mmm-yoso – Page 167

From Oslo to Tromso

January 26, 2018 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch, Norway, Travel

Our flight from Oslo was scheduled to leave at 1135am. I picked our hotel specifically because it was next to train station; the Flytoget High Speed Train to the airport leaves the train station about every ten minutes arriving at Gardermoen Airport in about 20 minutes. Another reason for picking the hotel; well breakfast. In this case breakfast was served in the Scandic Byporten location of the Egon Restaurants chain right across the walkway from the hotel.

It was still pretty dark at 730 in the morning here in Oslo.

Every breakfast features smoked salmon and-or pickled herring in these parts. Something I really enjoy for breakfast. The Missus enjoys the dark and dense rye breads and soft boiled eggs.

Nothing fancy, but enough to keep us until dinner if necessary.

We checked out, walked across the way to the train station, bought our tickets to the airport from the ticket machine (180 NOK – about $20/each) and got to the airport in no time.

Our flight to Tromso was quite punctual taking off on time. The flight was a quick two hours. It was quite interesting to see the landscape rapidly change as we headed North.

As things changed to what looked desolate a far as the eye could see.

As we got closer to our destination; Tromso, things looked even colder.

Our flight arrived at 125pm sharp. As we only do carry-on, we found the Flybussen; the Aiport Express Bus in rather good time, paid the driver and got aboard.

So here's what things looked like 145pm

Tromso has what they call Polar Night. During this time of the year, while it's not completely dark during mid-day, the sun never rises above the horizon. To quote this nice piece from Atlantic Magazine by Kari Leibowitz (date July 1, 2015):

"Located over 200 miles north of the Arctic Circle, Tromsø, Norway, is home to extreme light variation between seasons. During the Polar Night, which lasts from November to January, the sun doesn’t rise at all."

We found it quite fascinating, somewhat disorienting, and quite different. Like the article says; we found the folks in Tromso to be quite friendly and cheerful, in spite of the almost constant darkness. For some reason, the movie 30 Days of Night kept coming to mind.

Anyway, the airport bus stopped a couple of blocks from the apartment we were staying at. The owner was a very friendly guy. The apartment was spacious, with everything we needed in walking distance.

It also had a view of the street below that I would find mesmerizing.

We decided to take a short rest, then go ahead and grab something to eat.

There were plans for a very busy night ahead of us!

Thanks for reading!

Oslo – Dinner at Arakataka

January 25, 2018 mmm-yoso Fine Dining, Nordic/Scandanvian Food and Restaurants, Norway, Travel

We'd done a good amount of walking in Oslo, so we settled in for a nice nap. I awoke to the sound of a ships horn. I looked out the window, it was already getting dark at 430pm, and I saw the cruise ship we'd arrived on leaving the harbor.

It was time to wake up. We had dinner reservations at…surprise, a place the Missus picked out. I managed to get reservations at Arakataka which seemed a bit off the beaten path, though it was only a half mile away. The darkness probably had something to do with it.

The restaurant was rather small with an even smaller open kitchen.

The bar area was a bit larger, but the place was still not very large. The Hostess and our Server were amazing. Very knowledgeable, amiable, and just so nice. I mentioned being told to try the Aquavit in Norway; specifically Aquavit Linie. Man, this stuff is good. I ended up bringing back a couple of bottles. I'll tell more about it in a future post.

Most folks were getting the tasting menu, but having a bunch of tasting menu meals coming, we decided to order from the menu. And it turned out to be the perfect thing to do.

The weakest item of the night was the Potato Bread and Smoked Artic Char.

The potato bread was on the soggy side, the flavor of the char very mild and lost under all those greens and herbs.

Things turned around with the rather interesting Rutabaga, Porcini, and Pecorino. Which looked nothing like what I had imagined it would.

Thinly sliced and made pliable; the rutabaga had a nice crunch, the fragrance of porcini danced around the plate, and the pecorino added a nice milky-saltiness which really elevated this dish.

The Reindeer Tartare, Beetroot, and Juniper was another nice combination.

The mild, clean flavor of the reindeer, matched with the sweetness of the beets, and the tartness of the juniper was a surprisingly nice combination!

The Dry Aged Pork was nice and tender….and yes, it medium rare, making it ever so moist.

