Category Archives: 牛肉

レシピ, Beef, 牛肉, 美食, 静岡県, 静岡美食, 静岡市, 観光, 農業, Food, Gastronomes, Gastronomic Photography, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Culture, Japanese Gastronomy, Non-smoking restaurants, Photography, Recipes, Recommended Lunch Restaurants, Restaurants, Roast Beef, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Cuisine, Shizuoka Prefecture, Tourism

Sirloin Roast Beef Lunch at Don Ko An Restaurant In Shizuoka City!

December 7, 2013 dragonlife Leave a comment

Service: Kind, smiling, and easy-going if a bit shy at the beginning.
Facilities & Equipment: Very clean overall. Excellent washroom
Prices: reasonable to slightly expensive (beef is not cheap in Japan!)
Strong points: Beef! Roast Beef! Wagyu Beef! Take out and online orders!
Entirely non-smoking!

Don Ko An has now been in business in Aoi Ku along the Sengen Street< Shizuoka City for the last 15 years and as far as I know they are the only restaurant specializing in Roast Beef in the whole Prefecture!

it certainly has a good reputation in Shizuoka City and since I was visiting Sengen Street yesterday it was only normal I finally visited the place!

The lunch menu was certainly very attractive!

Beautiful noren/暖簾/entrance curtain!

The team (not including Tatsuya Suzuki’s founding father) of two smiling staff, the Chef of the House, 2nd generation Tasuya Suzuki and his spouse!

Part of the lunch menu! And it is a big one!
I chose the 3-slice sirloin roast beef lunch set!
At night there is a Wagyu Roast Beef Dinner available!

There is also a vast choice of take-outs on site and through the Internet!

The three-slices of roast beef lunch set!
Very reasonably priced when you consider the volume!

It comes with green salad,

very healthy Japanese soup,

and steamed white rice!

And the roast beef slices are truly enormous by Japanese standards and by my own!
Great sirloin meat you don’t need a sharp knife to cut through!

And served with grated horseradish!
very healthy actually!

Note: as lunch time is very busy you’d do well to come at 13:00 when customers are not so many!

DON KO AN
Roast Beef Restaurant
Chef: Tastuya Suzuki/鈴木達哉さん
Shizuoka City, Aoi Ku, baban Cho, 106 (mid way along Sengen Street)
Tel.: 054-251-7002
Fax: 054-251-7019
Opening hours: 11:30~14:00, 17:30~20:30
Closed on Sundays and national Holidays
Entirely non-smoking!
HOMEPAGE

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So Good Sushi Restaurant in Nice France
Navigating Nagoya by Paige, Shop with Intent by Debbie, BULA KANA in Fiji, Kraemer’s Culinary blog by Frank Kraemer in New York,Tokyo Food File by Robbie Swinnerton, Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento, Hapabento, Kitchen Cow, Lunch In A Box, Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Ohayo Bento,

Must-see tasting websites:

-Sake: Ichi For The Michi by Rebekah Wilson-Lye in Tokyo, Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World
-Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog
-Beer: Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in Kansai by Nevitt Reagan!
ABRACADABREW, Magical Craftbeer from Japan
-Whisky: Nonjatta: All about whisky in Japan by Stefan Van Eycken
-Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery

Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

レシピ, Beef, 牛肉, 美食, 野菜, 静岡県, 静岡美食, 静岡市, 観光, 農業, Food, Fusion Gastronomy, Gastronomes, Gastronomic Photography, Gastronomy, Italian Cuisine, Italian Restaurants, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Photography, Recipes, Restaurants, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Tourism

Italian Gastronomy: Beef Cheek Stewed in Red Wine at Soloio in Shizuoka City!

November 28, 2013 dragonlife Leave a comment

Service: Pro and very friendly
Equipment & Facilities: Great overall cleanliness and superb washroom
Prices: Reasonable
Strong points: Fresh local ingredients whenever possible. Both traditional and inventive Italian cuisine. Good wine list at moderate prices. Open late!

have you ever tasted beef so tender that you don’t need a knife at all in spite of the big chunks of succulent meat?
Well, in this case you certainly must try the Beef Cheek Stewed in Wine painstakingly prepared by Chef Takehiko Katoh/加藤武彦 at Solio in Aoi Ku, Shizuoka City!

Served with deep-fried Autumn eggplants/aubergines and potato slices it certainly makes enough for a dinner some bread and wine!
It took the two of us to finish in the middle of a dinner, so it should be enough for a single person!

Another real Italian “comfort food”!

SOLOIO
420-0858 Shizuoka City, Aoi Ku, Tenmacho, 9-7, Kita, 1
Tel./fax: 054-260-4637
Business hours: 16:00~24:00
Closed on Monday
Credit cards OK
Private parties welcome!
Happy hour: 16:00~17:00: 1,000 yen set-3 appetizers plate and 1 glass of house wine!
Smoking allowed BUT Non-smoking until 20:00 everyday!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Must-see tasting websites:

Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

レシピ, Beef, 牛肉, 美食, 静岡県, 静岡市, 観光, 農業, Food, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Hamburgers, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Recipes, Restaurants, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Cuisine, Shizuoka Prefecture, Tourism

Blue Cheese and pineapple Hamburger Lunch at BLUE BOOKS cafe in Shizuoka City!

November 14, 2013 dragonlife 2 Comments

Service: Very friendly, smiling and attentive
Equipment & Facilities: Great overall cleanliness. Superb washroom in same building separated from the cafe.
Prices: Reasonable for such big servings!
Strong points: Very generous cafe/bistro multi-genred gastronomy. Great variety. Great products. Entirely non-smoking in very modern atmosphere. Great books!

It seems I can’t keep away from Hamburgers these days in spite of my being French!
So the other I felt compelled to check the menu at BLUE BOOKS cafe in Aoi Ku, Shizuoka City, again!

Now, what did I order?
Blue Cheese and Pineapple Hamburger Lunch Set!

AS usual extra lettuce for good balance!

The Blue Cheese and Pineapple Hamburger!

For a closer look of the hamburger!

I love the way they secure the whole edifice wit a wooden stick bearing their name!

These hamburgers are always so well balanced! Plenty of lettuce again!

And fresh tomato!

Now, this is true blue cheese, piquant and tasty with salt of the cheese compensated by the sweetness of the fried pineapple ring!

