JaPancakes

Went to Denny's for breakfast with my wife. This month they're having a pancake buffet: YEA!
But...

...as you can see, it's only in the afternoon. That's right, on Planet Japan, pancakes are a high-calorie afternoon comestible enjoyed primarily by prim, single young "office ladies" and idle students. 

Breakfast? How about some fish, rice, or if you're feeling modern, a sandwich?

Alright, Denny's is pretty international. 
You can get eggs and "bacon" in the morning. 
French toast.
Non-French toast.
You can even get pancakes...

think you can finish all that?

Not one, but two pancakes...almost as bit as my hand! And served with an extra-large thimble of syrup (practically half-full).

Now, they're featuring something called and Eggslut...they say it's all the rage in LA. Soft-boiled egg on mashed potatoes with toast. Actually pretty good. 

Natural Stupidity

Police, EMTs, and good drivers will all tell you that there's a mysterious force of nature that can only be described as stupidity. There are some mornings that from the moment you leave your driveway/parking space you can see it's going to be "one of those days" where random stupidity is thick and heavy. Bikes weaving through traffic, pedestrians wandering out in front of cars, all bumping into each other, and drivers seemingly auditioning for YouTube. I've heard speculation that atmospheric conditions can effect behavior. I'd like to see it tracked and included in weather forecasts. If this morning was any indicator, I'd tell everyone in the Saitama/Tokyo area to be extra careful today because it was stupiding cats & dogs this morning! If it is in fact a dumb-front, it could last through the weekend, with a possibility of a flash-fool warning. Already I had a bike hit my car while I was waiting at a red light, I barely avoided hitting three more imbecycles, and the roads were like a zombie apocalypse with all the wandering pedestrians. Put your smart phones away, be alert, and expect lots of stupid because I'm already hearing more ambulances than usual.

Secret Town Hidden in Tokyo Park

Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum:
A Secret Town Hidden in a Tokyo Park

It's hard to believe something like this is as unknown as it is!

Somewhere in the heart of Koganei park is buried a 200 year old neighborhood. What's more, hardly anyone here seems to know about it.

The Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural, or tatemonoen hereafter (the Japanese name), is a massive preservation model neighborhood surrounded by an even more massive recreational park in the western suburbs of Tokyo. It's further cleverly obscured by things like hedges and fields so effectively that among the numerous Tokyoites I know, barely a handful have ever even heard of it.

What is it?

In order to preserve Tokyo's cultural heritage, with particular awareness of the natural disasters that often threaten Japan's buildings, they have amassed a collection of historical homes, buildings, restorations and model structures dating all the way back to the Edo period.

One of the coolest things is that you can walk into and explore all these buildings.
The smells. The textures. The sound of old floorboards (and sod) under foot. It's a full-sensory trip back in time. We have one like this back in Dallas, but not this impressive. I first discovered it chaperoning my son's school field trip there years ago.

The buildings are exquisitely maintained and are also well furnished. Old dial phones, vintage furniture, working hand-pumps. For younger visitors it's like visiting another planet.

Old house with sod floor and working cooking pit

Seen here is an old thatched-roof house with a sod floor and a working cooking pit.
When my son's class visited, one of the volunteers, an elderly grandmother in period costume was tending the pit and telling stories to anyone who'd listen. The half of the class who understood Japanese were immediately gathered around the fire, mesmerized. But there are plenty of staff and volunteers who speak English, and other languages.

coffee house

For history buffs, every building is well-notated with bilingual plaques explaining whose home it was and why it's significant. Pictured above is one of the bigger homes with gorgeous interiors and a nice coffee shop with crepes and cakes.

Restored bathhouse

Go early and plan on making a day of it. Every time we go, we run out of time. In addition to the buildings, they have two museum halls where they hold periodic exhibitions like the current Ghibli exhibit that runs till the end of 2014. This alone is worth going for. For an additional fee you can see two sizable exhibits of Ghibli studio's architectural art and models. Ghibli, if the name doesn't ring a bell, is the studio that created Hayao Miyazaki's animated films like Spirited Away and My Neighbor Totoro. Google it. Thought the artwork, sketches, designs and animation cells are only notated in Japanese they're still stunning on their own. They show us just how much work went into these amazing films. And moreover, they have a number of large-scale models of some of the more popular Ghibli locations, like a 3 meter tall, highly detailed model of the Aburaya bathhouse from Spirited Away.

