Lunch in Takayama April 18, 2009
Posted by Martin in : japan , add a commentWe stumbled on a great restaurant to have lunch in today which served traditional foods of the area.
Another Fantastic Meal April 17, 2009
Posted by Martin in : japan , add a commentWe had this traditional meal set in Takayama,
Note the leaf that cooks our food over the clay pot, the fantastic local marbled beef that was very similar to traditional Kobe steak and also note that we pretty much ate everything we possibly could.
I can’t quite remember what the paste on top of the leaf was called but again it’s another delicious local food.
A Night On The Town, Tokyo – Japan Day 12 April 16, 2009
Posted by Martin in : CouchSurfing, japan, travel , add a commentWe’d arranged to meet Aikiko (and her friend Yuka) in central Tokyo to experience authentic tokyo nightlife.
Aikiko is a fellow Couchsurfer and both her and her friend Yuka spoke perfect English, have a very sharp sense of humor and we couldn’t have hoped for better hosts to spend our time with.
After an enjoyable dinner together we went to a bar in Omoide
yokocho (translates at ‘memory side-street’).
The area used to be a popular haunt for Yakuza but nowadays it’s safe, friendly and very fun.
We enjoyed refreshing beers here and also an assortment of grilled nibbles such as the mushrooms below.
The bar was only small and after about 90 minutes we were asked to vacate our seats for waiting customers but got a lot through some great food, drink and conversation during that time.
We left Aikiko and Yuka about 10pm and headed for a Pachinko parlor to finish off the evening.
Sumo Food in Ryogoku, Tokyo – Japan Day 10 April 15, 2009
Posted by Martin in : japan, travel , add a commentIt was time for some serious Tokyo food so I decided to take Tik to Ryogoku which houses Tokyo’s sumo stadium.
The guidebook suggested we’d see a lot of sumo wrestlers walking around but April is not sumo season and apparently the high rental costs in the area mean that most wresting schools have since relocated.
It didn’t take us long to find a restaurant offering ‘Chanko-nabe’ which is a favorite Sumo wrestler food.
The Sushi Train April 15, 2009
Posted by Martin in : japan, travel , add a commentTik and I take sushi trains a little for granted as they’re quite common in Thailand but they’re probably quite a novelty elsewhere.
Kobe Steak (2nd attempt), Kobe – Japan Day 9 April 14, 2009
Posted by Martin in : japan, travel , add a commentAfter our embarrassing mistake last week where we headed to Kobe for Brazilian food we returned for something a little more authentic.
Opposite from Kobe station was a place called Kobe Steak which seemed like exactly what we were looking for.
Okonomiyakis at A Japanese Bar – Japan Day 9 April 13, 2009
Posted by Martin in : CouchSurfing, japan, travel , add a commentAll that cycling made us hungry and, although we were planning on meeting friends for dinner we couldn’t resists heading into a traditional Japanese bar to sample their Okonomiyakis that they cooked on the hot plate in front of us.
Healthy Buffet, Kyoto – Japan Day 7 April 12, 2009
Posted by Martin in : japan, travel , 1 comment so farWe found a great buffet brunch today at the food court ‘Porta’ connected to Kyoto station.
Maruyama Park, Kyoto – Japan Day 2 April 7, 2009
Posted by Martin in : japan, travel , add a commentWe enjoyed the plentitude of foods available at Maruyama Park this evening.
Tacoyakis – Balls of dough with octopus tentacles in the center.
Brunch Buffet at Centara Grand (again) February 15, 2009
Posted by Martin in : Leisure , add a comment
We returned to Centara Grand on Sunday morning for their incredible brunch set and met up again with our friends Patrick and Simone.
We were there for 3 hours so, as you might imagine, by 3pm we were both struggling to breath.
This was our second huge buffet this weekend so I’m going to be hitting the running machines pretty hard this week.
Brunch at Crepes & Co. February 14, 2009
Posted by Martin in : Leisure , 2comments
Amelia and Phillipe, our current Couchsurfing guests, treated us to an excellent brunch set at one of my favorite French restaurants – Crepes and Co.
Great company, great food, great atmosphere and the first of many activities we’d planned for Valentine’s weekend.
Tik’s Birthday @ Red Sky January 15, 2009
Posted by Martin in : Miscellaneous , 5comments
Tik and I celebrated her birthday at Red Sky Restaurant last night.
Red Sky is located on the 55th floor of Central World Plaza, and is part of the Centara Grand Hotel there.
Dinner at Angelini Restaurant January 10, 2009
Posted by Martin in : Leisure , add a comment
Tik and I were lucky enough to be treated to dinner by our friend Chris and Gai.
We had Italian food at Angelini Restaurant (warning this website plays music and won’t let you turn it off! – stupid designers) in the Shangri-la hotel.
Thanks Chris, and good luck to you both for your coming year of adventures.
Bangkok’s Best Sunday Brunch December 21, 2008
Posted by Martin in : Leisure , add a comment
After weeks of effort getting a reservation, Tik finally got us a table for the Centara Grand brunch buffet.
This is, without doubt one of the top brunch packages available in Thailand. As a Central Gold Card holder Tik was able to get a 50% discount for the both of us so we only paid about 700 baht each.
The buffet is spread between two separate restaurants that you can walk between. At one end is ‘The World’ – with international food and, a good walk along is ‘Ginger’ which specializes more in Asian foods.
There’s a juice bar in the middle of the two restaurants where the staff will prepare any type of juice or shake you care for.
We were overwhelmed by options. Tik filled her plate with fois gras from Ginger, whereas I certainly got my money’s worth from the cheeseboard alone. There were soup stations, a carvery, desserts, a chocolate fondue, salads, sushi, a noodle station, and, looking back I don’t think there was anything they didn’t have available.
We woke up late that Sunday, arrived for the buffet about 1pm, spent a good couple of hours stuffing our face, returned home and then fell blissfully asleep for the rest of the day. A perfect way to enjoy a Sunday.
Hailey & Tik make Gim-Pap December 17, 2008
Posted by Martin in : CouchSurfing, Friends, Home , add a comment
Hailey, our CouchSurfing friend from Korea stayed two nights with us and taught us how to make the Korean version of Sushi. She is now in Hanoi teaching children English for a month. One thing We’ll always remember about Hailey is that she brought with her a big pack of balloons to twist into cool shapes for the kids. Whilst here, she made an umbrella and flower for us. Click Here for Photos