And succulent high class beef, with a good bite!

And plenty of French (Belgian) fries!

And a pot of tea served as it should be to wash it all done!

See you again there!

BLUE BOOKS cafe
420-0857 Shizuoka City, Aoi Ku, Miyuki-Cho, 4-6, Den Bldg 1F (5~10 minutes walk straight ahead from Shizuoka JR Station North Exit, around the corner at the large crossroads)
Tel.: 054-280-7644
Opening hours: 11:00~14:30 (lunch), 14:30^17:30 (cafe), 17:30~23:00 (dinner)
Entirely non-smoking!

Credit Cards OK
HOMEPAGE
FACEBOOK
Twitter: @BlueBooksCafe

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Shop with Intent by Debbie
BULA KANA in Fiji
Kraemer’s Culinary blog by Frank Kraemer in New York,Tokyo Food File by Robbie Swinnerton, Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento, Hapabento, Kitchen Cow, Lunch In A Box, Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Ohayo Bento,

Must-see tasting websites:

-Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World
-Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog
-Beer: Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in Kansai by Nevitt Reagan!
ABRACADABREW, Magical Craftbeer from Japan
-Whisky: Nonjatta: All about whisky in Japan by Stefan Van Eycken
-Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery

Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

レシピ, 牛肉, 美食, 酒, 野菜, 静岡県, 静岡市, 観光, 駅弁, 魚, 魚海の幸, 農業, Fish Markets, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Izakaya, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Life in Japan, Recipes, Restaurants, sake, sashimi, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka marine products, Shizuoka Prefecture, Shizuoka Sake, Shizuoka Seafood, Shizuoka Traditonal Handcarfts, sushi, Sushi bars, Sushi restaurants., Tourism

Railway Stations in Shizuoka Prefecture 2: Shizuoka City JR Station

November 13, 2013 dragonlife 4 Comments

What is this fish called at Parche Market inside Shizuoka City JR Station?
Scroll down for the answer!

Shizuoka City JR (Japanese railways) Station is a fairly big one, even by Japanese standards as it situated in the very middle of Japan and sees untold numbers of travelers!

North Exit!

Shizuoka City is divided into three distinct Wards: Aoi Ku in the North, Suruga Ku in the South, and Shimizu Ku in The East.
When I arrived in Shizuoka City in 1976 it was still a shambles of a station all wooden planks and steel frames. But in 1977 it saw its first face-lifting with the creation of Parche Department Store above the Station.

South exit!

Before Parche was open there was not communication between the north and south exits and you had to pay a platform ticket if you were in a hurry, but now, the exits are only 30 second walk from each other and that fact has helped develop the southern half of the city.
The station and its surroundings have since seen a lot of modifications resulting in a fairly modern and clean railway station.
It is worth visiting as it includes so many shops and stores.
I will spare you from the ubiquitous chain diners, coffee shops et al and show you what is worth a stop or at least the reason for it!

Great sandwiches at Subway, just on the right side of the northern exit. I know it is a big franchise chain but the vegetables used are local!

The Shizuoka Tourism Office on the north exit right between the two entrances.
English spoken there at least on weekdays!

The Shinkansen/Bullet Train Tracks Entrance!

The Tokaido Railway Line Tracks entrance!

There are many automatic tickets machines but you can buy and reserve your tickets at the Japan East Railway Line Ticket Booth. English spoken!

Or you could buy the same tickets and reserve tours at The Tokai Tours Company across. English spoken there, too!

You have many direct accesses to the Parche Department Store for all kinds of shopping on the 5 floors!

Bellmart Convenience store where you can buy English newspapers!

Let’s visit the right half of the ground (first) floor of the station first!
I recommend the fresh sandwiches at Cafe Danmark!

Soup Stock Tokyo. Great in winter!

Tokaiken Company Booth: Ekiben/Railway Lunch Boxes!
A must for a long travel as they sell more than a dozen different boxes all containing local food! A great way to discover the Shzuoka gastronomy!

The right side of the station is owned and administered by ASTY Company.
You can enter the complex through 3 different entrances.
Let’s go and see what’s inside!

GRAND SHOP selling all kinds of local food souvenirs!

Belgian Manneken Waffles!

Green Tea Madeleines at Laurier!

Bagels at Bagel & Bagel!

Traditional local Wagashi cakes called Abekawa Mochi!
Great for vegans!

Healthy Japanese food at Osozai Cafe!

Sumpu Raku Ichi!

This shop is a must visit as it sells food and crafts from Shizuoka City and its surroundings!

A multitude of local food souvenirs!

Enormous fresh wasabi with its stems and leaves!

Shizuoka Sake, beer and soft drinks!

the right prat of Sumpu Raku ichi Shop is dedicated to local crafts!

So many of them and regularly changing that it is worth a report of its own!

Saboten Restaurant/Shop for tonkatsu!

Traditional local Japanese gastronomy at Sunchuan Togeppou!
Arguably the best restaurant in the whole station!

Soba/buckwheat noodles restaurant!

Japanese restaurant specializing in Japanese seafood and fish gastronomy!

Japanese-style Western food at Tokyo Nashi Goren!

Coffee, cakes, biscuits, wine, cheese and what else at KALDI!

Some very interesting traditional Japanese apparels at Kyoto Raku Fu Shop!

Japanese izakaya: Roydo!

Hachokura Izakaya: Great local seafood!

Udon noodles and local sake!

Shizuoka and Nagoya-style ramen!

Non-smoking cafe: Platini!

Sankyu Izakaya serving oden and great Shizuoka sake!

Taisaku Izakaya: good seafood and Shizuoka sake!

Yoshineka Shop sells the best Shizuoka himono/sun-dried fish!
Did you know that Shizuoka Prefecture produces half of all himono in Japan?

Great bento there!

Umibouzu Izakaya: Great oden and Shizuoka sake there!

Now let’go to the left half of the edifice and enter Parche Shokuzaikan/Parche Food Market!
Even if you don’t buy anything, it is worth more than one good look!
So much true local food there!

Shizuoka Green Tea!

Shizuoka Wasabi and derived products!

Abekawa Mochi wagashi!

Compose your own sushi lunch there!

Japanese brochettes at Nihonichi!