They also have late hours for one weekend in November where you can see the buildings lit up at night. We're planning on taking that in this year. 

town square

There's also a park (yes, a park in a park...in a park--Ooo, meta!) with stilts and old-time toys that most post-Nintendo kids have never seen before. Again, volunteers on hand to help.
"This is how your grandparents (or your mom and I...depending on when you were born)."
Just looking at these pictures, you can see why Hayao Miyazaki often visited here while he was working on Spirited Away.

My advice: bring a picnic/bento; walk around for a few hours (let the kids run wild), have lunch, then carry on. Running around someone else's house was as much a thrill for me as it is for my own son and his friends. 

Toddlers, teens, adults, seniors...this one's good for all ages. And it's reasonable; 400 yen for regular admission and all discounts for kids and seniors.

Warning: take public transportation if possible. While the tatemonoen itself is amazingly uncrowded, Koganei park where it resides is a very popular park and parking is very something you're not likely to find. There isn't much coin parking anywhere near, either. So bite the bullet and take the bus from either Musashi-Koganei station (chuo line) or Hana-Koganei station (Seibu Shinjuku line). 

The park is open from 9:30 to 4:30 (5:30 April to September), so get there as early as you can. Those seven hours will fly by. 

Their English site will tell you how to get there and anything else you might need to know.

They have special events listed here.
And this is a map of the park.

How something like this could be so unknown is just baffling.

English site

Calendar of Events

Map

Wikipedia notes

Japanese site

Fish-a-Palooza 2014

Art Aquarium: a breathtaking art installation in Tokyo.

This is the first time I've ever seen goldfish as an artistic medium. Artist Hidetomo Kumura has set up some stunning arrangements of goldfish (kingyou) in beautifully aesthetic tanks with colored illuminations. After 7pm it becomes night aquarium where they turn down the lights and fire up the lasers and fog making the space look like a high-priced disco with hypnotic trance techno throbbing from the sound system. And with the greedy throngs pushing about, it can really feel like a packed nightclub; kids need to go on Dad's shoulders and the meek shall inherit poor views.

At one point, a pair of dancers performed captivating pole dances, wearing goldfish-styled kimonos.
A note: the music is quite good featuring artists like Ken Ishii, Dragon, and Neko Punch; they sold out of the CDs of it...I couldn't get one, and I'tried.

The fish themselves are award-quality specimens, and the overall arrangements and orchestrations of sight and sound make this very much a great work of art and design; not merely a fishy gimmick.

On a Tuesday afternoon, it took us a half hour to get through the line, but once in we easily spent an hour taking in the full experience. Access is not straightforward. It's in the Mitsuisumitomo Hall of the new Coredo 3 building at Mitsukoshimae station. Depending on the turnout, you'll probably start at B1 of Coredo 3, by the A6 exit of the Ginza line. Cue a bit, then receive a card which you'll take up to the top floor where you'll buy your tickets at 1,000 yen. Photography is allowed but no flashes. Good for families. Great for a date; something about this place seemed to be putting everyone in the mood. But again, there were plenty of spellbound families in addition to the amorous couples.

So have a look at some of the photos we took and decide if it's for you or not. Click on any of them to open the gallery and see them in full size. You've got until September 23. They did this last year, so they may do it again next year...I wouldn't take a chance, though. More information at:

http://www.nihonbashi-tokyo.jp/ecoedo2014/

日本橋のナイトアートアクエリアム行って来ました。今まで経験した事のないパフォーマンスとあまりの美しさに超感激。トランスをBGMにシンセサイザーと光のパフォーマンスでのアート鑑賞。見る価値ありです。

Popcorn War in Tokyo

It's the kind of weird boutiquery you'd expect from Japan, but this time it's coming from the States.
Not one but TWO gourmet popcorn shops in Tokyo, a ten minute walk from each other at that.
One is Garret's and the other is KuKuRuZa.