But the real winner was the combination of shaved black truffle and kale. Another interesting and rather delicious combination of earthy flavors with the crunch and bitterness of the kale.

The Skate was so buttery and mildly sweet. A wonderful piece of fish….the Missus claims one of the best She's had.

But I really enjoyed the pungent-mildly garlicky ramps and the savory and almost briney flavor of the salsify. We were both enjoying vegetables that we really don't get much back home in San Diego.

Of course we had to order the Duck, Cabbage, and Lingonberries, which looked quite lovely.

A nice sliced duck breast on the right. Nice and gamey. Slices of duck confit under roasted wild cabbage, lingonberries, with black garlic. This looked and tasted wonderful itself. But then another bowl arrived and was poured on the dish.

A espuma of duck confit, hearts, skin and barley……

Good lord! This was like being invited into duck heaven! The texture of the duck hearts were especially satisfying.

We were wiped out after this hefty dish and had no room for dessert. Another glass of Aquavit….well, one does need a digestif, right?

This was probably our favorite meal in Scandinavia. It had the right combination of comfort, flavor, and interesting, yet tasty dishes that were nicely seasoned and kept our attention. While the combinations were interesting, nothing was so over-the-top to be strange. And like all the places we ate at in Scandinavia, service was so friendly.

Arakataka
Mariboes Gate 7
Oslo, Norway

As we were finishing up dinner, we noticed a large queue lining up one block over. The Missus was curious. So we walked over after dinner and asked what was going on. We were told that there was a concert going on….and then in the typical Norweigan way, we were told that there were "still tickets available….so please, if you're interested we'll be happy to have you…." Such nice folks!

It was pretty chilly as we walked back to the hotel.

And yet Oslo was so relaxed…..it definitely had an affect on you.

We headed back and got to sleep early. Tomorrow, we'd be flying to a city 250 miles above the Artic Circle. It was going to be an interesting day for a kid from Hawaii…..

Thanks for reading!

Eli’s Signature Peruvian Kitchen

January 24, 2018 mmm-yoso Peruvian Restaurants

Sometime back in July; I was driving west on El Cajon Boulevard, when I noticed what looked like a Peruvian Restaurant had taken the place of the old Awash, then Meskerem Ethiopian Restaurant. I truly love Peruvian cuisine and was somewhat excited. The only thing being…..I couldn't figure out when this place was open! And then one Saturday morning, I actually parked and walked on over to find the place was only open Wednesdays thru Saturdays, from noon to five. So coming here on a weekday was pretty much off the table.

When I finally had some time on a weekend, the calendar was ready to turn into the New Year. And the place had nicer sign; "Eli's Signature Peruvian Kitchen".

Entering the place from the rather gritty neighborhood takes you into a pretty nice dining area. Much larger than what the façade would indicate.

The very nice young man working here seated me and handed me a menu, which was fairly Spartan, five dishes and a special of the day. Though the five dishes were probably the most well known and popular Peruvian dishes.

I ordered a Chicha Morada to start. It was actually pretty good; less sweet than most that I've had in the states, the best I've had since we got back from Peru. With just the right touch of sweetness and cinnamon flavor.

I instantly homed in on the Seco con Frijoles ($14.95) because it featured two of my favorite things. Seco is a cilantro and garlic based braise, and my favorite version features lamb. The frijoles here were canary beans, a favorite of mine, which shines in the classic Peruvian dish Tacu Tacu.

In this case it was beef, which was very tender, but I do prefer cordero as it adds a nice gamey dimension to the dish. The sauce was on the mild side, I usually enjoy a more assertive minty-anise flavor, with maybe a bitter sweet touch of huacatay. Still, this wasn't bad at all. The beans were creamy, nicely seasoned and my favorite part of the dish. The salsa criolla had a mild vinegary-spicy kick that helped to cut through any richness. The rice looked dry but was fragrant and nicely done.

This meant a return trip. So the following weekend I returned.

This time I started with the classic Papa a la Huacaina ($6.95).

The potatoes were nicely boiled and tender. The sauce was much thicker than other versions I've had of this dish. It was also quite cheesy and had a mild spicy kick to it. I thought the sauce was a bit too thick for my liking. The versions of this dish I enjoy also usually had some acidic-pungent element (garlic/onions), that helped to cut through things which seemed missing here.