Takoyaki/octopus dumplings at Takosen!

Organic food at Natural House!

Let’s enter the real (and large) supermarket!
Fruit and vegetables!

Dried and preserves seafood!

Very cheap and tasty sushi bento/donburi!

Great fresh fish and seafood market!
More than half is caught off Shizuoka Prefecture shores!

All these fish were caught in Shizuoka Prefecture!

The answer to the quizz:
Yagara/Trumpet fish caught in Suruga Bay!

One of the best meat delicatessen in town!

Great fried food at reasonable prices for immediate consumption!

Japanese traditional cakes!

Uogashi Conveyor Sushi restaurant!
Quite good for such a restaurant!

Raggenmeyer, an excellent bakery!

And don’t forget the flowers!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

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Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

レシピ, Beef, 牛肉, 美食, 酒, 野菜, 静岡県, 静岡市, 観光, 豚肉, 農業, Food, Food Health, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Pork, Recipes, Restaurants, sake, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tourism, Wagyu Beef, 和牛

Wagyu Beef at Sumpu No Nikudokoro Restaurant (Lunch) in Shizuoka City!

October 23, 2013 dragonlife Leave a comment

Service: Friendly, attentive and smiling
Equipment & Facilities: Great cleanliness overall. Beautiful and modern gender-separated washrooms
Prices: Reasonable (wayuu is not cheap anywhere!)
Strong points: Almost completely local ingredients. High class beef and pork. Great local sake and shochu list! Non-smoking at lunch time!

I had been curious for some time about a new restaurant which had been opened this year above a convenience store of all things this year when the far corner across Cenova Department Store in Aoi Ku, Shizuoka City, was reclaimed for development.

The name of the restaurant is “Sumpu No Nikudokoro/駿府の肉処”. Sunpu stands for the old name of Shizuoka City and Nikudokoro means “the place for Meat”!
Pity they don’t take the pains of at least writing the English pronunciation when you hear that Shizuoka Prefecture and City have recently declared to promote tourism more actively…

I had noticed this advert for a single donburi/bowl dish priced at 800 yen/8 US $/6 Euros for quite a while and I had thought that the place was maybe a very reasonable and simple restaurant subsidized by the Shizuoka Prefecture Government, the Agriculture Department in particular. I was proved slightly wrong!

Frankly speaking the lack of explanations and introductions on the ground floor was a bit frustrating and I was somewhat surprised to find out after climbing nondescript stairs to stand in front of small but elegant entrance!

An the surprises only continued after I had stepped inside!
Wow! Special Wagyu certified from Shizuoka Prefecture!
Actually no less than 12 breeders have been awarded the distinction in our Prefecture!

hey were not shy about exhibiting the meat used in the restaurant, a sure sign of superior quality!

Then I started to understand!
Wagyu is horribly expensive in Japan, wherever it is produced and moreover if it has received the label ‘Special Choice” by the Government!

The restaurant is owned and run by the Shizuoka JA (Japan Agriculture), the biggest Agricultural Association in Shizuoka Prefecture (and also heavily subsidized by the country!)!
Now, I knew why the prices were still comparatively reasonable, even for local products!

The establishment is absolutely spotless clean with a direct view into the kitchen! Talk about superior hygiene!

Not only the meat, but most of the sake and shochu are also brewed in Shizuoka Prefecture!

There are three types of seating: A counter by the window, very practical for individual guests of\r couples, benches and tables for 4 people apiece and a dig-in kotatsu Japanese room you can partly or completely reserve for a meal away from other guests’ sight (500 yen extra per person in the case). The Japanese room can be completely reserved for up to 8 guests. Otherwise parties up to 26 guests are accepted. Total reservation can be insured for up to 66 guests.

The sliding doors of the private Japanese-style room.

My first was for lunch at which you can a choice of single bowl dishes between 800 and 980 yen (very popular with office workers and doctors working nearby!), and three meat lunch sets between 1,200 yen and 3,000 yen. I chose the latter, which at 30 US $ is still very reasonable!

Next time I will strongly suggest that they write an English translation!

Not only the wasabi (of course!) but even the salt is local!

Supreme fat to coat the BBQ plate with before grilling the meat and vegetables! Extravagant!

Absolutely beautiful!
Now, what do we have?

Two kinds of wagyu and Kinton-o pork form Shizuoka prefecture!
Actually our Prefecture is nationally know for its supreme pork!

They need to translate that, too!
It does make for good reading, actually!

In the bckground lean Wagyu Beef and in the forefront Kinton-O Pork!

Great attentions to detail: served with grilled garlic slices and chopped thin scallions!

Naturally the vegetables are exclusively local!

Local vegetable salad and Shizuoka green tea as a bavarois with jelly!

Shizuoka-grown Koshihikari rice! A real beauty!

They should translate that too in English:
Shizuoka Koshikari rice is the earliest to be harvested in the island of Honshu: planted in April, rice grains appear in July and the rice is harvested end of August!
It is nicknamed “Pearl Rice”!

A light soup, perfect to wash all that good food down!

100% Shizuoka orange juice! The real article!

You grill everything at your own pace and order!

So tender and so juicy wagyu beef!
What else can you ask for?

Look forward to more reports as I want to investigate some of the ridiculously cheap meat bowl lunches and of course a full dinner with local sake and shochu!

Sumpu No Nikudokoro
Shizuoka Sodachi
Shizuoka City, Aoi Ku, Oote Machi, 2-15, MRK Bldg., 2f (across Cenova Dept. Store above 7 eleven convenience store)
Tel.: 054-251-4129
Opening hours: 11:30~14:00, 17:00~23:00
Closed on third Wednesday of each month
Credit Cards OK
Reservations highly recommended for dinner!
HOMEPAGE (Japanese)

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Must-see tasting websites:

Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

レシピ, Beef, 牛肉, 美食, 農業, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Recipes, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products

Japanese Gastronomy: Seared Beef-Gyuu tataki/牛たたき-Basic Recipe

September 30, 2013 dragonlife 2 Comments

Many friends, including dear Sissi, changed their minds about beef after having tasted it in Japan.
The Japanese have not invented beef or the way to cook it. Let’s say that they have refined the art to the point of simple gastronomic elegance if such a description may be used.