Garret's is better.
KuKuRuZa is faster.
This is because Garret's has cues of Space-Mountain-proportions that can take an hour or more, and KuKuRuZa has little-to-no cues.

The pride of Chicago, Garret's menu is pretty simple. They have three basic flavors. Cheese, butter, and caramel. Beyond that, you can get variations of the caramel with cashews, almonds, macadamia nuts, or pecans. You can also get what they call their Chicago mix: cheese and caramel. It's alot better than it sounds. I'm jonesing just thinking about it. #%&@! My mouth is watering! Yes, the Chicago Mix and all their other popcorn is really that good. The popcorn itself is stunningly crispy, and stays that way for several days. I'm not sure how they do it. I've never had popcorn even close to this good, every in my life. Just take my word for it, it's actually worth the wait. And go ahead and buy several different flavors. They'll keep alot longer than you'd think. We're nuts about it, and all of our friends, family and customers say the same.

Seattle's KuKuRuZa has twice as many flavors, but it's more popcorn rolled in powders so the flavors don't, sorry, pop like Garret's do. And the popcorn is a bit rubbery and tough; the texture is not quite as good as the best movie popcorn I've had. There were also too many un-popped kernels: eat carefully. What's more, the staff were markedly unenthusiastic, by Japanese standards. But it's not commensurately cheaper--the prices between KuKuRuZa and Garret's are about the same. My family thought they liked it at the time, but haven't given it a second thought since. One good thing about KuKuRuZa is their resealable bags.

Either brand makes for a great gift/omiyage. The bags and tins are pretty and decorative.

So I'd have to recommend Garret's well above KuKuRuZa, unless you're either in a big hurry to grab a flashy gift, or you're bored with Garret's flavors and want to try some of the more exotic flavors of KuKuRuZa like Jalapeno or Cinnamon Bun.

KuKuRuZa is alongside of Omotesando Hills, near Ben & Jerry's.
http://www.kukuruza.jp/

Garret's is across the street from Harajuku station near Shibuya. It's easy enough to find. Exit the station, cross the street, turn right, and go towards the intersection. It's next to Jangara Ramen, at the base of the foot bridge. Just look for a long line of people. They also have a place in Chiba, but I haven't been there, yet.
http://www.garrettpopcorn.com/japan-locations/

Now I'm wondering if Tokyo can support two gourmet popcorneries, or if war will break out. A battle for pop-ularity? I'd love to see them having at it with popcorn guns and carpet-popcorning. Troops commanded by their...kernels? (sorry, that was too corny). But I think Garret's would win it just on enthusiasm alone. Their staff seems to know they have a great product and they serve it with real pride.

Honorable mention: Tokyo Disneyland's Curry Popcorn.

Yokohama Ramen Museum

It's open again!
It's open again!
The Shin Yokohama Ramen Museum is finally open again!

If you're only in Tokyo for a few days, go to the ramen museum in Shin Yokohama.

It's not far from the glorious Yokohama station, itself a short ride from Tokyo. A few blocks from Shin Yokohama station is one of the weirdest, most interesting places in Kanto.
It closed down years ago, but as soon as I heard it had re-opened I grabbed my family and we trained it out there.


I'm not sure I'd call it a museum...maybe a theme restaurant / museum?
The ground floor houses a modest museum displaying the history of ramen in Japan and it's trappings. But it's that which lies below for which you should go.





The basement stairs are actually a time machine, taking you back to the year 1958 when ramen saw a boom period across Japan. There you'll find an amazing replica of an old, Japanese neighborhood consisting of a town square surrounded by dense little urban paths and filled with numerous ramen shops.







The Japanese fast-food equivalent of the American hamburger is a bowl of steaming ramen. While it's not the  healthiest meal, it's a good-sight better than tacos or burgers, and it's about as fast.

Now ramen shops are pervasive, ranging from sublime to awful, and like any fast food you learn to keep expectations low in touristy areas like theme parks and rest stops. You go do Disneyland for the rides, not the spaghetti, right? Not so here, where the museum showcases the best ramen Japan has to offer from Hokkaido to Okinawa; alot like EPCOT's World Showcase.


