Pablo: Famed Japanese melty cheese tarts

Honestly, I thought it'd be a pretty good experience at Pablo when I arrived at its entrance and saw that it was quiet. But no the line builds up deep inside and I ended up waiting for an hour before I got my cheese tart. They split the cafe into 2 different concepts, and the first floor only offers take-out and mini cheese tarts. If you wanted the medium sized cheese tart, you'll have to wait to be seated on the second floor. 

Nonetheless, not gonna lie the cheese tart was bomb. I had the berry version which was slightly under 1000¥ but it was slightly disappointing that the berry sauce was not inside the tart. My friend had the matcha version, and the azuki red beans were very strong. 

Dinner at Tsukiji: try to make a reservation in advance

I was staying with my uncle throughout my stay in Tokyo, and he brought me out for sashimi dinner at Tsukiji. I was under the impression that Tsukiji only served sashimi in the day, but I guess the restaurants do operate at night for dinner. He made a reservation in advance, which was great because there was a crowd waiting outside in the cold to get a table. Not sure what this restaurant is called but for those of you who can read Japanese, good for you. You can figure it out from the picture below. It is also open till like 3 or 4am for those who are thinking of staying around the area till wee hours of the morning.

So we got a few side orders on top of an omakase sushi set. I don't think the set itself was expensive for its quality but I'm not very sure of the actual price.  The fishcake had a very different texture from the ones we get from Asian supermarkets, because it was not springy since they didn't add extra ingredients. The seafood taste was definitely a lot stronger and I could also feel the bits of octopus in it. I really liked the sweet white shrimp tempura because it was crunchy yet not losing the taste of sweet shrimp. We also had a few other types of sashimi which were all very fresh. The conch and squid were firm, which is not easily found outside of Japan.

Handmade fish cake with real quality ingredients

Fried sweet white shrimp

Sashimi platter

Could have been squid sashimi

The rest of the pictures would be the omakase set. All of us chose the uni set, with the other option being ikura (salmon roe). I guess that's the premium sushi and so you won't get to taste both if you just ordered a set. They served the different types separately and I was cool with that. The table next to us had them all served at one go on a huge platter. 

Toro nigiri was done aburi style, which was great

At the end of the omakase course, you'll be able to pick one of what was served as part of the omakase to have a second serving. You can even pick the uni one, which was what my uncle and I did, while my cousin went for the toro (fatty tuna).

 Please do not repost or re-use my photos without my permission.

Tsukiji Fish Market: value for money fresh sashimi and Japanese streetfood

Tsukiji fish market is actually going to relocate at the end of 2016 to make way for the Olympics, so I'm not sure how relevant this post will be. But I do hope that you guys who are hitting up Tsukiji fish market soon will find this helpful!

I guess this is almost like a guide to Tsukiji street snacks for a cheap meal with a whole lot of different food. Probably great for people traveling on a budget.

Firstly, there's 100¥ tamago on a stick. You can choose between sweet and savory, and you can also choose to have daikon and their special sauce on top as well. 

There's this stall selling grilled eel (unagi) and grilled scallops (hotate) etc on skewers for 200¥ a stick. They grill them only when you pay for them so yes it'll be freshly grilled and do expect to wait for a little while if you do get some.

There are flawless strawberries on mochi sold for 350¥. The mochi have different fillings such as red bean and matcha.

Grilled giant scallops are also available. My favourite was the one in the inner market. You get sea urchin (uni) on a grilled giant scallop (hotate) for 600¥. It was so good. Other toppings include crab leg meat etc. I also saw this other stall selling even larger ones with more a generous portion of uni, but I didn't like the fact that they torched the uni in such a way that it became grey... They probably also used uni of a lower quality as well because it was not as bright as this one.

For those who are more adventurous you can try whale meat for 200¥. It's not that weird, trust me. It's just less firm than I imagined it to be. 

Fresh oysters of various sizes are sold too. I got one for 400¥. There were cheaper options and some going for almost 900¥ too. Look around before deciding which you'd prefer I guess. 

There's a stall selling these large onigiri for 100-200¥. I picked the shrimp tempura with teriyaki sauce which was 190¥ I think. The rice was so fluffy and it was pretty large too. 

You can easily find an assortment of fish cake. I swear they are so different from those sold in supermarkets outside Japan. They use real seafood to make these. 

More sea urchin (uni) for uni fans. Did not get to try these but similar things are often served at high-end restaurants too.

Wasn't a fan of these because the Cantonese version is way better.

You can definitely get to savour the freshest tuna sashimi here. There's definitely the prized fatty tuna (ottoro) as well.

There are also a few ramen stalls available for only 700¥ a bowl. There's always a huge crowd though. 

Please do not repost or re-use my photos without my permission.