Here is a simple recipe which will help you appreciate the beef and rejoice your friends.
Bear in mind that the beef can be chosen according to its amount of apparent fat.
Read until the end!

INGREDIENTS:

Good quality beef
Salt, pepper or spices of your choice
Sauce: Japanese-style “tare” or anything of your liking.

RECIPE:

Choose a squarish/rectangular piece of beef. Momo/Rump is best. No need to spend thousands of whatever currency on imported wagyuu, blah blah, blah. Trust your favorite butcher!
Beef usually utilized for roast beef should be fine, too.
The point is to choose a shape that will be easy to slice in equal portions.

Grilling the beef.
You may season it beforehand if you like it so. Pierce it with a brochette for better handling, although tongs would be best. Brush with just a little oil. Grill over flame on grill. The Japanese prefer to grill over straw if available instead of charcoal or gas. Cook it as long as you want, depending whether you like your beef rare or well-done or else.

Having cooked it on all sides, put it immediately inside the refrigerator. This is the trick!

Tare/Sauce.
This is up to you, from serving it with with BBQ sauce, soy sauce and what else.
Actually my preference is to grill the beef without any seasoning and serving it with grated wasabi, grated ginger, chopped scallions and rock salt!
Try sesame seed dressing/goma dare!
Try soy sauce mixed with grated garlic, grated ginger, ponzu, and sesame oil.
The beef slices will also taste great sandwiched between shiso/perilla leaves!

As for my own preference in beef I like it with as little fat as possible for the result as above!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Must-see tasting websites:

-Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World
-Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog
-Beer: Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in Kansai by Nevitt Reagan!
-Whisky: Nonjatta: All about whisky in Japan by Stefan Van Eycken
-Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery

Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

レシピ, Beef, Bento, 牛肉, 美食, Ekiben, 静岡市, 観光, 農業, Food, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Recipes, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tourism

Shizuoka Ekiben/Railway Station Bento: Shizuoka Charcoal-grilled Beef in Shizuoka JR Railway Station

September 29, 2013 dragonlife 2 Comments

Although I already sampled all the ekiben/railway lunch boxes on sale at Shizuoka JR Station I always keep an eye in case a new one or seasonal one appears.
I did well to do last Friday before taking the train to Kikugawa City as I discovered this new one put on sale beginning of September!

The whole as sold with chopsticks and toothpick!

It is advertised as “Sumi Yaki Fuu Gyuuniku Bento”!
“Suni/炭” stands for “char coal”, “Yaki/焼き” for “grilled”, “Fuu/風” for “manner/way/method”, “Gyuuniku/牛肉” for “beef” and “Bento/弁当” for “lunch box/box lunch/boxed lunch”!

As usual Tokaiken Co. clearly sates the contents, price and consumption date limit as required by the law!

The food inside is efficiently protected by a rigid transparent cellophane lid.

Now, what do we have?

Very simple, but elegant and tasty!
The charcoal-grilled beef slices with additional seasoning provided with golden sesame seeds.
The lettuce is very fresh!

You can enjoy the beef, lettuce and rice separately, but if you are clever with chopsticks pick the beef and lettuce together!
Very tasty but comparatively light.
For the pleasure of both genders!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Must-see tasting websites:

-Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World
-Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog
-Beer: Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in Kansai by Nevitt Reagan!
-Whisky: Nonjatta: All about whisky in Japan by Stefan Van Eycken
-Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery

Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

レシピ, 牛肉, 美食, 静岡市, 豚肉, 農業, Food, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Hamburgers, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Meat, Recipes, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka Cuisine

Japanese Gastronomy: Juicy Hamburger Recipe-Nikujiru Afureru Hanbaagu-肉汁あふれるハンバーグ

September 10, 2013 dragonlife 2 Comments

The Japanese make a clear distinction between hamburgers served sandwiched between buns or bread and open hamburgers.

They call the American variety served between buns “hanbaaga” whereas minced meat steaks (stak hache in French) “hanbaagu”! Very little diffrenec in pronuciation but big difference in concept and serving!

Moreover the Japanese like their “hanbaagu” as “juicy” as possible, which explains why so many people prefer the open hamburgers in this country.
Here is a slightly off the beaten tracks recipe which should please those who like their favorite food soft and juicy!

Bear in mind that I leave the quantities open to allow for personal priorities. This is only the basic recipe left open to many variations!

INGREDIENTS:

Finely ground meat: preferably a mixture of beef and pork. Beef only is fine (for hallal and kosher cuisinesin particular)!
Finely chopped onion
Salt
Black pepper
Nutmeg
Breadcrumbs/panko
Milk (replace with light beef stock for kosher cuisine)
Eggs
Butter (skip or use fake butter for kosher cuisine)
Balsamico vinegar
Optional spices: Chili pepper, etc.
Optional vegetables: finely chopped vegetables (garlic, carrits, etc.) to be added to chopped onion

RECIPE:

Right away this recipe differs from more conventional ones:
On a cold frying pan drop finely chopped onion. Pour oil over the onion (not before dropping the onion in the frying pan) and stir-fry over low fire. This will allow oil to coat onion and prevent the taste to escape! Fry onion until they have become soft and transparent.
Let the onion cool completely first!

In a bowl drop the meat and add salt. Mix the salt in with a spatula.
Do not use your fingers! Otherwise the fat inside the meat will liquefy.

Mix the salt and meat until the meat attains a paste aspect. This requires some effort but this is one the keys for a juicy and soft “hanbaagu”!

Once you have achieved a paste form add onion, bredacrumbs, egg, milk, black pepper and mix well.
This time mix by hand! You should obtain a very sticky mixture than.

Note: as for salt added to the meat, the right amount is 0.8 % of the meat weight. This is the best amount to help control the amount of of water inside all ingredients. Too much salt and the meat will become watery. Not enough salt and the meat will dry down. A bit complicated, I understand! Actually this the amount of salt found inside a human body!

On a cold frying pan pour some oil. Deposit the hanbaagu over the oil and fry over a low fire.
A hot fire will mean a hard surface and a raw inside! Moreover the water contained inside the meat will escape and break the hanbaagu.
This is another important key to a juicy hanbaagu!

Do not put a lid over the meat! Other wise the temperature will rise too quickly and the hanbaagu will end flat!
Sponge off the first liquid coming out of the meat with kitchen paper as shown above.
When the bottom face has been properly cooked turn over and again sponge off any liquid coming out.

