I kind of like it when I find new restaurants that are around my place. I mean, I’m used to eating up at the north end of the city. So when I find restaurant reviews for places closer by I pay a it of attention. Maybe two weeks ago I saw a review for a sushi place, and one commented said that their omakase was really good. That’s where you let the chef select what you get. So, based on that I convinced a friend to go with me to try it out. I ended up getting the omakase sashimi with a big bottle of Asahi Super Dry. You know, perhaps the presentation wasn’t the fanciest. I mean, I’ve seen some really cool sushi displays at other restaurants. While this was nice, it didn’t make me go “whoa!” In terms of the food, yeah, that was really good. It all felt super fresh. There was no hint of fishiness or frozenness. This was all the real deal. A lot of it felt like it melted in my mouth. It was my first time trying sea urchin roe. Not a big fan, really, but I can see why people would like it. The fatty tuna though was amazing. The chefs know what they’re doing. Leaving the meal in their hands was worth it.
Tag Archive: sushi
Away from the raw stuff
Tonight, post run, I ended up hanging out with a friend I hadn’t seen in a long while at our favourite all you can eat sushi place down the road. Just like I’ve mentioned in the past, it’s almost as if the ability to gorge ourselves got left behind in university. I had totally forgotten about it, but my friend mentioned a time when we felt like getting stuffed post exam and went to the Pizza Hut lunch buffet. I somehow managed to down 13 small slices of pizza that afternoon. And afterwards we walked over to the Dairy Queen next door to cap things off. Holy crap. I simply can’t even imagine doing that now. So, the lack of will and ability to really stuff ourselves only means that we take our time choosing stuff that gives us the most bang for our buck. I mean, it’s easy enough to pick rolls that would normally cost $8 anywhere else. Those pile up.
Anyway, mid-dinner, we were talking about our meal when I came to the realization that there’s a definite pattern in the way I tackle all you can eat sushi places. I actually rarely ever go for anything raw. That totally didn’t occur to me until tonight. I did order sashimi and it wasn’t really a favourite of mine. Instead I gravitated to the rolls and other cooked items. I do eat maki rolls, but I will go for the ones that have tempura shrimp or grilled eel as the protein part. It’s not that I hate the raw fish, but it’s simply not that great. I do remember eating sashimi in Japan, and man, that was some amazing stuff. Here though in Toronto, the fish is inevitably pre-frozen, and you can taste it. That’s not to say that the fish isn’t tasty, but the mouth-feel leaves something to be desired. I don’t want to eat something that’s simply “all right” when there’s plenty of other stuff on the menu that makes me happy, know what I mean?
Wow, I feel a little odd even admitting any of this. I mean, I do like sushi and sashimi. Just…I need to pick and choose when I partake in that kind of food, and oddly enough all you can eat Japanese is not ideal. Go figure.
It makes sense to me…
I wonder what it says about me that I realized this was a sushi ad as soon as he positioned himself on top of her?
Never thought I’d see the day
Umm…just a small thought:
All you can eat sushi is still kind of fun, but for whatever reason, for me its appeal is starting to wane.
What the hell is wrong with me? O_o
Running log: 2009/11/25
I am full of rice, and regret.
Despite having gone to an all you can eat sushi place with colleagues at lunch, it looks like I still managed to have a decent run this evening. Going in to the Running Room I was still feeling full from all of the food excess. I was fearing that any attempts to run fast would result in me puking all of my stomach contents all over the route. I did well, though. I wasn’t running my fastest, but it was still a good run. I’ve had runs before where smaller meals gave me much more trouble.
Now, as I was going slower I felt at ease: my breathing was under control, and my heart rate was lower than it might normally be. I checked my watch and found that I was running at an average pace that would have been the extent of my running abilities even just a few months ago. This is telling me that my body really is making improvements. I don’t know if it’s the result of consistent training, or the fact that I’ve lost a little weight. Actually, I’m pretty sure it’s a combination of the two. Knowing all of this is just making me want to work harder. That may not necessarily mean pushing myself, but at least maintaining a level of consistency as well as continuing to take an intelligent approach to training. I want to become stronger. I want to become faster. If I keep it up, all of this will come naturally.
