Excuses, Excuses. New York, New York.

Yes, it has been a really long time since I've updated this blog. I've been busy! It's hot! I don't like food anymore! Ok, that last one is a giant lie but the first two are true. Since I last posted, I went to New York for a week for an amazing vacation with my beloved friends and family and the temperatures have creeped up to the 90's in a power saving post nuclear meltdown Japan. I also took the JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test) a few weeks ago, so any time not working or sleeping was spent studying kanji and grammar. Blech.

All these variables mixed together not only equals an abandoned blog, but also an abandoned kitchen. Sadly, I haven't cooked a single thing since early June. Bad girl! Actually, truth be told, I just made Muddy Buddies 5 minutes ago in the microwave and now look like I just got out of an intense session of Bikram Yoga.

But enough complaining! New York was perfect. I saw some of my most favorite people in the world and ate amazingly well. A perfect mix of old and new. The highlight would have to be conquering the
Bo Ssäm at Momofuku. This is the dish that really but David Chang on the map. A whole pork butt perfectly braised in a sweet brown sugar brine for 6-7 hours served with lettuce, kimchi and oysters. As with most things at Momofuku, I highly recommend it. Since it is such a labor intensive dish, you have to order it in advanced and make a reservation with at least 6 people. We had 7 hungry boys and 3 Asian girls that know how to eat tackling this butt and I am proud to say that we polished it off nicely. As I always (never) say, never leave any butt on the table. 

This may be my 3rd or 4th ode to NY eating picture show and it just never gets old...at least for me. 

Vanilla Mr Softee with Olive Oil and Sea Salt from The Big Gay Ice Cream Truck. I might start trying to make this at home. So simple! So yummy!

You just don't see cheese like this in Japan. Ultra milky, creamy Burrata Caprese from Bar Pitti. 

Oh The Donut Pub. I have had so many wonderful late night stops at this 24-hour donut shop on 14th Street. I used to have taxis drop me off here and walk home happily, stuffing my face with a Maple Bar or 2. I was the vision of beauty.  

I don't remember taking this photo or eat/ordering any of these pizzas which means it was a very fun night. 

Murray's! My favorite bagel. Whole Wheat everything with sun dried tomato cream cheese. The coconut water was a failed attempt to erase any ill effects of the even before. Natural electrolytes my ass. 

If you really want to cure a hangover, everyone knows you need to eat a cheese burger! And fries! And a strawberry milkshake! All from the Shake Shack. Those things are popping up everywhere and I'm totally ok with that. 

And here we go. Momofoku Ssam Bar, 11pm reservation for 10. They handed us menus but our food had been ordered two weeks prior. First up, oysters. 

Followed by this beautiful thing. 1 whole pork butt that melts in your mouth. 

Granted, I have small weird hands, but this kind of shows you how large it was. 

Wrap it up in some crisp lettuce and sprinkle some kimchi - somehow, it makes it seems somewhat healthy. Bwwahahaha. 

Truckin' along. Not too shabby. 

And bam! Done. Totally impressed. 

You would think that after a late dinner of pork and drinking I'd still be stuffed by morning. But no. I strolled over to my old favorite morning hang out 'Snice (for the record, I hate the name of this place) for a Nutella and banana sandwich. 

Cereal Milk soft serve from Momofuku Milk Bar. These too are popping up everywhere. 

And what the hell, why not stop by Momofuku again for an afternoon drink before flying out? This sake was one of the best I've ever had and sadly, it is made especially for David Chang and his gang of restaurants so I can't get it in Japan. Ironic. 

Non-food things that were delicious on this trip: 

• Seeing my mom and dad during their cross-country road trip
• Helping a dear friend shop for her beautiful wedding dress
• Alexander McQueen Met Exhibit
• Duty Free Shopping
• Walking down the extended Highline
• Exploring more of Brooklyn
• Depositing my hard earned Yen into my US Bank Account
• ANA In-Flight Entertainment

Minimal Light, Maximum Smile

I've really been looking forward to this post. I've been snapping pictures of post-disaster Japan for the past month in hopes of sharing what it's like here right now. Like I said earlier, life is back to normal in Tokyo but that doesn't mean that anyone has forgotten about the earthquake/tsunami/Fukushima Nuclear Plant situation. The country is in a recession, people are still missing and without homes and the summer heat is coming, which will put a strain on power in the greater Tokyo area. 

