Pass the fish?

I went to Matsuyama this week. When I arrived, I met up with some people for dinner at a local restaurant.

Things started off fine with lots of small dishes with vegetables or raw fish (like the silvery stuff above). I'm a fan of sushi and even like raw fish by itself.

But I wasn't prepared for the fish bowl.

The waitress brought out a bowl that had fish, fresh fish, so fresh they were swimming. Yes, you read that right, they were swimming.



Each of us were given a small bowl with a vinegar based sauce. We were supposed to scoop up some fishies and put them in our bowl. They "drink" up the sauce, and then you eat them.

I was willing to try one. Here is a picture of my fish - sorry it is blurry. My hands were not very steady at this point of the evening.


I picked up the little guy and downed him in a gulp.

By the time they brought out the seashell filled with mystery meat, I didn't blink an eye.

Gyoza Part 2

I met up with my old college buddy last night in Roppongi Hills, a high end shopping area in Tokyo. We drove over to an area called Omotesando and found a small gyoza place.

The restaurant only serves gyoza with a couple of vegetable side dishes. We picked out some garlic and leek gyoza and tried them boiled and fried. Both were tasty, but I think I prefer the fried ones.

After two nights in a row of downing gyoza, I think I'm ready to move on to another food group.

Gyoza Part 1

After work, I went with a couple of guys to Osaka Ohsho. I am a real gyoza fan and can't resist an opportunity to chow down on these dumplings whenever I can.

I have plans to meet my college roommate tomorrow night for dinner, and I think we'll be going to a different gyoza place. So, I considered tonight my warm-up.

Time to go to Tokyo

I arrived in Tokyo after a 14 hour flight from New York's JFK airport. Then, the bus ride to the city and my hotel took 2 hours because of the afternoon traffic.

When I finally walked into the hotel, there was a beautiful garden arrangement in the lobby. I snapped the picture above and went to get some food.

Not wanting to sit in a restaurant, I decided to go to a supermarket in the Shinagawa train station. I picked up a "bento" (a Japanese lunch box) that looked good. On the way out, I noticed a Japanese candy display. I love the way things are packaged here - such attention to detail.

White flowers in winter

With the garden outside covered in snow, I have to savor some plants inside. I like forcing bulbs in winter. It doesn't take skill, and you get quick results.

And several years ago, I got a Meyer Lemon tree when I ordered some plants. I keep it outside in the summer and bring it indoors in the winter. When it blooms, I get one of my kids to take a small brush and do the bees' pollinating job.

Baby, it's cold outside

We are in the 3rd day of really cold weather here in Mass. Yesterday, the thermometer read -12 deg F in the morning. It got up to a balmy 9 deg F in the daytime.

It is the kind of cold that makes the snow squeak when you walk on it, and our driveway has turned into a long sheet of ice.

I walked around the yard this morning and took pictures of some trees. I like to see their shape and bark when there is no foliage. Then, I rushed back indoors to warm up.

Cannon Theatre

Our girls have started taking voice lessons. I dropped them off at the studio last night and was really surprised by the great little theatre/studio.

The Cannon Theatre just opened in Littleton, Mass and is preparing for their first production of "A Little Princess".

It is located in an old mill building in the center of Littleton, Mass. The mill was built in the mid 19th century for pressing apples, making cider and vinegar.

It makes a great space for a cozy theatre that seats around 60. We can't wait to go see "A Little Princess".

Snow storms and baking

More snow this weekend. I stoked up the fire in the wood burning stove; my wife decided to bake.

Not wanting to go to the store, she looked around the kitchen to see what was lying around. We had bananas that were getting over-ripe and cranberries left over from Christmas.


The bananas became chocolate chip banana bread. The cranberries became muffins. Needless to say, I've been snacking on baked goods all afternoon.

Tempura - New England Style

In an attempt to celebrate New Years, we decided to make a Japanese dinner at home. I know that Tempura isn't really a traditional New Years dish, but it is something that our whole family enjoys.

The dish is made by frying seafood and vegetables in a very light batter.

Batter (Koromo)

• 1 egg
• 1 cup very cold water
• 1 cup flour
• 2 Tablespoons white wine

It works better if the batter stays chilled. So we always place the batter bowl in another bowl filled with ice.

Dipping Sauce

• 1 tablespoon dashi no moto in 1 cup of water, boiled for two to three minutes
• 2 tablespoons mirin. Or you can use 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons white wine
• 1/4 cup soy sauce

I like to add grated daikon radish to the dipping sauce.

We use our wok for frying and serve with Japanese rice.

New York Walking Tour - Part 3

We ended our day in NY by visiting the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. Years ago, I worked in New York. My office was a block away from Rockefeller Center, and I walked past the tree every day.

Even though it was after Christmas, there were tons of people looking at the tree. We snapped a picture and continued on.

We started to walk up 5th Avenue to see the windows, but the crowds were oppressive. After pushing our way through the people, we made it up to 57th Street. And we were able to see a window up close.

New York Walking Tour - Part 2

After making our way through Chinatown, we went to Orchard Street in the Lower East Side. I had read about the Bargain district and wanted to see what it was like.

Unfortunately, everything was closed. I'm not sure if it is closed on every Monday or only on the last Monday in December. But, everything looked like the picture below.


We quickly decided to make our way over to Soho. We found stores that were open and bakeries for snacking.

My daughter loved the MOMA Design store. She found a book she loved and wasted no time in starting to read it at a local park.