As an indication, once more than half of the meat has turned whitish it means that the bottom face is properly cooked. At this time turn the hanbaagu over.

It will take 12~13 minutes to cook the hanbaagu properly on both faces. When yo see some transparent juices seeping out the meat will have been cooked properly.

Take hanbaagu off the frying pan.
Add balsamico vinegar to the juices and reduce until half of it over a medium fire.
Add salt then if necessary.
Mix in some butter to liaise the sauce.
Place the hanbaagu over the sauce and coat both sides/faces and serve immediately with the rest of the sauce poured over the meat.

When you cut the hanbaagu it should be soft and well cooked but juices should not run out. But you bite it you will then be able to taste the juices inside the meat!

Bon appetit!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Must-see tasting websites:

-Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World
-Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog
-Beer: Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in Kansai by Nevitt Reagan!
-Whisky: Nonjatta: All about whisky in Japan by Stefan Van Eycken
-Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery

Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

レシピ, Bars, Bistro, 牛肉, 美食, Drinks, 酒, 野菜, 静岡市, 観光, 農業, French Cuisine, French gastronomy, French Restaurant, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Recipes, Restaurants, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tourism, Wine

French Gastronomy: Dinner at La Fillette in Shizuoka City!

June 27, 2013 dragonlife Leave a comment

French Andouillette!

Service: Friendly and a bit shy
Facilities & Equipment: Very clean overall, pleasant washroom
Prices: Reasonable to slightly expensive
Strong points: French restaurant doubling as a wine bar. Traditional French Bistro gastronomy. Good range of wines.

La Fillette (meaning “young/little girl) has the enormous merit to double as a wine bar (you may drink beer, lol) which allows you to sit comfortably in front of a h[glass at any time of the evening.

It used to be a Spanish restaurant before it opened 6 years ago and the decor outside has changed very little!

have a good look at the blackboard outside! Take your time and read it! I personally found an item that any Frenchman worth his salt has to sample!

Actually, it is not one but two blackboards you will have to check before entering!

A great feature of the place is that hey have their own cave/cellar which you can peek inside. I can garantee you you will discover some memorable bottles !

if you are on your own, you would do better to sit on a high stool at the bar counter, but if you are with a special company take a table in a cozy corner!

They have some very reasonable champagnes for the connoisseurs!

The menu is very traditional French bistro gastronomy with many a little surprise such as the above cheese creme brulee for appetizer!

As a Burgundian I couldn’t resist the escargots/snails!

The single item I would kill for!
French andouillette (pork tripes sausage)!
Home-made (not easy) and serve with succulent mashed potatoes!

Oysters gratin to damn a New Englander!

Ox jowl wine stew!

Another view of this traditional French Bistro fare you would find anywhere back home!

Home-made pistachio ice-cream!

but for me it was a succulent cheese plate!

With the perfect garlic toasts!

Looking forward to my next visit! There are too many many morsels I had to ignore! LOL

LA FILLETTE
Shizuoka City, Aoi Ku, Hitoyado-Cho, 2-1-4 (along Showa Street)
Tel.: 054-251-6018
Opening hours: 17:30~24:00 (from 15:00 on Saturdays)
Closed on Sundays
Credit cards OK

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

BULA KANA in Fiji
Kraemer’s Culinary blog by Frank Kraemer in New York,Tokyo Food File by Robbie Swinnerton, Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento, Hapabento, Kitchen Cow, Lunch In A Box, Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Ohayo Bento,

Must-see tasting websites:

-Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World
-Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog
-Beer: Good Beer & Country Boys, Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in kanzai by Nevitt Reagan!
-Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery

Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

レシピ, Beef, 牛肉, 美食, 観光, 農業, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Hamburgers, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Recipes, Restaurants, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tourism

American Gastronomy: Quadruple Cheese Dog & Mushroom Melt Hamburger at Tequila’s Diner in Shizuoka City!

February 25, 2013 dragonlife Leave a comment

Service: Shy but very friendly
Equipment & Facilities: Good general cleanliness
Prices: Reasonable to slightly expensive but very good value
Strong points: Tex-Mex gastronomy of superior quality. Doubles up as bar in evenings

Since QUIZOXY seems to be so interested here are two more American specialties I had the pleasure to savor the past week:

1) QUADRUPLE CHEESE DOG

knowing that the owner is bike fan I was wondering if this was a relic of one of his accidents…
Actually it got burnt by accident in the kitchen!

The hot dog as introduced on the menu: Cheese Dog!

Yummy-looking, isn’t it?

A touch of class in the appetizers: Home-smoked duck and corn salad!

The half-foot long sausage in the oven-baked hot dog covered with cheese and the French fries (as they say in the States!)!

Now, the big difference is that the sausages are exclusively home-made, not some cheap canned stuff!

I can assure that the sausage alone would be reason enough to visit Tequila7s Diner!

Not to mention the spicy French fries!

2) MUSHROOM MELT HAMBURGER

The mushroom melt hamburger as announced on the menu!

WOW!
No real need to comment here!

Another touch of class in the appetizers: Home-marinated sardine and coleslaw salad!

Now that hamburger was just too big to eat with my hands. I savored it with fork and knife!

A closer view of the hamburger!

the mushroom melt!
I couldn’t resist eating it separately!

For a closer view!

plenty of fresh local vegetables to accompany the 100% beef patties!

The last picture to show you the cross section!

To be continued… You bet!

TEQUILA’S DINER
420-0035 Shizuoka City, Aoi Ku, Shichiken Cho, 8-6 (near Aoba Park Street), ACT 7, 1F
Tel.: 054–255-7595
Business hours: 12:00~14:00, 18:00~24:00
Closed on Wednesdays
HOMEPAGE

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Kraemer’s Culinary blog by Frank Kraemer in New York,Tokyo Food File by Robbie Swinnerton, Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento, Hapabento, Kitchen Cow, Lunch In A Box, Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Ohayo Bento,

Must-see tasting websites:

Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

レシピ, Bistro, 牛肉, 美食, 観光, 農業, French gastronomy, French Restaurant, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tourism

French BBQ: Japanese “Nikomi” Hamburger Lunch at Brochette Restaurant in Shizuoka City!