Sushi and talk radio
I met with a friend this weekend at an all you can eat sushi place. I can remember back in the day a time when we could really get our money’s worth at these places. These restaurants could sense our approach and the managers inside would sweat from fear. Ah, but that was back then. Things are much different now. After the first round of food we were kind of agape from the apparent gluttony. I’m sure we just had this dumb look on our faces as if we were beaten and unable to move. After the second round we just gave up and asked for dessert. Shameful, I say! We ordered banana tempura and some fruit to cleanse our palates. When they brought it they also brought a deep fried pork cutlet at which our eyes just bugged out. We were shocked and trembling at the thought of having to eat it. Luckily the waitress just made a mistake–the cutlet was supposed to go to another table. Good thing–there was no way either of us could eat anymore meat.
Anyway, as we left we wanted to take a quick walk around to allow the food to work its way down into a more comfortable position. Unfortunately, it was really windy with snow and rain pelting us so we decided to head back to my car and just hang out. While we were in there, she explained to me about how she’s slowly getting into talk radio. She mentioned that she’s really enjoying listening to CBC Radio One in the morning. Well, out of curiosity I’ve been giving it a shot on my morning commutes. I mean, I’m feeling a bit fatigued from the usual Top 40 radio; a change is good.
I can totally see why CBC Radio One is actually “the top station in the Toronto radio market” for this past fall. As I listen on the commute, I feel like I’m learning. When I’m at home, I actually like watching the news, so this is a good fit. I’m surprised I haven’t gotten into the station earlier.
Man, what a time to get into talk radio in Canada. Hoooooly. All of this back-and-forthing is insane. I remember after the last election there was a bit of reflection over how Canadian politics isn’t as sexy or exciting as its American counterpart. Well, holy crap, how’s this? I’ll be honest, this is a very interesting time. I’m learning a large amount about Canadian Parliament. I’m learning new terms.
Prorogation:
When parliament is prorogued, it stays constituted but goes into recess with all active bills and motions killed. It’s essentially a time out.
If there’s anything good to come of this, it’s got people interested. The last election was marked with a mild sense of apathy with only a 50+% turnout (I think that’s right). After this? If there’s an election I can only imagine that turn out will be better because just about everyone’s got an opinion now. These are some interesting times.
Day 5: Osaka
The day in Osaka was certainly an interesting one. For the first half, I was starting to think that it would be a disappointing stop, but things turned around rather quickly. So it’s been explained to me that Osaka is totally not a tourist’s city in the way that Kyoto and Tokyo are. No, it’s totally a place that’s all business. That’s why I got a little bit of a cold feeling from the city in my first few hours there. However, as the night went on and I got to see the side of the place that locals probably know intimately, and I found out why Osaka is a rockin’ place.
From Nagoya onward, we started travelling with two others. One is a friend of my friend, and the other guy is the friend of the friend of the friend. Ugh. There are three degrees of separation between us. That was…interesting.
Anyway, we left Kyoto for Osaka at about noon. After dropping off our bags in a coin locker, we headed for our first stop: the Umeda Sky Building. We wanted to check out the rooftop observatory. As expected, it gave great views of the city below. Osaka was fully spread out for us to enjoy. It was fantastic. For me, I was a little bit more excited about the place in that it was actually a stop in a leg of The Amazing Race 12. Whoo! Again, the TV world, and my experience has a little overlap in the Venn diagram of existence!
After eating, the four of us wanted to split off. The other two wanted to go check out an underwater tunnel and an aquarium. My friend and I on the other hand planned to head to the stadium. See, our original plans were to go see a baseball game of the Osaka Hanshin Tigers. The fans are reputed to be insane for this team, so we wanted to observe. The two of us were going to buy tickets early enough ahead of time but the other two indicated that they wanted to join in. They were supposed to get back to us early enough, but didn’t get to. When they finally did, all of the tickets were sold out. So, because of that we decided to go see if we can snag tickets from a scalper around the stadium. That’s why we decided to head there early.
Apparently, Japanese scalpers are a little different from what I’m used to seeing. Here in Japan, they’re supposed to be a little bit more discreet. You can see them holding up signs indirectly asking “Do you have tickets?” Uh huh. We figured it’d be easy enough to spot one. Unfortunately, we were proven wrong. We walked around the stadium several times and didn’t spot a single shady person. Actually, I’m sure we were the ones that looked shady. Every time we saw money changing hands we slowed down to see if anything was going on. After 2 hours of hunting, we gave up. If there were scalpers at the game, they were doing a poor job of trying to make money. During that time though, I was really fascinated with the fans in and around the stadium. So many people were decked out in the team colours of yellow and black. Everyone seemed so hardcore! I was really disappointed that we couldn’t get in because I wanted to see the fans all energized.