The shops rotate periodically, but the shop we found most interesting when we went in September was actually from Hollywood, CA. called Ikemen (a play on words, ikemen meaning handsome, and men meaning noodles).

The ramen is dipping style, where you take some noodles and dip them into the sauces. And in addition to great food, they have a great sense of humor, with menu items such as "Johnny Dip Ramen" and "Jurassic Pork."

Admission is about 300 yen for adults, 100 yen for kids.

It's the details that really complete an illusion and the detail the really sold me that I'd stepped back in time was a "public TV," mounted high on a post in the square so everyone could watch it (because hey, this is the 50's; who can afford their own TV???)

The secret to getting the most out of your visit, unless you plan on multiple visits, is to order the "mini" bowls of ramen at the various shops. These are half-sized servings. This way you don't fill up quite so quickly. We were able to sample three different shops this way and still have room for soft-serve ice cream at a nostalgic old "snack" bar (something between a coffee shop and a tavern).

We happened to get here in time to watch a TV station record a superhero scene in the square. TOO FUNNY!

The name of this shop translates out to "Fire Nation." As a fan of The Last Airbender, I entered cautiously.

...a WHAT booth??? How did the older generations ever survive without  iPhones?

Just enjoying a steam at the local sento bath-house.

Enjoying a frozen jelly, in the classic dagashiya style.

I took my dad here when he visited.
I took my wife here on one of our first dates.
I took every visitor here.
And everyone balked at the suggestion.
And everyone loved it.
And it was closed down before my son was old enough to experience it, which was a real bummer. But now I have been able to share this wonderful place with him, and he can't wait to go back.

And of course what night ramen would be complete without a few laps on an old slot car racetrack? Weird? Unrelated? Sure, but it was so much fun I'm not complaining.

For more information, follow this link to their English site or type Yokohama Ramen Museum into Google.

Smaller, Cuter, Better: Cupcakes

 It's almost unbearably cliche. Tiny, "demitasse" cupcakes in the Omotesando subway Echika.

Following the big cupcake boom back in the States, TABLES has taken the recently re-booted cupcake, miniaturized it, and is offering it in more flavors than you'll find for macaroons...and they're adorable! Just look at some of these:

Fig, orange, green tea, red velvet, pink berry, black vanilla, white chocolate...

one of my favorites was the gingerbread:

We stumbled across it changing trains in Omotesando, near Shibuya last month. The cakes were just the right size to make for a little pick-me-up treat. We actually ended up getting several. Luckily, there is a good coffee bar facing TABLES so we could have a good cuppa with the cup cakes. I took this picture from where we were sitting:

It's the kind of thing I'd have walked right past if I hadn't drifted into the kitchenware store behind it. Even after I saw it, I almost gave it a miss because at first glance it looked like any other confectioner. But now it's one of our Omotesando stops. If you're in Osaka, they're there, too.

Every flavor we've tried is top-notch. They're priced right. Easy to carry home.

...and they're just gorgeous to look at.

Here's a menu, but the items are always changing:

This is one of my killer holiday gifts this year. Everyone I've given them to loves them. 

Yes, I've got that American competitive gift-giving thing. 

My gift has to be the coolest thing you get.

Halloween in Japan 2013 Progress Report #1: Food

One of my favorite things about Japan is how it assimilates foreign culture without imitating it. Take, for example, my favorite holiday - Halloween. We first started seeing the earliest glimmerings of it's presence here 20 years ago. Now it's becoming firmly positioned in the Japanese pop-holiday pantheon. But in the same way England and North America have their own ways of expressing it, so does Japan and it's about as similar the the American Halloween as is Mexico's Dia De Los Muertos.

This year, we're seeing two new sweets in the stores. This one is an apple pie that looks like a jack-o-lantern. Light, flaky crust and cinnamon-sweet apple filling.

...and this is a steamed pumpkin cake.

It has the consistency of sponge cake, but with a Japanese Kabocha "pumpkin," a variety of Asian squash. Very tasty.

I'm looking forward to what other confections Japan comes up with in the Halloweens to come.