December 4, 2012 dragonlife Leave a comment

Service: Very friendly and great explanations
Equipment and facilities: Great overall cleanliness. Superb Washroom
Prices: Reasonable
Strong points: Great use of local meats and Vegetables. Very healthy BBQ and brochettes. Excellent reasonable wine list.

Brochette means “Kushiyaki/串焼き” in Japanese. One could say they mainly serve BBQ-style meat and vegetables on skewers for dinner. But it is not limited to that. They actually serve very reasonable full lunches!
I already have described their Japanese Hamburger Lunch in a previous post.
Here is another version of this hamburger lunch with a little twist: Japanese “Nikomi” Hamburger Lunch!
“Nikomi/煮込み” could be translated as “stewed/slowly cooked”.

Whenever you visit Brochette Restaurant, have a good look at the clearly described menus outside first!

“Jikasei Nikomi Hambaagu/自家製煮込みハンバーグ/Home-made stewed open hamburger”! the price is for the whole lunch (10 Euros).

Almost all the vegetables and meat are local!

Counter seats available if you want to keep away from the crowd as lunch time is very busy!

Bistro atmosphere!

Why do I always feel for a beer when eating hamburgers? LOL

Japanese “Nikomi” Hamburger Lunch!

Consomme soup and fresh salad.

French bread and premium olive oil.
You can choose plain rice instead.

The beautiful nikomi hamburger on a hot plate with its vegetables!

Plenty of vegetables!

The hamburger is topped with melting white cheese at the last moment!

Juicy and so tasty! A truly elegant hamburger my American friends would travel for!

Look forward to the dinner report! (I said that before… LOL)

FRENCH BBQ/BROCHETTE
Shizuoka City, Aoi Ku, Ryogae-Cho, 2-7-12, Takinami Bldg. 1F (along the Egawa Street)
Tel.: 054-252-1700
Opening hours: 11:30~14:30, 18:00~23:00
Reservations highly recommended
Parties welcome (reservation requested from 4 people)
Cards OK (for dinner only)

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Must-see tasting websites:

Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents

HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

Barbecue, bbq, 牛肉, 美食, 酒, 野菜, 静岡市, 観光, 魚, 豚肉, 農業, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tourism

B.B.Q. Gastronomy in Shizuoka City!

July 9, 2012 dragonlife 4 Comments

The notion of a B.B.Q./barbecue in Japan is slightly different from that encountered in Western countries.
It is certainly organized with more precision and good service in mind!

Team Kumagusu is a group of like-minded chefs and friends who endeavor to promote the products of Shizuoka through different events. This particular B.B.Q., in its third edition, is the culmination of their efforts.
The number of participants (more than 60 this year!) meant that they had to change the locality of the B.B.Q. for need of more space.

SATO is a space owned by a local timber and architecture company up in the mountains in Ashikubo, Aoi Ku, Shizuoka City.
It can easily cater up to 100 people with great outdoors facilities complete with washroom and shower!

They even have wooden lodges for kid’s play!

A view of the company workplace.

Smokers are invited to indulge in their habit far away from the crowd!

First of all let me introduce the characters behind the event by starting with Team Kumagusu’s leader, Kenya Yoshimura/吉村健也, owner/chef of Uzu Izakaya!

Takahiro Nagashima/長島孝博 (and his wife), owner of Nagashima Wine shop in Shizuoka City, the main back-up of the event!

Kazutaka Takashima/高嶋一孝, owner and master-brewer of Takashima Brewery (Hakuin Masamune) in Hara, Numazu City.

Yuusuke Tozaki/戸崎雄介, owner-chef of Hana Oto Chinese Izakaya in Shizuoka City!

Junya Kimbara/金原純也, second chef at Hana Oto!

Takao Shimura/志村剛生, owner-chef of Narusei Tempura Restaurant in Shizuoka City.

Masataka Mochizuki/望月正隆, owner of Kanzawagawa Brewery (Shosetsu) in Yui, Shimizu Ku, Shizuoka City.

Toshiyaki Horie/堀江利彰, owner of Horie Chicken Farm in Shuzenji, Izu Peninsula, the only farm raising Amagi Shamo Chickens!

The day had started under in dry weather but overcast skies.

When it started raining all the charcoal bbq fires could be safely moved under the eaves of the building!

The ingredients of the day were published on brush-painted sheets of paper for all to see!
It certainly made for great reading!
I will send more precise pictures on request!

Red Ore Tomatoes, real fruits!

Organic green and yellow zucchinis from Biofarm Matsuki in Fujinomiya City!

Fresh wasabi roots from Sugiyama Farm in Umegashima, Aoi ku, Shizuoka City!

More organic vegetables!

Plenty of extravagant sake served by our two local brewery owners!

Shosetsu/正行き brand by Kanzawagawa Brewery!

Hakuin Masamune/白隠正宗 brand by Takashima Brewery!

Warm sake for the connoisseurs!

The brewers had even brought water from their own wells for all guests to drink!

Shigeru Sano/佐野茂治 preparing a salad of nagaimo, potato and lotus!

Mr. Keiji Sano/佐野佳治 of Sanoman Co. in Fujinomiya City who had contributed his own products to the even biding his time!

The guests starting enjoying themselves in earnest in spite of the rain outside. Note that the majority are ladies!

These ladies never miss such an event (I know them well!)!

Grating fresh wasabi for all these guests required a lot of wrist work!

Toshiyaki Horie/堀江利彰 demonstrating how to prepare his Amagi Shamo chickens for a BBQ!

The kids were invited to prepare the sweets of the day!

Extravagant rainbow trout sashimi from Kunugi Farm in Fujinomiya City!

Superlative leaf ginger from Kuno, Suruga Ku, Shizuoka City!

The vegetables, tofu and fish served while the meat was cooking!

The Amagi Shamo chicken cut and ready to be grilled!

Couldn’t wait to savor it!

Pork sausages from Sanoman Co.!

Truly extravagant dry ice-aged beef from Sanoman Co.!

I had pinched an Amagi Shamo chicken neck to grill all for myself! Actually I couldn’t resist the pleas of some friends and gave it away!

Takao Shimura/志村剛生 preparing the organic vegetables and chicken tempura!

Corn and onion tempura!

Now, who is this guy in his cups? LOL (a good friend of mine, actually!)