Well, after that disappointment, we picked up our stuff from the station and headed over to the hotel. I would have been content to just end the day at that point. Osaka didn’t grab my attention at all, and I was disappointed. I told this to my friend, and he said that I was crazy. He said that Osaka reminds him so much of New York. I didn’t see it. Well, he wasn’t ready to give up on me enjoying the place, so we decided to go eat someplace nice. After he did some research, he decided that we should go to this restaurant in Osaka that’s well known for its fugu.
Eh? Fugu? Yes. That’s the poison blow fish. Holy crap.
He wasn’t sure where it was exactly, but we decided to walk there anyway. After a short walk we made it to Shinsaibashi which is this long-ass covered shopping arcade. It was full of life and young people. We chose one direction and started walking down. I wasn’t fully paying attention to the signs, but somewhere along the way, I saw “サエラ” or “Saera” painted on a door. It suddenly clicked. Holy shit! That was the site of the flower-smelling road block for TAR12. Hah! Wow…two sites! Too bad the flower shop wasn’t open. Still, I found it interesting.
After an hour of wandering we still didn’t find the place. We dropped by a convenience store and checked out a map. As it turns out we were heading in the total opposite direction of where we were supposed to go. In time, another hour passed and I was started to get pissed. I mean, how long were we going to chase after a place that might not even exist? We did make it to the area where the place is located, but we were still wandering. Then, out of the blue my friend walks into store. It didn’t click right away, but as it turns out we finally made it. We decided to eat at a Japanese style table, low to the ground and on tatami mats. We ended up ordering a plate of fugu sashimi, fugu in a fried mayonnaise crab cake style preparation, and an order of Japanese beef shabu shabu. Whoo.
The sashimi they brought out was paper thin. It reminded me of wet rice paper–it was transparent. Sure, we were a little bit apprehensive about eating it. I mean, all I knew about fugu I learnt from that episode of The Simpsons where Homer eats fugu and thinks he’s going to die. We made a few jokes about dying by the time the morning rolls around. Afterwards, we dug in. Now, it certainly tasted good. It’s not really that much different from other sashimi, you know? I mean, here I was with the idea of the fish being all menacing and what not, and in the end it’s pretty much like everything else. To be honest, it was mildly a letdown. No, it wasn’t bad, but it’s like I was expecting something a little bit more dangerous. Does that make sense? The old woman that brought out the beef for shabu shabu was really doting on us. She wanted to make sure that we were doing it correctly and that us foreigners didn’t have a bad experience. It was mildly bordering on obsessiveness, but at the same time I really appreciated it. As we left, I made sure to get my friend to tell her that it was all delicious. When she heard it she seemed genuinely happy. In turn, that made me happy. Man, that was an experience!
Of course, it’s now days later and I’m still alive. Jason 1, Fugu 0.
After eating, we wandered around the Dōtonbori area, then back to Shinsaibashi. It was still full of energy and people buzzing around. I feel like I’d finally pierced Osaka’s shell, and started to appreciate the energy of the city as a whole. Seriously, I was starting to feel like I was seeing a great part of the city that wouldn’t hand itself over so easily. How can I explain this? It’s like, in some places, the things worth seeing are really apparent. In Osaka’s case, it’s so occupied with itself that it can’t just hand its good side over: you have to be willing to go at its pace and do the city on its terms. This is a place on the path that I now appreciate.
Hunger, laziness and bordeom don’t mix
You know, boredom/laziness and hunger is not a very good combination. It can lead you to eat things that probably should not be eaten. Yesterday after being in bed all morning I ventured over to the kitchen out of hunger and because I had nothing better to do. I suppose I could have toasted bread and fried up an egg or two, but I wasn’t in the mood. So, I decided to default to whatever required little effort. There were various leftovers in there. I popped some rice and tocino in the microwave. At that point I would have been good to go. However I took another glance in the fridge. I was surprised when I spotted in the corner a plate of sushi that was leftover from last Saturday–two pieces of crab roll and two pieces of salmon. I’d set it aside for my father, but he never got around to eating it like I thought he would.
See what I mean? Under normal circumstances I would have tossed that out. I mean, it’s so not fresh. However, that afternoon all I thought about it was: “uh…well at least I won’t have to microwave it…”
I unwrapped it and gave it a good sniff. There was no fishy odour, no discolouration, and no mold. I judged that I was good to go, so I popped them in my mouth. Yes. In hindsight…not a good idea–it was pretty gross. To tell you the truth though, what made it gross wasn’t the fish: it was the cold, hard, semi-dehydrated rice. That stuff is hard to chew and swallow. Good news is, there was no poisoning or over-active GI tract involved.
Oh GOD. I’m eating like I’m in university again! 
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