Thankfully, I ordered the Cebiche de Pescado ($15.95). The nice young man told me that the fish for today was sea bass and if I was ok with that.

Of course, the first thing I went for was a taste of the leche de tigre, the marinating liquid for the seafood in cebiche. This version was more tannic than sour/tangy, thus a bit more reserved. It did have a good amount of aji rocoto which gave it an interesting amount of spiciness, though it had me wishing for some spicy-fragrant-fruity aji limo. At first I thought the fish had been "cooking" too long in the leche de tigre, but it was very tender, without any off flavors. The camote was lacking in the sweet-cinnamon flavors that the Missus loves at her favorite places. This was a passable version of Cebiche Pescado.

This had me determined to finally try the lomo saltado, the dish that really got me interesting in Peruvian cuisine. So I returned the next day, a Sunday. I saw that Eli's actually opened at 10am on Sunday, so I returned at a bit past 11. So here's the deal on Sunday's. Eli's serves a version of breakfast from 10 to noon on Sundays.

Which was actually fine by me.

You see Lomito al Jugo ($7.95) is basically lomo saltado without the potatoes and rice. It seemed to be quite inexpensive, so I was surprised at the portion size when it arrived.

While the beef was as I expected this price point a bit on the chewy side; it had no metallic or off flavors. Unlike versions I've had recently, the sauce, and there was quite a bit of sauce wasn't too salty. It also had just the right amount of onions and tomato to make the dish interesting. Perhaps a bit too much black pepper, but I really enjoyed the sauce with the bread.

So, I remained determined to get that lomo saltado. Hence, the return visit the following weekend.

And the Lomo Saltado ($14.95).

Sadly, this was my least favorite dish at Eli's. Not enough sauce, so the rather chewy meat seemed even more dry. The potatoes were very soggy. There wasn't enough onions and tomatoes to add pungency and acid to the dish. This came across as rather bland. The rice was also on the dry and tough side. Bummer.

Still, while the food here won't make me forget about Peru, it's decent, straight-forward, middle of the road, classic fare. Plus the folks here are really nice. Things might take a while to get to you; but that's how Peru is as well. On one of my visits, I had a nice chat with three middle aged women from Peru. They come here every other week. They were rather surprised to see me in this rather out of the way place with limited hours. We had a fun discussion about Peruvian food. And the look on their faces when I started mentioning some of their favorite places in Lima as well.

While the limited hours may be a bit of a hindrance, it's probably for the better based on the neighborhood, I'll probably return when I can.

Eli's Signature Peruvian Kitchen
4979 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92115
Hours:
Wed – Sat Noon – 5pm
Sunday 10am – 3pm

Revisits – Green China Grill and Pho Duyen Mai

January 23, 2018 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

A couple more revisits before we moved offices late last year.

Green China Grill:

It had almost been a year since my last visit. So, on one of those cooler days, I decided to drop by.

The place was as green as ever. And the menu seems to keep expanding.

Looking over the menu I realized that I'd always had the Lamian (牛大碗 – hand pulled noodles) here. I decided to try the Dao Xiao Mian; knife cut noodles, with beef brisket.

While the flavor of the broth was still on the mild side; it didn't seem to be too heavy on the MSG side of things. It was also decently textured, a decent amount of fat/oil in the broth. The beef had a nice texture, not falling apart, but not too chewy. There was a nice soy sauce-anise-light sweetness to it that was pleasant. Man, this had a ton of noodles in it! The noodles were pretty uniform in terms of width and I prefer my Dao Xiao Mian a bit thicker. It seemed a bit too processed in texture; tearing easily, lacking tenderness and "pull".

All-in-all, not bad. Though not quite worth the $10.99 price tag for some rather routine noodle soup.

Green China Grill
4688 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Pho Duyen Mai:

**** Pho Duyen Mai is under new ownership

Of course I had to have some of "Them Bones" again.

The pho broth here has hit a certain level of consistency; a bit too sweet and salty, but not terrible, light in beef flavor and anise tones. Still there's much worse to be found in the area. Noodle were perfect, proteins in the soup decent. And then there were the xí quách bò – the simmered beef ribs. I was kind of disappointed this time around as the meat was really tough. I had to use the knife to cut it off the bones. On previous visits, I could just scrape them right off the ribs with a spoon. The beefiness was there, but it was just too hard to fully enjoy.