Budget Tokyo: under 35,000yen

Have not posted in a long while because of school, and I forgot about this blog too. Anyway, as the winter break comes to an end, so did my 7 day trip to Tokyo. I'm pretty proud to have spent under 35,000yen over 7 days~ However, I did enjoy some privileges such as free accommodation and also a few dinner treats. Airfare is also not included because I don't really know how to total my spending.

My airfare was slightly under HKD$2000 for a round-trip between Hong Kong and Haneda airport, Tokyo. I exchanged HKD$2800 at Haneda airport at a rate of only 12.63, which was terrible and I lost about 7000yen from that. So yes, please do exchange your currencies before flying to Japan. You'll probably get much more because the real time exchange rate was about 16 at that point. So yes I got 35,300yen which covered my expenses over 7 days.

I wouldn't say that I was compromising any of my experience in Tokyo despite spending only SGD$1000 over 7 days, including airfare. I even managed to visit Hakone, with it's day pass priced at 5160yen. I had a lot of good food as well, and I did include 2 trips to Tsukiji fish market for sashimi breakfast/brunch, and also the famed Pablo melty cheesecake too, on top of the usual ichiran and ippudo ramen. 

Here are the most expensive things I spent on:

1. Hakone pass, 5160yen

2. Uni and ikura don at Tsukiji, 2400yen

3. Uni and maguro don at Tsukiji, 1980yen

4. Unagi and ikura don at Hakone, 1944yen

5. Beef katsu, 1490yen

I would probably have spent way less if I wasn't aiming for expensive seafood items like uni and ikura. So I guess for someone who wants to just explore Tokyo without spending too much on food will definitely be able to budget a trip for SGD$1200, with cheap accommodation options such as backpackers' hostels or score a good deal through airbnb.

Oh and just on a side note, I did have 4000yen left for souvenirs by the time I got to the airport to leave for Hong Kong. So I did score 2 boxes of Royce matcha nama chocolate at 720yen each, and also 2 boxes of 白之恋人 chocolate at 1058yen each.

I shall talk more about what I spent on (food mostly) in my next few posts if I do get to them.

SAAM at The Bazaar by José Andrés: A gastronomical experience

"The Bazaar offers a magical dining experience from James Beard Award-winning Chef José."

The Bazaar was named on the the Top 10 hotel restaurants in the United States. I would recommend splurging on a dinner at the SAAM once if you ever set food in Los Angeles. The SAAM is a high-end tasting room, where you order tapas and it is recommended that you order at least 4 items to actually start to feel full and so that you don't look like you're unwilling to pay for dinner. 

We started off with ordering drinks because we would be charged for water anyway. Although the menu only offers a list of alcoholic drinks, they were able to give us non-alcoholic ones since the legal drinking age in the United States is 21 years old. Our mocktails were also cheaper than the price listed on the menu as well. My friend ordered a Passion Fruit Up! while I had the Magic Mojito. The waitress drizzled the drink from a shaker onto the cotton candy in front of us. Bonus points to service! (I guess it is called Magic Mojito because the cotton candy dissolves as the liquid is poured over it.)

Magic Mojito ($12)

Passion Fruit Up! + Magic Mojito

I came to the restaurant prepared. I had been eyeing on this restaurant for a couple of weeks, and I had read many reviews on the place and identified their signature dishes. I came to try their famed Philly cheesesteak, cotton candy foie gras and caviar cone.

Cotton Candy Foie Gras + Caviar Cone + Passion Fruit Up!

My friend decided to try their mussels thinking they would be the huge ones with the shell. I guess it was rather disappointing because it looked like canned food. The sauce was also kind of sour and spicy, which further made it seem like canned food. But I was surprised there were so many pieces in that little tin tray.

Mediterranean Mussels ($9)

Philly Cheesesteak: Air bread, cheddar, wagyu beef

It looks nothing like the average Philly Cheesesteak, and it was only about the length of my palm. Although it didn't look impressive, I fell in love with it after taking my first bite. The air bread was basically a hollow and thin soft shell that enclosed a thick, creamy cheddar cheese filling. It was heavenly. It was also topped with tender semi-raw wagyu beef, which made eating it an amazing experience. I thought I wasn't going to be full, but there was a generous portion of cheddar inside the air bread which kept me satisfied.

Philly Cheesesteak ($11 each)

Cotton Candy Foie Gras:

I'll have to admit that it was tinier than I had imagined, because the foie gras was only a tiny cube on the skewer. I was slightly disappointed by the size when it was presented. However, I guess it was to also balance out the ratio of cotton candy to foie gras, so that a perfect mix of the 2 can be tasted. The cotton candy was also bite sized, which was helpful. Nevertheless, the combination was impeccable and the foie gras was so creamy and soft that it melted in my mouth. It was a salty and sweet indulgence.