No need to say we shall meet again next year same place, same time with even more guests!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Tokyo Food File by Robbie Swinnerton, Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, 47 Japanese Farms Through The Eyes of Its Rural Communities, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento,Adventures in Bento Making, American Bent, Beanbento, Bento No, Bento Wo Tsukurimashou, Cooking Cute, Eula, Hapabento , Happy Bento, Jacki’s Bento Blog, Kitchen Cow, Leggo My Obento, Le Petit Journal Bento & CO (French), Lunch In A Box,
Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, The Herbed Kitchen, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Cooking Cute, Timeless Gourmet, Bento Bug, Ideal Meal, Bentosaurus, Mr. Foodie (London/UK), Ohayo Bento,

Must-see tasting websites:

Beer, Chinese Cuisine, Chinese Restaurants, Crustaceans, 牛肉, 美食, Dessert, 酒, 野菜, 観光, 魚, 魚海の幸, 車海老, 農業, Fish, French Cuisine, French gastronomy, French Restaurant, Gastronomy, Izakaya, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Restaurants, sake, Sake Brewery, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tempura, Tourism

Memorable Gastronomy with Shizuoka Products in 2011!

January 3, 2012 dragonlife 2 Comments

Fujiyama Wagyu Beef, Utogi Wasabi and Ameera Rubbins Pearl Tomatoes!

2011 was an eventful year for many reasons, some unwanted, even dreadful, and others more conducive to social happiness. I would prefer to remember the latter to help nurture a positive attitude towards a future we cannot predict! Being a convinced agnostic hedonist does help but I’m sure that gastronomes, whatever their credo, will realize how lucky we are in Shizuoka to be able to attain to ever-growing pleasures with seemingly simple local ingredients!
Here is a proposal for a full course, albeit a long one, representative of a dinner I would have enjoyed in 2011!

APPETIZERS/STARTERS:

Rainbow Trout Sashimi Plate!
These rainbow trouts are raised by Mr. Kunugi in Fujinomiya City!

in any repast drinks are most important as they are they insure the link between the dishes!
Japanese sake brewed by Takashima Brewery in Numazu City!
These labels are of a particular interest as they advertized the edible seaweed varieties found in Shizuoka Prefecture!
Note: For friends who may not drink alcohol I would recommend ginger ale made with Shizuoka-grown ginger or Shizuoka green (and black!) tea under various forms!

Tomato Tempura!
Uzu Izakaya in Shizuoka City serves it regularly with organic tomatoes seasoned with home-made yuzu koshio paste!

Sakekasu tempura!
Setsugekka Soba Restaurant in Shimada City serves this tempura concocted qith sake lees produced by their neighbors at Oomuraya Brewery!

Carrot Soup and Carrot Leaves Mousse on a Tomato Bed!
All vegetables are organic served at Pissenlit in Shizuoka city making use of the whole vegetables!

Vegetables in Banya Cauda style!
As served at Piatto in Shizuoka City! All vegetables are organic and grown in Shizuoka!

FISH & SEAFOOD

Steamed Black Bass/Suzuki/鱸 from Suruga Bay and vegetables by Mr. Furuya in Asabata, Shizuoka City!
As prepared and served by Cham Chinese Izakaya in Shizuoka City with a light warm vinaigrette!

True Seabream/Madai/真鯛 with cockles and vegetables, all from Shizuoka!
As served Italian-style by Il Castagno in Shizuoka City!

Imperial Prawn/Sakura ebi/車海老 Tempura!
As served by Setsugekka Soba Restaurant in Shimada City!

MEAT

Fujiyama Wagyu Beef, Utogi Wasabi and Ameera Rubbins Pearl Tomatoes!
As prepared by the Missus and I!
Fujiyama Wagyu is one of the thirteen varieties of wagyu bred in Shizuoka Prefecture which positively compare to Kobe Beef!
The wasabi is grown by Maruichi Farm in Utogi, the birthplace of this most remarkable ingredient!
The Ameera Rubbins Pearl Tomatoes are grown in Iwata City!

Foie gras poele on Corn Galette with Madeira Sauce!
This can qualify as an extravagant appetizer too!
The galette was concocted at Pissenlit in Shizuoka City with high-grade Kankanmusume Corn grown by Chouchou Farm in Iwata City!

Jidori Chicken Poêlé served with a Old Mimolette Cheese topping!
Fuji City is famed for its Jidori Chicken and Gentil in Shizuoka City serves it in extravagant simplicity with a topping of 24-months old Mimolette Cheese!

DESSERTS

Soy sauce and Brown Sugar Mousse Cake, Frozen Organic Mandarine and Lemon Sorbet!

Tetsuya Sugimoto in Shizuoka City is a master of off the beaten track desserts!
The soy sauce is created by Amano Company in Gotemba City and the brown sugar is made with sugarcane grown in Kakegawa City. As for the mandarine and lemon, they are of course organic!

Carrot Crème Brulée and Mandarine Caramelisée!

As served at Pissenlit in Shizuoka City. Both the carrot and mandarine are organic!

Organic Carrot ice Cream!
This could be served as an appetizer, a refresher between dishes or a dessert at Comptoir de Bios in Shizuoka City!

Pheasant Egg Pudding and brown Sugar ice Cream!
Again created by Tetsuya Sugimoto in Shizuoka City with pheasant eggs produced in Hamamatsu City and brown sugar made from sugarcane grown in Kakegawa City!

Naturally I still have missed a lot and I sincerely hope I will be able to introduce other discoveries by the end of this year!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

With a Glass,
Clumsyfingers by Xethia
Adventures in Bento Making, American Bento, Beanbento, Bento No1, Bento Wo Tsukurimashou, Cooking Cute, Eula, Hapabento , Happy Bento, Jacki’s Bento Blog, Kitchen Cow, Leggo My Obento, Le Petit Journal Bento & CO (French), Lunch In A Box, My Bento Box, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, The Herbed Kitchen, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat; Bento Lunch Blog (German); Adventures In Bento; Anna The Red’s Bento Factory; Cooking Cute; Timeless Gourmet; Bento Bug; Ideal Meal; Bentosaurus; Mr. Foodie (London/UK); Ohayo Bento

Must-see tasting websites:

-Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World
-Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog
-Beer: Good Beer & Country Boys, Another Pint, Please!
-Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery

Beef, 牛肉, 美食, 野菜, 観光, 魚, 農業, Fish, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Potatoes, Recipes, sake, Sake Brewery, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tomato, Tourism, vegetables

BBQ With Shizuoka Local Products!

