一風堂五反田店 - Ippudo (Gotanda)

I was very excited to finally try this extremely famous ramen chain.  We got there a little before 11 and there was no line.  But by the time we left, there was a nice line forming.  I ordered the Akamaru Modern (thankfully they had English menus :)).  I ordered it with extra charsiu and an egg.  The ramen came out and I immediately started eating.  In my haste, I totally forgot that there was unlimited pickled vegetable sides available on the table.  I was surprised at how few noodles they gave me... big minus points.  It was half the size of all the ones I've had so far!  Then I remembered the pickled vegetables and piled a heap of it into my soup.  YUM.  The unique factor of this dish was the hardness of the noodles and the black sesame oil in the soup.  Apparently you can choose from around 6 different type of hardness and they recommend the 2nd hardest type.  Overall, it wasn't anything 'special' and probably won't go out of my way just to eat here, but nevertheless I can finally say I've ate at one of the most famous ramen places in Tokyo :).  Maybe next time I'll try the spicy ramen (shown on the right in the first picture).  

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Authentic Hokkaido Icecream has been LOCATED!!!

My friend told me that there was a really yummy Hokkaido icecream stand near Yurakucho Station and I was skeptical at first considering that I've already ate about 5 cones with no comparison to the one I had in Hokkaido.  When we arrived, there was a growing number of people hanging around outside of the store eating icecream cones.  Additionally, there was a line that extended outside of the store, Hokkaido Dosanko Plaza, where the stand was located.  My hopes were rising every step I took towards the icecream machine operator...and then I finally took my first bite.  

*silence*

*more silence* (haha I'm just busy biting mouthfuls off the top)

IT WAS SOOOOO GOOD.  IT WAS JUST LIKE the ones I had in Hokkaido.  Fresh buttery cream every bite.  Guess where I'm going to be on the weekends... lol...

Even better... the entire store is stocked full of delicious food products from Hokkaido.  I've looked high and low in Tokyo for Hokkaido soup curry and this place has it.  Hokkaido milk jam.  Hokkaido cheese cake.  Hokkaido cheese, milk, butter, etc... I thought I was in heaven. lol  

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鼎泰豐 - Din Tai Fung - Xiao Long Bao... in Tokyo!!

I heard so many good reviews about the original one in Taiwan and had to come to see for myself.  I went with a friend who has tried the one in Taiwan so that I can write a better review/comparison.  Usually, this place is packed and the line extends around the corner, but being prepared as usual, we got there 10 minutes before it opened at 11.  While we sat waiting for our delicious xiao long bao, the line became longer around 11:30.  So if you want to come here without waiting, come before 11:30!!

We ordered a bunch of things... lor bak gao (pan fried radish cake which was actually fried here), some chinese noodle with sauce that resembled dandan mian, pork and vegetable xiao long bao, and lastly mochi rice dumpling~.  The xiao long bao had a thick skin which helped keep the hot soup neatly inside until you bite into it.  My friend told me that the xiao long bao in Taiwan was a bit larger and much cheaper.  Well what can I expect... we are in Tokyo!  The mochi rice dumpling didn't really have much taste, the dan dan mian noodle dish was average, and the radish cake was alright.   So overall, for the price we paid, it was a good experience but I probably would not try it again.  Well not here anyways.  Next trip, Taiwan!!

Kyoho Grapes!!!

Have you ever had these grape gummies??  The flavor does not taste at all  like grapes that you buy in America.  So much so that I always thought it had a slightly artificial taste to it.  However, when I decided to splurge on Kyoho grapes in Tokyo for 1006YEN to see what it was all about, I was SHOCKED to find it tasted EXACTLY like the artificial tasting gummy candies.  I found these large round dark purple grapes to have an interesting firm textured flesh, which I prefer over the soft watery consistency in grapes back in America.  After eating three globes, I was already full.  I bought two different kinds of Kyoho grapes... one from Queen Isetan and the other from Wing Supermarket.  Queen Isetan's trumps Wing's in terms of sweetness, taste, and firmness of flesh.  So it is definitely worth spending 200YEN more to buy Queen Isetan's grapes.  

Do Not Go List - Soba House in Azabu-Juban

So this restaurant ended up on my "Do Not Go" list.  Two reasons, expensive as hell and the quality of the food did not match the price.  I ordered a duck and green onion soba soup dish.  The duck was so rubbery that I ended up not eating most of it.  The noodles taste the same as store bought soba noodles in the US!  And to make matters worst, I paid 2100YEN for this.  Never again!

