My Lunch :: May 21st

It is ALMOST like I'm in New York. I made a batch of the spicy pork sausage ragout on Wednesday and my roomie brought back from NY my favorite Momofuku Milk Bar Cookie - cornflake-chocolate chip-marshmallow. Now all I need is some Apple Kimchi...

I have to say, this ragout is pretty much my all time favorite thing to make. The entire recipe calls for rice cakes, bok choy and tofu but lately I've just been making the pork sauce (it does look a lot like a bolognese...hence my ragout reference) and putting it on other stuff because unless you eat it right away, rice cakes get dry and it's just not too appetizing. You could also just eat the sauce by itself -that's how tasty it is, but since I eat at my desk in front of my coworkers, I thought it best not to eat ground pork sauce by the spoonful at work. Yesterday I mixed the sauce with some udon noodles - a natural pair since udon noodles are kind of similar to rice cakes. (Asian Spaghetti anyone?) Today I kind of made the original recipe by topping it with some boiled bok choy and a block of silken tofu. Also delicious but note to self: silken tofu is mad watery so you shouldn't pack it overnight in your bento. I didn't let all the drained water get me down though - it turned my lunch into a spicy tofu soup...kind of like soon du bu. Have I stumbled upon something great?! Me thinks so.

My Lunch :: May 12th

Today's lunch is this well balanced bento of Spagetti Bolognese, Cauliflower and Carrot salad (tossed in white truffle oil - swanky!) and a handful of edamame. It was, as usual, very delicious.

Many people assume that when you live in Japan, you will automatically lose a ton of weight because you're eating tons of fresh fish and veggies. Well, that may be true if you're living far far away from the big city but in Tokyo, temptation awaits you around every corner. McDonald's, fried chicken, pastries and ice cream -- they're everywhere and they're delicious. Packing a bento for myself has helped me cut these temptations Monday through Friday but lunch is still pretty exciting. Bento boxes are pretty small, so it helps with portion control. Many boxes come with dividers and small cups to promote diversity in your meal. A little bit of this, a little bit of that - it keeps things fun.

My Lunch :: March 19th

Isn't it beautiful? In contrast to what we get to eat the majority of the year at school, this special graduation day bento is quite a site to be seen! It's almost too pretty to eat. Almost.

Japanese School Lunch :: Kyushoku

Obviously not my final meal EVER but probably my last Japanese school lunch ever. Tomorrow is graduation day so today, in honor of the end of the school year, we were treated to Osekihan, red rice, today. Osekihan is eaten to celebrate special occasions and is a sticky rice dish mixed with red beans and a sesame seed topping. It's pretty tasty but I was told that this red rice is also eaten when teenage girls get their first...you know...thing. Beans are a sign of fertility in Japan...and these ones just so happen to be red. Kind of cute. Kind of weird.

For the past 7 months, I've been teaching English part-time at Asakusa Junior High School. It's been a really enriching experience. I was really lucky to be placed in such a great school. The best part for me was learning from the kids about their daily lives. In Japan, the last year of JH is extremely important. They must all pass high school entrance exams and the pressure to say the pressure to do well is high would be a gross understatement. Personally, I think it's too young of an age to put so much stress, but that's their system and who am I to judge. Other highlights from the year:

• Helping the drama club perform a play in English (can you imagine memorizing 50 lines in a foreign language when you were 15?!)
• Cornering kids into having conversations with me
• Helping the 3rd graders with their interview tests for high school and hearing the news that they passed
• Singing The Beatles, Monkees, Cindi Lauper and Queen 5 times a day
• The surprise of sitting down to school lunch!

So, I never knew what was in store for me when it came to lunch. Some days it was yummy pasta, other days, it was something completely unrecognizable to me. I managed to eat everything, though there were times I was convinced I was about to spit it out (ok, that was only once with the fried whole fishies - head, tails and fins still attached and expected to be eaten) Students eat together in their homeroom classes and everyone eats the same thing. Kyushoku means "lunch duty"...or something like that. It refers to the act of students serving their peers. The students really enjoy being on lunch duty and it's fun to see all the boys race to get seconds after the class blesses their food in unison. (ittadakimasu!)

A few last tidbits about Kyushoku: the meals are planned out by a nutritionist and they are always between 800-950 calories and well balanced - carbs, proteins, grains. A lunch menu with all the nutrition facts is sent home to pare ts so they know what their kids have been eating. Teachers eat the same meal as students and they talk about all the nutritional value during lunch, so lunch is an educational experience too. Given the childhood obesity issues in America, a school lunch program like Japan's would be a really great way to educate kids at a young age about the importance of as healthy diet. It also assures that all students get at least 1 healthy and substantial meal a day. Just something to think about Michelle Obama.

