Hiroyuki

Yes, junsai in Japanese. Hm...... Ayu (sweefish)? Hm....... Yonezawa in Yamagata prefecture? Yonezawa gyu (= beef) is very popular. Japanese pepper (sansho in Japanese) vs. sichuan pepper: Aren't they the same? Young leaves of sansho are also very often used in kaiseki meals. The soba you had this time looks like cha soba (buckwheat noodles containing green tea powder) to me.

Taking photos in supermarkets and other stores: Most supermarkets in Japan prohibit you from taking photos of their interior (and even the exterior in some cases). That's the problem that beset us foodbloggers, Helen, smallworld, and me when doing our respective foodblogs. I can't speak for restaurants. Some restaurants may be lenient than others, but you should ask for permission before you take photos.

Wow, this very cheap for 300 g silken tofu. Is this locally made near you? Thanks for this info Hiroyuki. So they do have freeze dried tofu for sale in Japan. I would love to see these sold in the US too. Maybe someone from Japan can sell these on ebay or amazon for US shipping. I would buy 10-20 right away. ← Of course, it is locally made. Fresh tofu can't be shipped long distance. You would?

Thanks for the next batch of photos. The shell looks like sazae (turban shell), and the sazae cooked this way is called sazae no tsuboyaki (turban shell cooked in its own shell). Visit my "Local Sushi Shop in Niigata" thread, and you will see some photos of sazae. Note that some sazae have well-developed projections on their shells while others do not. Squilla? You mean mantis shrimp (shako in Japanese)? I can't see shako in that photo of sushi, though. Baby squid? That's hotaru ika (firefry squid). It's in season! Again, visit the thread above, and you will see some photos. The soba you had looks like sarashina because it's whitish. There are other types of soba, such as yabu and inaka. You had whale meat!! Lucky guy!!

OK, I found this freeze-dried tofu for you. http://www.rakuten.co.jp/asuzacfoods/574693/829597/ 30 g for 315 yen, which turns into 200 g tofu when reconstituted. I can get a 300 g pack of silken tofu for 28 to 58 yen here.

No, I haven't. I have never searched for such tofu in the first place, though. I guess freeze-dried silken tofu is mostly used in instant miso soup.

Ah, you didn't know that? I think Helen is more qualified to answer your question, but the calcium in the egg shells helps keep the ume firm. I know you can read Japanese, so I provide this link: http://www.pickled-ume.com/info/karikari_ume.html

I'd say 5 cm (little less than 2 inches) is a minimum depth. I did a quick google search and found that at leat two other people said so. ← I made tempura for supper last night, with about 3-cm deep oil. I didn't want to add additional, new oil because the oil in the can was more than one month old (used for deep-frying two or three times). I did manage to make decent tempura, but I still think that 5 cm is a minimum depth. Another important thing to remember is to filter and store the oil soon after you have finished termpura'ing, while the oil is still hot, to prevent deterioration.

Welcome to Japan! The white fish looks like kisu (sillago) and the "pike" looks like anago (conger eel) to me. I don't think little clams (shijimi, I suppose) are in season now, but I did see the same clams in one of Peter's meals too. The last item you described as cake is called kaki age. Looking foward to the next batch of pictures!

Unfortunately, I can't find any information online as to whether their products are available in Osaka and Kyoto. Maybe you want to call the headquarters in Tokyo at 03-3626-7716 (number for inquiries and orders).

From left to right: とんこつ・こってり 博多　一幸舎 Tonkotsu (pig bone) kotteri (fatty, opposite of assari) Hakata Ikkousha 中華そば・こってり 銀座　匠力 Chuka soba (Chinese noodles) kotteri Ginza Shouriki しょうゆ・あっさり 京都　宝屋 Shoyu (soy sauce) assari (non-fatty) Kyoto Takaraya 熟成細麺 Jukusei hosemen means matured thin noodles. 塩・あっさり 大阪　上方ざんまい屋 Shio (salt) assari Osaka Kamigata Zanmaiya みそ・こってり 札幌　すみれ Miso kotteri Sapporo Sumire しょうゆ・あっさり 尾道　柿岡や Shoyu assari Onomichi Kakiokaya しょうゆ・こってり 横浜　壱八家 Shoyu kotteri Yokohama Ichihachiya (Japanese text copied from one of the sites linked to by MoGa)

How imaginative that ring is! *** puchi sanpuru (Japanese pronunciation of the French and English words petit sample).