By far, my favorite sign posted around my neighborhood, Akasaka. The big type above the adorable pig cartoon roughly translates to "Turn on your energy!" however "energy" here is not electrical energy (that's sort of the opposite of what they're trying to tell us) bur rather, your courage/energy/vigor. I see this sign all the time, but it wasn't until yesterday that I realized that at the bottom it says: 

"We are open with minimal light and maximum smile" 

Though normalcy has been restored in Tokyo, there are some signs of change. Buildings and metro stations are noticeably darker and many escalators are roped off to save power. Signs informing the public of cutbacks in power can be seen everywhere. It is a bit of a graphic designer's wet dream if you ask me. 

Before the earthquake, Tokyo Metro unveiled big shiny TV screens at the entrances of their stations and also on the platforms. Poor timing for them but I like how they're using the monitors to show the daily power usage in Tokyo. This sign basically shows how much energy is being used compared to estimated capacity. 

This is a sign from our local Pachinko parlor. Pachinko is BIG in Japan. I still don't understand it, but they're kind of like a hybrid between arcades and casinos. People sit in front of these pachinko slots for hours smoking and waiting to win. They're a big problem in Japan actually. There's always some sad story in the news about a baby that died because their parents got so into pachinko that they forgot to feed them. They're loud and smoky but also well air-conditioned. Many people say that if all the pachinko parlors in Japan were shut down this summer, we wouldn't need brown-outs. I'm not sure if that's true, but it's not a bad idea. Seems that the Pachinko owners are self-aware, as they are advertising a 25% cut back in power. 

Apparel stores are helping consumers gear up (or down) for the extra summer heat with tips on how to dress properly for the warm weather. Workers are allowed to wear t-shirts and jeans this summer under the government backed "Super Cool Biz" energy-saving campaign. I'm curious to see if women are still willing to shield their porcelain skin under matte black tights this summer. 

More trendy PSAs. The rainbow banner above again uses the kanji for "genki" meaning healthy/robust/vigor. It's basically saying "Be Healthy/Be Energetic for Japan" The "Power Off and Carry On" poster is another favorite of mine since all the morale boosting posters around town are reminiscent of the classic British WWII "Keep Calm and Carry On" advert. (See how I threw in some Brit slang there?) 

Ganbarou Nippon! Ganbare Nippon! Let's Go Japan! Go Japan! 

There is no shortage of "Ganbare" posters in Japan. The verb "ganbaru" is one that you learn early on when you move to Japan. It means "to fight/to do one's best" and Japanese people will say to you a lot when they realize that you don't speak Japanese. It is meant as encouragement and you hear it all the time. It's also used in sports, the Japanese equivalent to "Go Team!" 

I had a hard time figuring out the sign on the right but from what gather, at the top, they're using some Northern Japan slang for "Ganbare" "Keppare Tohoku" is how it reads. I think that's a nice show of solidarity from a small town near Tokyo, Ome. It's kinda like when the Saints were in the Super Bowl after Katrina and everyone kept saying "Who dat dem Saints"

And this concludes the Japanese language lesson portion of this post. 

Even the fashionistas and too cool for school kids in Harajuku are getting in on poster fun. I like their angle of promoting the Red Cross. 

Though it has died down a bit, you'll still see collection boxes at convenience stores. The picture on the right is actually of 2 TV personalities collecting donations at Shinjuku Station. I don't know their names, but I recognized them. The one in the blue coat once had to bounce 10 times on a pogo stick on the edge of an active volcano in South America. 

By the way, if you want to donate, my charities of choice is Second Harvest Japan and you can donate here. 