My Lunch :: March 13th :: Zenya Ramen Akasaka

There are a few new shops opening up just in time for the nice weather. Zenya Ramen specializes in Hakata ramen but also makes other varieties such as miso and tsukemen. Hakata style ramen uses a thinner noodle and the broth is cloudy since it is a variation of tonkotsu (pork bone) broth.  I got the basic Hakata ramen which comes with green onions, half of a soft boiled egg, a slice of charshu (roast pork) and a nice fatty piece of pork belly. I love pork belly, so this was a welcome change to my ramen routine.

Zenya reminds me of a popular Hakata ramen branch, Jangara, but I think Zenya is better because they have better eggs. Over boiled eggs - ladies, that's a deal breaker! There are 4 other locations in Japan, with the Akasaka station the newest of the bunch and only 1 of 2 in Tokyo.

Zenya Ramen
5-1-1 Akasaka
Akasaka Station (Chiyoda)

My Lunch :: January 22nd :: Sakura Shokudou

One of my goals for 2010 is to eat a little healthier. It's not really about vanity as so much health - I suspect my current diet is to blame for my low energy and overall feeling of blarg. It's silly that I live in Japan and don't eat more fish. It's more of a mental thing than anything else - I didn't like it at all as a kid but as and adult, I find that I'm more tolerant and even sometimes enthusiastic for fish and seafood. It still doesn't hold a candle up to pork in my book (NOTHING EVER WILL) but it's a whole lot healthier for me.
Today I had a classic Japanese dish, Saba Miso - mackeral in a miso sauce at Sakura Shokudou in Roppongi Hills. It was nummy especially with the many sides it came with - tsukemono (pickles), miso soup, green salad with corn and potato salad.


Sakura Shokudou

Publish Post

Roppongi Hills North Tower, B1F
Roppongi Station (Hibiya, Oedo)

My Lunch :: January 19th :: Cinagro Kitchen + Market

Omotesando (the fancier shopping street near Harajuku) isn't really known for food. I always have a hard time trying to find a good mid-shop food stop but today I stumbled upon Cinagro Kitchen + Market in the basement of the building that houses the MoMa store. It is an organic cafe and market and they offer a great lunch deal. I had a cured ham, parm and avocado sandwich on fresh baked wheat bread and it included a yummy mushroom soup and a trip to their salad bar. Awful music, but that's
to be expected in Tokyo. My lunch plus an iced coffee came out to ¥1,050 - about $12! Not bad!

Cinagro Kitchen + Market
GYRE Building, B1F, 5-10-1 Jinguame
Omotesando Station (Chiyoda, Hanzomon, Ginza) or Meiji-Jingumae Station (Chiyoda, Fukutoshin)

My Lunch :: Dec 29th :: Cafe Meal Muji

Sweet and sour karage, tofu mash and chicken broccoli from Meal Muji in Yurakucho. Finished The Wind Up Bird Chronicles in the process. Not my favorite Murakami, but good enough.

Cafe Meal Muji
Muji Yurakucho, 2F
Yurakucho Station (Mita, JR Yamanote)

My Lunch :: Dec 9th :: Zip Zap Cafe

Thai Green Curry lunch set at Zip Zap Cafe in Harajuku. Definitely recommend this place if you visit Tokyo. It's a nice calm place to get a decent meal in the middle of the Harajuku craziness.


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My Lunch :: Dec 5th :: A16

Pizza Margarita at A16. Also had some chestnut pasta that looked nasty but actually tasted quite good. Great pizza and good wine selection. 


A16
Marunouchi Brick Square

My Lunch :: Nov 20th

Maple Donut and Pineapple Bread with coffee at Froment D'Or in Minami Senjuu.

My Lunch :: October 21st (Birthday Edition) :: La Boutique de Joel Robuchon

Brie, cracked pepper and jambon baguette from La Boutique de Joel Robuchon. One of my favorite things to do in Tokyo is browse around Roppongi Hills after stuffing my face at La Boutiqe which is a stress free and economical way to try some of "the chef of the century's" food.

