Oishi!
As per usual... starting my Japan-Osaka/Kyoto/Aioi entries with foodie post.
One of the highlights of this trip got to be the food. A big part of my photos are dedicated to the food we had on this trip.
And the most expensive meal we had is this scrumptious crab dinner set. There is about 7-8 course and every single dish is crab, crab and more crab. It is the best crab meal I ever had. I love picking the meat off the legs of the crab and savouring the sweetness of the flesh....
The huge mechanical crab outside the shop at Dontonburi... you can't miss it.
Chawanmushi
Crab sashimi ... so so sweet!
Steamed crab, the best way to savour fresh crab
Cheesy baked crab
Tempura crab
Steamed crab served ontop rice
Like all good japanese meals... end it with a soup... Kani style:
This is what we had enroute to Gion. I had a curry Katsu set (Pork Cutlet). SGN J had a lovely cold udon set with a lovely egg on top.
A friend recommended this Yakitori joint. It is called Ichiban. We realise this is just one of the branches of a large franchise later on. But this place serves lovely yakitori (grilled meat served on skewers). We had beef, chicken, pork versions. Raw toufu served there is also oishi. The grilled verision of the toufu skin is crispy yet full of flavour. And to fill our tummies, we had rice ball, the yakitori way.
My traditional Japanese breakfast at the Ryokan while the 2 SGNs are still snoozing....Oishi! It has a large piece of salmon, a small dish of raw toufu, some preserved vegetables, etc. I love the large bowl of miso, it is a perfect match with the Japanese rice I had.
Lunch at Arayshiyama. A little restaurant by the road. I had cold soba with preserved fish. A nice refreshing meal on this hot sunny day. SGN J had a tempura soba with toufu... looks scrumptious!
SGN made dinner for us one evening... pasta with lots of "liao": bacon, mushrooms, shrimps... it was delicious! And the pumpkin soup top it all off... full of flavour and so rich! Thanks J, I really like that dinner.
AND to top off our Aioi home-stay experience... J made us brekkie. Bacons, eggs and sausages. Gawd, I miss the coffee.
One of my fave Jap dish is Unagi, or eel. On our way back from Himeji castle, I had the opportunity to satisfy my unagi craving. J had a Katsu set, and S have a beef patty set.
On our last day at Aioi, J brought us to a nearby Japanese tea house for breakfast. We weren't quite sure what to expect. The interior of the restaurant is a mix of Zen and western. Japanese windows, frames and plants adorned the place, and yet at one corner, you see a modern coffee counter with western coffee-making apparatus.
We ordered the Toast set, not quite sure what it was, given our limited Japanese knowledge. Turn out it was red bean jam served on 2 nicely toasted and buttered bread. Served with salad with tyipcal japanese vinegar dressing. The red bean jam was nothing I had ever tasted. Full of red bean flavour, you can taste every single bean. Not too sweet too. I like!
OK, this is just the food part.... can you imagine the rest of the trip?!!
One of the highlights of this trip got to be the food. A big part of my photos are dedicated to the food we had on this trip.
And the most expensive meal we had is this scrumptious crab dinner set. There is about 7-8 course and every single dish is crab, crab and more crab. It is the best crab meal I ever had. I love picking the meat off the legs of the crab and savouring the sweetness of the flesh....
The huge mechanical crab outside the shop at Dontonburi... you can't miss it.
Chawanmushi
Crab sashimi ... so so sweet!
Steamed crab, the best way to savour fresh crab
Cheesy baked crab
Tempura crab
Steamed crab served ontop rice
Like all good japanese meals... end it with a soup... Kani style:
This is what we had enroute to Gion. I had a curry Katsu set (Pork Cutlet). SGN J had a lovely cold udon set with a lovely egg on top.
A friend recommended this Yakitori joint. It is called Ichiban. We realise this is just one of the branches of a large franchise later on. But this place serves lovely yakitori (grilled meat served on skewers). We had beef, chicken, pork versions. Raw toufu served there is also oishi. The grilled verision of the toufu skin is crispy yet full of flavour. And to fill our tummies, we had rice ball, the yakitori way.
My traditional Japanese breakfast at the Ryokan while the 2 SGNs are still snoozing....Oishi! It has a large piece of salmon, a small dish of raw toufu, some preserved vegetables, etc. I love the large bowl of miso, it is a perfect match with the Japanese rice I had.
Lunch at Arayshiyama. A little restaurant by the road. I had cold soba with preserved fish. A nice refreshing meal on this hot sunny day. SGN J had a tempura soba with toufu... looks scrumptious!
SGN made dinner for us one evening... pasta with lots of "liao": bacon, mushrooms, shrimps... it was delicious! And the pumpkin soup top it all off... full of flavour and so rich! Thanks J, I really like that dinner.
AND to top off our Aioi home-stay experience... J made us brekkie. Bacons, eggs and sausages. Gawd, I miss the coffee.
One of my fave Jap dish is Unagi, or eel. On our way back from Himeji castle, I had the opportunity to satisfy my unagi craving. J had a Katsu set, and S have a beef patty set.
On our last day at Aioi, J brought us to a nearby Japanese tea house for breakfast. We weren't quite sure what to expect. The interior of the restaurant is a mix of Zen and western. Japanese windows, frames and plants adorned the place, and yet at one corner, you see a modern coffee counter with western coffee-making apparatus.
We ordered the Toast set, not quite sure what it was, given our limited Japanese knowledge. Turn out it was red bean jam served on 2 nicely toasted and buttered bread. Served with salad with tyipcal japanese vinegar dressing. The red bean jam was nothing I had ever tasted. Full of red bean flavour, you can taste every single bean. Not too sweet too. I like!
OK, this is just the food part.... can you imagine the rest of the trip?!!