I love food in Japan. The kaiseki at our hotel in Shibu Onsen was incredible. Even the rice was delicious — the best rice I’ve ever tasted: perfect mouth feel. We had some rice at a restaurant in Kyoto just now which paled in comparison, so the variation in quality is extreme.

Wasabi! I wish it were this easy to get in the States.

I don’t know what this was, but it was AMAZING. Tasted like a green onion wrapped around ginger.

Looks amazing, doesn’t it? Fooled ya’! It’s plastic!

All of the food looks exactly like its prominently-displayed plastic counterpart (not that the kaiseki meals had any plastic models shown).

Geoff and Livia at Chez Panisse

Geoff and Livia took us out to Chez Panisse tonight to celebrate the events of the last week. We went to the restaurant downstairs, which was wonderful, as expected. Highly recommended!

Incredible dessert at Chez Panisse: Cognac and bittersweet chocolate ice cream meringue tartlet

Jack’s happy brush is sad!

Here is my first attempt at flash-fried shishito peppers (I found them at the local farmer’s market). I am happy to report that they were every bit as tasty as the ones I had in Japan!

Beng and Aey demonstrate their lightning-quick reflexes while eating shabu shabu in Bangkok, Thailand. July 12, 2010.

A video short inspired by gorging ourselves on mango sticky rice after eating sticky rice (created by Mean, Aey, Tony and me).

Tonight, I had my first pad thai in Thailand at Thip sa mai / Pad Thai Pra Tu Phe. It was quite an experience: chefs work furiously at large woks near the sidewalk while patrons sit inside at modest tables. Once the pad thai is cooked, a single portion is thrown onto a special wok and wrapped in a thin layer of egg — a feat which takes only 4-5 seconds. I switched to slow-motion mode to better capture the crazy cooking. I’m sure I’ll assemble something for the web eventually; until then, here’s a little preview.

UPDATE, JULY 13: I’ve replaced the video file with a longer edit.

Hamura Saimin Stand in Lihue

Pam and I ventured out to Lihue tonight to find Hamura’s. When we arrived and walked in, we stood around for awhile before we realized that we were supposed to seat ourselves. The old women who run the place were in motion continuously, taking to-go orders, accepting money, and delivering food to hungry patrons. They were EXPERTS at avoiding eye contact — quite impressive, actually. It took us quite some time before we were able to get one of them to come take our order, and when she finally came over, Pam asked, “What’s in the special?”

Wrong move.

She immediately walked away, grabbed a menu from behind the cash register, and plopped it down in front of us. We had missed our opportunity to order, and we were unsure when we’d get another chance to do so.

Eventually, we flagged another woman down and was able to place an order. Nothing was written down, so I assumed that she had an incredible memory… but I was wrong again. I figured out that if we asked for something and it wasn’t brought to us immediately, it was probably never going to arrive. Just keep on asking until it arrives.

the “Special” saimin at Hamura’s

The saimin at Hamura’s had been written about so much that I was expecting something magical, but as someone whose bar of noodle excellence is a good Japanese ramen place, I wasn’t totally blown away. I was, however, satisfied; it is a solid noodle house, and is fast and cheap. We wanted to try the lilikoi chiffon pie, but they were out of it (took 10 minutes to figure that out).

saimin craziness — they are fast

The service at Hamura’s is what you’d expect, which is to say that everything is optimized for speed. I’m used to going to Asian establishments with good food and functional service, so I felt at home.

At some point, this Swiss guy walked in and started asking questions like, “Is that saimin?” He tried to place a complicated order that involved tempura (fail).

Swiss guy takes a seat

A few of us tried to help him, but he wasn’t reacting in a way that was productive, so we left him to fend for himself. He eventually managed to get some food, but it was not a pretty scene.

Anyway, if you find yourself in Kauai and want to check out a local eatery, I recommend going! I’ll probably return, but not until I explore the rest of the island.

My favorite part of the meal! :)

With Douglas and Emily at Ippudo in New York

While I was at Beneath the Sea in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Douglas Seifert and Emily Irving were enjoying all 9 Beethoven symphonies in Manhattan. They managed to drag Marit Miners away for dinner one night (although, dinner with Douglas and Emily is a vegetarian nightmare), and Susy and Stan Waterman for a night of music.

I didn’t get to see Douglas and Emily until Monday; we met at Ippudo for an 11am bowl of ramen and heavenly pork buns, elbowing our way past an entire busload of Japanese tourists to get our table.

My eating buddies.

I don’t get to see them enough these days.