La Boutique de Joel Robuchon
Roppongi Hills

My Lunch :: Oct 20 :: Le Bilboquet

Croque Monsieur from Le Bilboquet in Akasaka. I had such high hopes for this French staple but it was pretty gnarly. I'm pretty sure the bread was Wonderbread and there was zero butter on it whatsoever. It was mushy and very hard to eat. It will probably do the trick in fueling my run later this afternoon, but I'm going to need to have a snack to wash this taste off my tongue. Blech.

My Lunch :: Oct 19 :: M Cafe de Chaya

Another bento from M Cafe. Sorry, I know it's getting little boring but I think that this will be my last macrobiotic meal for awhile. This bento has various steamed veggies, 2 kinds of rice and soy nuggets. Though the purple rice is vibrant in color, it was pretty bland. It gets its color form azuki beans, which I prefer to have in my sweets. It was fun while it lasted M Cafe!

My Lunch :: October 16 :: Eat Cafe

I skipped out of work after two hours today and decided to take a stroll around my new favorite neighborhood, Daikanyama. Daikanyama is full of cute cafes and I had lunch at Eat Cafe today. Pumpkin soup, a croissant and an iced tea. There are a lot of things in Japan called "pumpkin" but most likely, it's not really going to be pumpkin. It is called kabocha squash and it is similar to pumpkin...but also quite different. Kabocha is yellow on the inside has a dark green edible skin. The texture is more fluffy than pumpkin. You can steam kabocha and it comes out like a steamed yam, so often times you'll get a kabocha mash as a side in your bento.

My Lunch :: Oct 15 :: M Cafe de Chaya

I am a little obsessed with M Cafe so I got another bento today. This one consists of basil rice and soy nuggets. Soy nuggets sounds really gross, but they're pretty tasty. If you have ever had Inari, it tastes like the tofu skin around the rice. I am also obsessed with eating tiny pieces of chocolate from 7-Eleven. There are some pretty wacky flavors to choose from (sweet potato, azuki bean, vegetable) but I prefer white chocolate with chocolate cookie (i.e. cookies and cream). The juice is also a new discovery - muscat juice. You can find this juice in tiny cans in K-Town and other Asian markets in The States, but the tiny cans have chunks of muscat and jelly floating around. It's not bad, but sometimes you want to just have juice. Now I found it and I'm pretty stoked.

M Cafe de Chaya, Akasaka

Akaska Biztower B1F

Akasaka Station (Chiyoda) 

My Lunch :: Oct 14 :: M Cafe de Chaya

MmMmmmmmm! This bento was so good. I am a sucker for croquettes but they're not exactly healthy. I picked up a reasonably healthy version at M Cafe de Chaya in the Akasaka Biz Tower. M Cafe is an organic/macrobiotic cafe that would make Gwyneth Paltrow proud. This bento didn't come cheap at ¥1000 (i think that would be around $14.00) but it was very tasty and I was perfectly satiated and energized by it. It came with some mashed pumpkin, a tofu tomato salad, marinated broccoli, brown ume rice and a veggie croquette. Maybe I should start reading GOOP.com. Gwyneth is onto something...

My Lunch :: Oct 13 :: Fresh Bakery Akasaka

Katsusando from Fresh Bakery in Akasaka. Katsu is deep fried pork with a special sauce. Usually, it is served over rice witha side of shredded cabbage. That is called Tonkatsu and it is a very popular Japanese dish. Put it between two slabs of soft white bread and you have a Katsu-Sando or Katsu Sandwich. Yum yum yum. It's pretty hard to get a bad katsusando since there are so few ingredients so it makes for a safe meal. 


Fresh Bakery is in the Akasaka Sacas building in front of the Chiyoda line ticket machines.

My Lunch :: Oct 12

Sasa Grill Burger Club in Daikanyama. I'm not sure if you can tell,
but this is a small size burger...it's slider size but with all the
fixins of a hamburger. It was way yum. Daikanyama is now one of my
favorite 'hoods in Tokyo. Tons of cute cafes and shops.

My Lunch :: Oct 1 :: Kinokuniya

Bento and potato salad from Kinokuniya Entree. Eating lunch at my office desk. Feels like I'm in NY again, except without a giant Lebron poster staring down at you. Kinokuniya is one of those places that would do really well in New York because it is a quick place to get something to eat that is not a salad bar or a Subway. You can also find some good fancy groceries (cheese, exotic stuff and cured meats) and wine but it is a bit pricey. They are almost always inside/near a Tokyo Metro station which leads me to believe that there is some sort of partnership there.

Kinokuniya, Akasaka
Akasaka Biz Tower, B1F