OK, let's break the paragraph down: そしてゴーヤーソーダ。 And goya soda. ゴーヤーを縦割りして種を取り、摺り下ろしたものにソーダを注ぐだけの「超」簡単ソーダ。 "Super" simple soda, which you can make by cutting a goya lengthwise, removing the seeds, grating it (flesh), and pouring soda. ゴーヤーがたくさんあるときに摺り下ろしてziplocしておくといいかも。 When you have plenty of goya, it may bea good idea to grate them and put them in ziploc bags (and probably storing them in the fridge, I suppose). チャンプルー以外のゴーヤー料理を身につけようと頑張った私の、今年の一押し。 This is this year's best recommendation from me, who have tried to master goya dishes other than champuru (sp?). 料理というには簡単すぎるものですが、それでもこれはなかなかやみつきになりますよ。 This is too simple to be called a dish, but you may be hooked on it. ここでは、甘みはついているけれどノンカロリーのソーダを使うのがポイントです。 The point here is to use sweet but non-calorie soda. せっかく体にいいゴーヤーを使うので、カロリーも撃退！するのがお作法かと思います。 You use goya, which are good for your health, so I think cutting back on calories is the way to go. でも、甘みのないペリエとかサンペレグリノとかクラブソーダだと×です。 But, Perrier, Sanpellegrino, Club Soda, and the like, which aren't sweet, are not good. So, did you get them right? Correction: Not fridge but freezer.

Sorry, I didn't mean to confuse you. Like I said, I would call them omake, but serious collectors like you wouldn't want to use that word! (Note that there are serious omake collectors in Japan.) So, probably for those particular items of that manufacturer, petit sample should be the right term.

MoGa, you should update the Cold Noodle Dishes Cook-Off thread in the Cooking Forum!

Thank you very much for this very inspiring thread! I have just browsed through all the pages (14 pages!) of it. I must say that while all the kaiseki dinners you showed were impressive enough, the most memorable dinner for me is the one at Okariba. My only tentative question will be: What was the total cost of your trip? (You don't have to answer just because I asked. )

Culturally?? The manufacturer calls them petit samples. They also use the term petit doubutsu (= animal) if they are animal-shaped, as well as petit mode collection. They also call them miniatures and simply "items". I would simply call them omake (giveaways) .

Changed hands? Here's another mystery: This blog entry, dated June 16, 2006, says that Horumon Dojo Yamiichi Club (ホルモン道場闇市倶楽部) started a new restaurant iin Roppongi, but the restarant was soon renamed to Horumon Club Roppongi Dojo (ホルモン倶楽部　六本木道場). Did the restaraunt later changed hands to Horumon Club? The website of Horumon Dojo Yamiichi Club: http://yclub.jp/

I had assumed that dried octopus should simply be soaked in water to be reconstituted. I found two ways that may be of interest: (from here) A: Put 1/2 cup of water in a heavy pot, (add dried octopus), put on a lid, and "steam" for 7-8 min. When the water is gone, take out the octopus, and thinly chop while it is hot. B: Put dried octopus in water in 1-2 hours to reconstitute it fully. Then, grill it and thinly chop while it is hot. *** I don't know whether octopus becomes chewier when vinegared. I think I get the opposite impression... Raw octopus, when prepared correctly, is surprizingly soft! I really don't think the Japan Forum is the right place to start this topic. Maybe it should be moved to the Cooking Forum?

I didn't know that! I have confirmed the origin of the word with Wikipedia. I'm no MoGa, but the linked pages don't provide any of the information you want. This restaurant was produced by Horumon Club (Japanese only) in 2008! (By the way, this websites provides video clips. Click on the face of that chef, for example, and a video clip will start.)

I'd say 5 cm (little less than 2 inches) is a minimum depth. I did a quick google search and found that at leat two other people said so.

In Japan, dried octopus is much less popular than dried squid (surume). I don't think I have ever had it before. I did a quick good search and found it is a specialities of some areas and islands in Japan. It can be simply grilled just like dried squid and eaten as an appetizer or snack. It can also be cut into smalll pieces and cooked together with rice and other ingredients to make "takikomi gohan", and can be It can also be reconstituted, cut into pieces, and deep-fired as "kara-age". Edited to add: We more often eat raw, boiled, and vinegared octopus.

Personally, I like to make it with firm momen dofu (= tofu). Check out the China... Forum, and you will find a thread on mapo tofu, where some say they like to use soft tofu. So, that's really depends on your preferences. I used to use a premade mix (Marumiya's) for decades, but now I prefer to make it from scratch. Again, check out the China... Forum, you will find a nice thread on making mapo tofu. ← Umh, according to my mom, Japanese brand tofu seems to be softer than the Chinese brands. Maybe that's why? ← Hm...... Anyone??

The former, metal hooks (fish hooks). *** Sake: Tokubetsu junmai shu, Yorokobi (Joy, Delight, Pleasure, etc.). It's the chain's original brand. Sleeping "salary man": You did see a lot of Japanese sleeping in trains, right? Bowl: Yes, donburi. Often shortened to don when used in a dish name, as in chirashi don, bara chirashi don, kaisen don, oyako don, and katsu don. But, that's anago, not unagi, right?

Correct. What we eat as uni is the gonards of sea urchins.