honten. On one side it sells a range of Chinese prepared foods and bento. On the other is a small noodle counter. Despite what it says on the menu — just a few strips of wood hung on the wall — the noodles are not so much ramen as Chinese-style tangmien.
What I like is that the noodles are light; the broth is prepared from jidori chicken, and is very light and fragrant; and there's a choice of toppings — either steamed chicken breast; chashu pork; or abalone, cooked very soft and not in the slightest bit chewy. The menma is also served on a side dish, rather than on top of the noodles (as you'd find at most ramen shops).
I've had the shoyu 'ramen' with abalone on several occasions, and always enjoyed it. I also rate the spicy (but not too fiery) tantanmen, which seems to go best with the chashu (the chicken and abalone are too delicate for that kind of heat). I've not tried the okayu, but it looks good. In summer they also offer chilled noodles with seafood (kaisen hiyashi-chuka) which is most refreshing.
This evening I discovered their 'zensai set' — a selection of three fried gyoza and a plate of three vegetable-based appetizers, with a can of Yebisu. Chotto zeitaku ("just a touch of luxury"), as the marketing long-running slogan for the beer would have it...
The name of the place is Shinkyo-tei [新橋帝]; it's on the depachika (B1) floor; this branch is open from 10 am to 8 pm. Here's a link...
And this is the link for the main restaurant, in Shinbashi...
Sausages and fizzy beer...
...and the heady perfume (some would use another less complimentary noun) of durian...
That can only mean one thing: the Laos Festival was back in Yoyogi Park last Saturday.
It's much less crowded and commercial than the Thai festival (which took place the previous weekend). And although there were plenty of Thai (and Indian) food stalls, the best kao niao and spicy pork larb were at the stall operated by the Lao Embassy. But the longest lines were at the Beerlao tents...
Lager or black, it's far from being premium beer. But when the sausages are spicy and the air is hot and humid — it felt almost as muggy as Vientiane on Saturday — who cares?
The fruit stalls were popular too, especially those selling mangos and mangosteens.
But the bright purple dragonfruit were the most colorful fruit on display.
Apart from the crooner on stage in his silver lame suit, that is!
Frijoles in Azabu-Juban, as featured in the Japan Times today... The first specialist taqueria in the city and it's fine. Flavors are a bit toned down — this is Japan, after all, and palates are not as inured to capsaicinoids. And it's true the salsa is anemic. But I still give Frijoles a thumbs-up. And even if it's not worth travelling across town for, that may not be necessary in future if they spawn franchises (as seems apparent from their web site here...)
Here's a map link...
Food writer and restaurant reviewer for the Japan Times contact: foodfile (at) me (dot) com
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