Cotton Candy Foie Gras ($8)

American Sturgeon Caviar Cone:

Bonus points to service and providing us with a gastronomical experience, because the cone was made in front of us. A push cart that resembled a classy version of the ice cream carts came to our table, and the server pumped the cauliflower cream into the cones, and then scooped the caviar onto the top of the cone. I appreciated that extra personal touch. It made the cones special.

American Sturgeon Caviar Cone ($9)

Braised Wagyu Beef Cheeks: Mojo Rojo

I ordered a meat dish because I knew my other orders were going to be tiny. I picked the braised wagyu beef cheeks because it was only $15 on the menu, which I thought was a steak for wagyu beef. I'm not familiar with the prices so I guess my instinct was to to compare it to the average price for steak. I was expecting it to just be a few thin slices like how pork cheeks are served at Santouka Ramen, but I was wrong. The portion was much larger than I had expected, and my friend ended up ordering the same item after seeing how successful I was with my order.

It was very tender and well executed, although I hoped that they didn't use the spanish chili because the taste was pretty weird to me. It reminded me of hot sauce that was not spicy.

Braised Wagyu Beef Cheeks ($15)

When the bathroom is also an experience of its own...

Now on to desserts. There is a separate dining area that is much more like a high-tea kind of setting for desserts. It was worth every dollar spent. 

The Sphere ($15)

 Vanilla mousse 

Please do not repost or re-use my photos without my permission.

Syrup: Dessert in Downtown

Syrup is a popular dessert cafe in downtown LA. Apparently they make their own ice cream, but unlike such cafes in Singapore, they dont display their ice cream nor the flavours of the ice cream. It's kind of annoying especially when they run out of a certain flavour that you wanted and you don't really know what you're getting into when you join the line. 

They are mainly known for their waffles, ice cream and milkshakes. It's a pretty comfortable cafe as well, although I would recommend non-locals to avoid sitting outdoors. Downtown LA is full of homeless people, and some of them would "harrass" you by asking for food. Locals deal with it fine, but I think non-locals would feel extremely uncomfortable about it. To be honest, they are pretty harmless and if they do come up to you, onlookers will help you to chase them away for you. Americans aren't exclusive at all. But I mean, you wouldn't want to be in that situation anyway.

Florentine ($7)

Strawberry and Banana Waffles

Please do not reuse or re-post my pictures without permission.

Bacaro LA

This was my last meal before leaving LA. I had 2 "knights" who were so kind as to help to house my luggages before my flight (because I was kicked out of my dorm) and to even treat me to dinner and boba (milk tea). I'm ever so grateful for these 2 guys.

This place is pretty cool, and it's a popular hangout among USC students because it's pretty near school. They serve decent food at decent prices. 3 of these tapas only come up to USD$21. It's a pretty good deal for a variety of food choices that are tasty and appetising.

Baked/fried eggplant

Mac & Cheese

Crab Salad Brioche

Mushroom and shrimp toast

Please do not reuse or re-post my pictures without permission.

Cafe Gratitude, Arts District: Delicious Vegan Food

As far as I know, there are 2 branches in the Los Angeles region: Melrose Avenue and the Arts District. I've only been to the one at the Arts District, and I was pretty impressed by the cleanliness and elegance. I absolutely love it. In contrast, I heard that the branch in Melrose is less grand because it is an older branch.

Interior of the cafe

Apart from serving vegan and healthy food, the cafe also aims to create positivity among its patrons. Its probably a marketing strategy but I really liked how their menu brings out this whole idea of being grateful and appreciative of people and things around us. Each item on the menu is named after a value, principle or a positive and motivating word. The servers will also present you with a question of the day to give customers a topic to talk about while waiting for the food to arrive. Impressive, although slightly forced in my opinion. But in return, they do expect a higher than average gratituity a.k.a. tip. Talk about being grateful towards your waiters. They recommend a minimum of 18% for tipping.

I really enjoyed their vegan bowls. It was super healthy and natural tasting, and I do applaud them for being creative about it as well. Chewy seaweed, azuki beans, quinoa and all sorts of healthy goodness in a bowl. It was pretty delicious because they knew how to add natural ingredients to enhance the flavour of other items in the bowl.

They also had super healthy flax seed chips with guacamole which was slightly too healthy tasting in my opinion. The chips were hard to chew and tasted like card board. But it's not too bad. Just not something that I enjoyed much because of the texture of the biscuit.

We also ordered a tostada which was topped with avocado and mushrooms. Delicious.

All the food that we ordered

Girls being girls, a meal is not complete without dessert. We got a flourless chocolate banana cake which was really smooth and creamy. I also really liked how they reflect their theme on the plates too.

Flourless chocolate banana cake

Please do not reuse or re-post my pictures without permission.