80*80 – eating locally

So what do you do when you get to the Red Brick Warehouse and find the queue to get into bills stretching around the block? 

There are some ideas here and here. This is my favourite place in the neighbourhood — well, back closer to Bashamichi Station — the funky friendly healthy wholesome 80*80 (that's pronounced 'hachi-maru hachi-maru').

Not organic but tending that way; not vegetarian (though quite a lot of their food is): It's all about the carbon footprint. The idea is that 80 percent of the food ingredients they cook and serve are sourced from within 80 kilometers — as shown on the blackboard behind the counter. 

But the bottom line is that it's just good simple home cooking. Here's a curry I had the other day... The curry itself is made from a base of 'ratatouille'; the spinach greens were justly lightly cooked; the rice was a mix of white and unpolished red rice — very tasty.