I'm sure I'll come across more great signs in the future, but this seems to be a good stopping point. 

Just kidding, I forgot that I wanted to share this JR commercial that makes me teary eyed every time I watch it. It was filmed prior to the earthquake and I don't think it ever aired but I think that it has a nice message in light of everything. This is the debut of the Kyushu Shinkansen route. Kyushu is the very southern part of mainland Japan and even though this has nothing to do with the North, it has a nice message. It really capture the playful and supportive Japanese spirit. 

ABC Cooking School :: A to Z (with a few missing in between)

This isn't actually new news, but I finished my basic bread baking course at ABC Cooking School this past winter. 27 breads - some good, some bad - all under my belt. I really enjoyed my Monday night classes with ABC Cooking School and our favorite teacher, Abe-sensei. So much so, that I signed up for the Master Course. It sounds like a fancy name, but I think it's just a marketing thing. The other options were "Twinkle Course" and "Club Riche". At some point, I'll be making a real baguette and croissants. Hoorah! Now that, in theory, I've know the right kneading and shaping techniques from the Basic course, I can really get some good practice in during the Master Course. At least I hope. If not, it's just more casual/awkward Japanese language practice for me.

I wish I had been more diligent about taking pictures of all the breads we made. Some of them were pretty boring so at the time, I didn't see a reason to document the non-event. In any case, here's a little taste of what the last 9 months of Mondays looked like for me:

A - Kabocha and Paprika Gallette

B - Maple Almond

F - Berry Cream Cheese

G - Spicy Tomato Hearts

K - Pain de Mie

M - Wiener Branch (a personal fave both in name and flavor)

N - Twin (?) Cream Kuchen

O - Honey Cinnamon

P - Pizza Tomato & Anchovy Sauce

V - Mille Tea Raisin (Maybe? I can't figure out the translation on this one) 

X - Stollen 

Y - Cream Custard Pie 

Master Classes 

My first Master class - a Japanese classic! Mushipan (steamed bread...think steam buns) These were mugwort flavor, hence the green color. 

Another Japanese stable, Curry Pan! Fried bread with a curry filling. 

ABC Cooking Studio Review: If you're interested in taking classes at ABC Cooking School and you live in Tokyo, I suggest visiting the Tokyo Midtown branch. They do offer 1-Day Classes conducted in English, so they have a few teachers there that can answer any questions you may have. Aside from the very first bread class which I took with an English speaking teacher, the rest of my experience at ABC Cooking School was all in Japanese. But really, my Japanese is Upper Beginner at best and it wasn't a problem. Monkey see, monkey do and once you get a hang of it, you'll fit right in and learn a lot of Japanese along the way. I would recommend their classes and courses if you're interested in cooking and mingling with Japanese girlfriends and housewives. 

Fried Chicken Carnival + Random Japan

Last weekend, in an attempt to cure a wicked hangover, Blammo and I went to the Karaage Carnival in Yebisu Garden Place. Simply put, karaage is friend chicken. But in Japan, it is coated with a very flavorful batter usually consisting of soy sauce and a lot of pepper, perfectly fried and very popular. Another popular thing in Japan are food "Grand Prix" competitions where cooks from around the country gather to compete for the title of best (some type of food) in Japan. This Carnival gathered the top 6 finishers at the Fried Chicken Grand Prix 2011 so that people in Tokyo could sample the very best.

Basic karaage - salty, crunchy, good. 

This being Japan, fried chicken is eaten with chopsticks. 

A miso flavored thigh. 

My favorite of the bunch - tebasaki - a specialty of Nagoya. 

A dangerous looking wing. 

It was a fun day but unfortunately, the chicken did nothing but make me feel even more unhealthy and disgusting. 

Other random sights from the weekend - a giant Monchichi roaming the streets of Ginza. 

Sure, OK. Typical Sunday afternoon in Japan. 

A ferret on a leash. Of course. 

Giant Koi fish in Kanda at a not-well publicized cancellation of the Kanda Spring Festival. 

MEOW!