Beatles Bar - ぺんじゃっく ライブパブ

Without referral, it would be difficult to find this tiny, tiny bar with an excellent band that plays Beatles all night long.  It is located right under Shinagawa JR Station in a not-so-glamorous setting.  Yes, they sing with an accent, but the guitar and electric guitar players are impressive.

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Shinjuku at Night

After giving up looking for another festival in Shinjuku, we became increasingly hungry after walking past all the plastic food models in the window.  We decided to try this Korean-Japanese fusion restaurant and was pleasantly surprised by the variety and authenticity of each culture's food.  

Asakusa Samba Festival

Note to self:  Think twice before attending ANY festival in Tokyo.  I was almost swallowed whole by a sea of sweaty people and did not get to see much of anything.  I also found it amusing that there was a sound level recorder trending dBAs.  The parade seems to be JUST below acceptable levels allowed by our company for process equipment.

TETSU Ramen てつ ラーメン屋-つけ麺

Shinagawa has another ramen shop, TETSU, that I would recommend.  It is located right outside of Shinagawa JR station and 5 min walk from my apartment.  

It was my first experience to purchase a ramen ticket from the vending machine and I was a bit skeptical at first but I can see why this method is widely used.  Space is typically limited in ramen shops and in order to minimize time spent indoors, ordering is done outside.  

Anyways, I purchased the special cha-siu ramen for 1,000YEN.  Veggies come seperately at 100YEN.  I was surprised again when my ramen was brought out as the noodles, broth, and vegetables were all in separate bowls.  It was explained to me that drinking the broth was unhealthy due to the sodium and fats and so to avoid the noodles and vegetables from soaking up the soup, it is presented separately.  Additionally, the soup was THICK.  The way to eat this was to dip the noodles into the broth, eat, and repeat.  Similar to cold soba noodles.  I tasted the soup, which is made from seafood and pork bone, by itself and the flavor was intensely concentrated and salty.  If you prefer a thinner soup, chicken broth is offered in thermoses on the table for soup diluting purposes.  

The broth, noodles, char-siu, and egg were much tastier than the first ramen shop.  If there was a ramen shop I would come back to, it would be this one.  Beware though, I heard the line could be demotivating during lunch hours.

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First Ramen Experience in Shinagawa -風神つけ麺ラーメン

This is a sit-at-counter type of ramen shop.  When I went, we waited 15 min for a seat but well worth it.  I ordered their ちゃしゅう麺(Char-siu ramen = chashuu men).  It comes with seaweed, some other pickled vegetable, green onion, noodles, and decently thick slices of char-siu.  The noodles were cooked to my liking as it was not too soft and slightly chewy.  The broth was pork based, not too salty, and deliciously savory.  The ramen cost 900YEN, a bit pricey, but I guess everything in Japan is pretty expensive.   The ramen was good, definitely 10x better than Houston could offer, but not as spectacular as the Asahikawa ramen I had in Hokkaido.  I'm still on the search for a tastier ramen shop.

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Apartments 33 - Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan

I was dropped off in front of the Shinagawa Prince Hotel after a long 2 hour bus ride from Narita Airport.  The last thing I wanted to do was to roll my heavy suitcase and carry my violin, backpack along the streets in the city.  I looked at my map and it said "5-min" from where I was to the temporary apartment I was to live in.  The 5 min turned out to be 15 min because of traffic lights and wasted time trying to locate the elusive building.  Finally, after signing several thousands of papers (seems typical here in Japan to get anything) and paying for my entire stay upfront, I was given my room key.

This was a very nice serviced 1-bedroom apartment.  I was surprised at how spacious it was and the careful attention to interior design.  Some of the highlights include super fast heating induction stove that boils water in 30secs!!! compared to Houston which took 10-15min, dimmer switches throughout, multi-function heated toilet, awesome washer/dryer combo, and the weekly maid service (she even did my dishes and threw out the trash).  There is a gym on the first floor but its not worth describing. Eh.

The downside is that if you are paying out of pocket for this apartment, the average person would probably bankrupt quickly.  This apartment costs 630,000YEN a month plus a 5% cleaning charge at the end the stay.  But if you are on business, this is definitely the way to go.

Having lived here for a month before I finally moved into my permanent apartment, I have no complaints.