Best Shoyu Rāmen in Tokyo?

My last two posts were about rāmen, I didn’t want to make another ramen post for a while…  but I happened upon a rāmen joint that just opened in my neighborhood 3 weeks ago — and let me tell you! This place is no joke! The name of the shop is JIRAIGEN. (地雷原 in Japanese, and here is the map!) The name means “minefield” – as in this shit’s gonna be a flavor explosion all up in your mouth. When I saw the name, I immediately made the connection with one of my all time favorite rāmen joints, BASA NOVA.  … Continue reading Best Shoyu Rāmen in Tokyo?

Ramen References for the People

Just a quick follow up to my TOP 5 RAMEN SHOPS IN TOKYO. Before I try a new ramen shop, or if I get a craving for ramen but I’ll be in a part of town where I don’t know any next level ramen, I usually check the Ramen Database.  This site is an awesome user maintained database of ramen shops in Japan. You can search by location, name, styles — almost anything!  There are rankings and user submitted reviews.  The site is only in Japanese. http://ramendb.supleks.jp/ There are a few English websites that are easily found via Google. One … Continue reading Ramen References for the People

Marky Star’s Top 5 Ramen Shops in Tokyo♪

Laziness is one of my strong suits, and keeping true to form, I haven’t updated this blog in ages. Sometimes I feel guilty about it, but work and the social life have been keeping me busy — and even though it takes a few minutes to read a blog entry, it actually takes much longer to write one. At least it does for me. Anyways, I decided today to offer my 2 cents on the issue of rāmen. This is a crazy topic to cover because there are so many people with rāmen mania here. Luckily I have 3-4 rāmen … Continue reading Marky Star’s Top 5 Ramen Shops in Tokyo♪

Some Seasonal Foods 1

So the other day I did a conbini run to the 7-11 around the corner from my house and came across a few interesting seasonal items. If you’ve spent any time in Japan at all, you’re probably well acquainted with the fact that Japanese marketing departments LOVE seasonal items. Whether it’s beer or chocolate, any excuse to hype a product is made easier by the changing seasons and their accompanying holidays. This time I came across a seasonal Kit Kat with 2 packages, and chocolate beer [oh, the horror!!]. Nestle Japan is famous for making seasonal variations of Kit Kat. … Continue reading Some Seasonal Foods 1

李苑 – Korean Barbecue in Nakano!

The holidays are over. My Christmas and O-shōgatsu breaks are finished. Even though I went back to work, the last 2 weeks have been 3 day weekends this year which really helped me ease into the new year. However, with funds low I just spent my days off loafing around the house with the girlfriend watching DVD’s and sleeping late. In other words, too busy to write anything in the blog. Yeah, I know it’s bad. I just started this blog and already I’m slacking off… Well, for better or for worse, slacking off is one of my talents. I … Continue reading 李苑 – Korean Barbecue in Nakano!