Beyond the three square meals a day we had at the training center, we still had to eat prior to our arrival there and after we left. Below is a compendium of other meals we had.
Unagi Bowl: Grilled eel over rice
Breakfast at our first hotel: The bread item on the left hand side of the plate is a curry doughnut. Actually better than it sounds:
Bento, the ubiquitous boxed lunch of Japanese train stations. There are many varieties, and regions are known for their specialties. This one was fried chicken:
Traditional soba (buckwheat) noodles. The jar on the left is the dipping sauce, which one pours into small dish then dips the noodles in. Slurping the noodles is considered polite. Of note, one does not use all the sauce but leaves some in the jar. There are containers on the table that contain the water the noodles were boiled in that day. One takes the water and pours it into the jar, making a soup to drink.
Udon (wheat) noodles with tofu:
Japanese burger meal (with fries) from Mos Burger:
Onigiri (rice wrapped in seaweed in a triangle shape, sometimes with fish or vegetables inside) and a mochi (red bean) bun:
After our last night training in Tokyo, we went out to a traditional style ramen shop.
All of the additions, which included ginger, garlic, and various peppers:
The order board:
Our meal, pork ramen and gyoza:
After ramen, we had dessert later. Gelatinous coffee flavoured dessert with ice cream and mochi
Typical hotel breakfast we had during our second stay in Tokyo:
Final meal at Narita Airport, Chinese style noodles with fish cake:
Portion sizes seem smaller than what has come to be normal in USA.
ReplyDeleteERJ, it is. And yet I do not remember a single time I walked away from a meal feeling anything less than satiated.
DeleteIt did occur to me on more than one occasion that while one did see what would be considered overweight people in Japan, it was definitely far less than what one sees in the United States. Part of that may come from the lifestyle (for example, in Tokyo you can walk and take the train everywhere), but diet also likely plays a factor.
I'd have to get some intensive chopstick training before I was ready to dine in Japan.
ReplyDeleteEverything looks well made and beautifully presented.
John, my chopstick technique is "marginal" at best, and it has been noted by others that I use them like a child. That said, I never went hungry because I could not get food into my mouth (most places can also provide Western silverware for remedial users like myself).
DeletePresentation is a big deal for meals in Japan. Even their packaged goods have a lot of presentation thought put into them.
I LOVE ramen on a cold morning. Roasted chicken left-overs are specifically chopped up for inclusion into my ramen meal, 1st drinking all liquid prior to eating the noodles and meat.
ReplyDeleteI know - its weird but that is how I enjoy it the most. Eating noodles in liquid (for me) swings droplets and I end up wearing it instead of digesting.
Interesting, Anon. I am precisely the opposite: noodles first and then the liquid.
DeleteRamen is very satisfying. One thing I am thinking about as part of my move is making a wholesale diet change, to include things like more Japanese cuisine (actual noodles, not the nasty pre-packaged stuff).
Those photos were enough to get the stomach rumbling this morning TB, have to echo that comment about remedial chopstick usage.....:) Huh, three-tined forks eh?
ReplyDeleteNylon12, eating in Japan is a joy. I, too, am "okay" only at using chopsticks.
DeleteI think maybe the three tined for is due to it being a dessert fork? That I recall, other forks I saw were "standard issue".
I would love to tour Japan someday if for no other reason than to just sample the food. It all looks so delicious. I'm self taught when it comes to using chopsticks and can usually hold my own with anyone at the table. But I suspect I might get smirked out in Japan by the details of my technique.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure how I would order in the above situation where there is only Japanese writing and no pictures. I guess I would just hope there is someone nearby that I can point to and say "that".
Ed - The great thing about something like a Ramen shop is there is a ticket machine with pictures. One purchases the ticket with the associated picture of the food one wants, turns it in, and then goes to town.
DeleteMany of the restaurants have English menus as well or the well known "plastic" food that one can always point at in an emergency. To be fair, we know enough Japanese food names that we can usually get by.
That would help. The only Japanese I know is "domo arigato" and I'm guessing since we are around the same age, you can guess where I picked up that phrase.
DeleteHeh heh. Excellent album.
DeleteI love gyoza. And the clear broth soups with onion and mushrooms.
ReplyDeleteYou all be safe and God bless.
The gyoza was delicious, Linda.
DeleteWe had soup almost every day we were there. Even though they were different types, they were all delicious.
I have no idea why food photos are always so interesting, but they are. Everything looks delicious. Is your Japanese extensive enough to have an idea of what's on a menu?
ReplyDeleteLeigh, I used to not be a fan of people that always took pictures of their food (or in the modern parlance, "The camera always eats first"). I have come to change my opinion on that - food is something that we all interact with every day, and seeing different types and kinds of food is something that makes for a very interesting and easy communication tool.
DeleteMy Japanese is enough to order and puzzle things out on menus. Fortunately for my taste buds, many restaurants have English menus (otherwise "Ramen" and "Tonkatsu" would be in the rotation a great deal).