October 9, 2011 dragonlife 2 Comments

In Japan and Shizuoka BBQ’s are taken very seriously!
Today, Sunday October 9th, I took part in the 2nd Shizuoka Products BBQ organized by Nagashima Wine Shop in Shizuoka City!
The event catered for no less than 50 people and certainly required some organization like the Japanese are so good at!

The event took place on the bbq space of Yamako/山幸 soba shop up in the Mariko mountains in Shizuoka City!

The BBQ was scheduled for 11:00 a.m. but I came early to give a hand and to be able to report on the whole day!
It certainly was hot for an October Sunday!

Plenty of hands needed, but organizing committee included some hefty guys!

We still took time to share a joke or two!

Let me introduce all the good people who made it possible!
Takahiro Nagashima/長島孝博/ owner of Nagashima Wine shop in Shizuoka City, the main organizer.

Kazutaka Takashima/高嶋一孝, owner and master-brewer of Takashima Brewery in Numazu City.

Yuusuke Tozaki/戸崎雄介, owner-chef of Hana Oto Chinese Izakaya in Shizuoka City.

Takao Shimura/志村剛生, owner-chef of Narusei Tempura Restaurant in Shizuoka City.

Shigeru Sano/佐野茂治, owner-chef of Kamoshibito Restaurant in Shizuoka City.

Ken-ya Yoshimura, owner-chef of Uzu Izakaya, the leader of the group!

I took a break to take a stroll in the natural surroundings. Beautiful but unfortunately inedible karasu uri/烏瓜!

Things getting ready!

Preparing the charcoal BBQ!

Washing the vegetables!
All the vegetables of the day, except for the mushrooms and the jumbo peanuts were organic and grown by Bio Farm Matsuki in Fujinomiya City!

Little beauties for the salads!

Organic tomatoes!

Butternut squash!

Oura burdock roots!

Yuzu Koshio and Basil Paste created by Ken-ya Yoshimura at Uzu!

Sauces/dressings for the BBQ!

All the sakes of the day were nectars called Hakuin Masamune brewed by Takashima Brewery!

Kazutaka Takashima makes it known all through his sake labels that the Suruga Bay has the largest number of edible seaweed varieties in Japan!

The water of the day all came from Takashima Brewery’s own well!

All the guests were provided a sake cup with a removable cap to make sure not a single drop would be spilled!

Rainbow trout from Kunugi Fish Farm in Fujinomiya City!

Preparing the rainbow trout sashimi plate!

Beautiful, isn’t it?

Boiled jumbo peanuts grown in Shizuoka City! Great snack!

Pick your tomato!

Gomadare/sesame dressing by Sanoman Company in Fujinomiya City!

Boiled mangenton pork belly slices, cucumber and boiled bean sprouts salad!

The star of the day: dry ageing beef (Holstein) by Sanoman Co.!

The star of the day on the charcoal grill!

Decorating the bbq’d beef tray with mushrooms grown by Mr. hasegawa in Fuji City! To be savored raw!

Cutting the beef sashimi style!

Placing the beef on the tray…

Almost ready… I wasn’t left any time for a last picture!

Mangenton pork sausages!

Red Moon potatoes tempura!

Oura burdock root tempura!

Preparing the butternut squash tempura!

Absolutely delicious!

Organic sweet potatoes!

Anchovy sauce potatoes!

The guest product of the day: mozuku seaweed brought all the way from Miyako Island in Okinawa!

The other star of the day! Toshiyaki Horie/堀江利彰, owner of Horie Chicken Farm in Shuzenji, Izu Peninsula, who came all the way tpo demonstrate the cutting of his Amagi Shamo Chickens!

An attentive audience…

Amagi Shamo is arguably the best and rarest chicken in Japan!

Charcoal-grilled Amagi Shamo Chicken!

Yummy!

Some very happy and contented ladies!

See you again next year same time!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Must-see tasting websites:

-Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World
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Beef, 牛肉, 美食, 野菜, 観光, 駿河牛肉, 農業, French gastronomy, French Restaurant, Gastronomy, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tourism

French Gastronomy: Suruga Beef at Pissenlit in Shizuoka City!

September 9, 2011 dragonlife 2 Comments

Service: excellent and very friendly
Facilities: great washroom, great cleanliness overall
Prices: reasonable to slightly expensive, good value.
Strong points: Interesting wine list. Great use of local products.
Entirely non-smoking!

One does not have to explain how good, and why for that matter, Japanese beef is.
Recently, beef produced in the Western part of Shizuoka Prefecture has attracted a lot of attention under the name of Suruga Beef!
Suruga is the name of the large Bay off Shizuoka Prefecture!
I took the occasion of a recent visit to Pissenlit in the company of a good friend to sample two parts of the same animal!

The bavette (above two pictures) is the part covering the bottom of the throat and the top of the breast.
Its texture is halfway that of a filet and of a stew.
Chef Touru Arima first fried the piece of bavette then roasted it before seasoning it with a Madeira wine sauce.
The vegetables were all organically grown at Shizen No Chikara Garden in Shizuoka City.
They included butternut squash, “mizunasu” aubergine/eggplants and buckwheat seeds.

For a closer look of the buckwheat seeds which married so well with the sauce!

My friend had an even better part, actually the best part of the animal, namely the filet!
It was prepared with a heady red wine sauce after being first fried on a hot fire and being finished in the oven.

The organic vegetables were also butternut squash and “mizunasu” aubergine/eggplant while the buckwheat seeds were replaced by Inca Mezame potato!

But the buckwheat seeds were concealed under the filet where they made a beautiful combination again with the sauce and meat!

To be followed (great desserts coming soon!)…

PISSENLIT
420-0839 Shizuoka City, Aoi Ku, Takajo, 2-3-4
Tel.: 054-270-8768
Fax: 054-627-3868
Business hours: 11:30~14:30; 17:00~22:00
Closed on Tuesdays and Sunday evening
HOMEPAGE (Japanese)
Credit Cards OK

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