And no talented pooch this time around either. Oh well, Duyen Mai is still better than other pho places in the area……for now.

Pho Duyen Mai
5375 Kearny Villa Rd
San Diego, CA 92123

Thanks for reading!

Roadtrip – The Bear and Star (Los Olivos)

January 22, 2018 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Road Trip, Santa Barbara County

**** The Bear and Star has closed

We had a fun time stopping in Solvang and doing olive oil tastings. But it was lunchtime and both of us were getting hungry. I had several places on my "list"; Sides Hardware, Los Olivos Wine Merchant….but it was the menu at The Bear and Star, a rather newish place in the Fess Parker (remember him?) Inn that got us to walk in.

The place was rather full and at first we didn't think they'd have a table for us, but we were seated on the back porch area. It was nice and quiet.

The menu screamed "New American" and in typical fashion we ordered four appetizers for our meal. We really enjoy touring a menu via appetizers, something we really started doing about five years ago. Our Server was so nice and accommodating. She even took time to really describe every dish for the Missus.

First up; the Chicken Liver Mousse ($9). This version was whipped to a very creamy and light texture.

It was bit on the sweet side for us and just pouring the marmalade into the ramekin didn't help things as we'd have preferred to have it on the side. Still, very nice, light offal flavors, if a bit too sweet. I enjoyed the toast as it was crisp and overly hard.

The Missus just can't help Herself when it comes to Devilled Eggs. We ordered two of the Smoked Guajillo ($3) and two of the Bacon ($3).

This was nice; very solid versions of devilled eggs. I enjoyed the smokey flavors of the guajillo version while the Missus enjoyed the more classic bacon flavored ones.

The Missus's favorite item was the deceptively simple Crispy Ranch Squash ($9).

Glazed with a soy-sweet chili sauce that wasn't too salty nor too sweet; the condensed flavors of the different squashes came through. There were a couple of slices that were really outstanding. Our cheerful Server told the Missus those were slices of Mother Hibbard Squash that cam from the vineyard's garden. Surprisingly good.

I thought the Smoked Wagyu Carpaccio ($17) sounded interesting. I will say, it was "different".

It was quite the presentation. The meat seemed to be cold smoked; the texture a bit fibrous and grainy. The smoked flavor on the mild side. The mushrooms were strange as it seemed to be dried and was like eating cardboard. This actually needed more salt….something we rarely say. Kind of a strange dish for us.

Overall, we enjoyed our meal, we'd gladly revisit. We really enjoyed our Server who was friendly, knowledgeable, and very efficient.

The Bear and Star (In the Fess Parker Inn)
2860 Grand Ave
Los Olivos, CA 93441
Hours:
Sun – Thurs 7am – 9pm
Sat – Sun 7am – 10pm

Steamy Piggy Revisited

January 21, 2018 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants

An acquaintance recently checked out Steamy Piggy and told me they really enjoyed their meal. While recalling that I really didn't enjoy my previous visits to the place, I did make a note to return.

I found that the interior looks much the same. There's that motif of bright colors with worn and rustic touches like the rusted original walls and such. I'm not really a big fan of such contrasts, but then again, I'm not quite the design maven, right?

The menu has expanded a bit, but is still just occupies one sheet of paper. There's now someone actually making dumplings on the ide of the bar and quite a variety of pan fried dumplings; seven in all. I decided to check out the "Assorted", which was one of each pan fried dumplings.

I also wanted something else; but already having dumplings, decided to stay away from more starch. I went with the Salt and Pepper Chicken ($4.50).

The portion size was generous. This "popcorn" chicken of sorts was nice and hot; the meat moist. I really didn't care for the coating, which was on the soft side. The pieces lacked crispness and was rather gummy in texture. The seasoning was on the weak side; not enough salt or pepper. On the bottom of the bucket were lots of itty-bitty pieces of chicken.

Here's the very colorful Assorted Pan Fried Dumplings ($9.50). Looks like they did the Facing East thing and went with varied colored wrappers.

On a good note; unlike my previous visits, all the dumplings were adequately pan fried. As for fillings, I think the pork and chive was the best as the meat wasn't too hard, the filling moist, and the flavor balanced.

My least favorite was the chicken curry version, which had a rather bitter taste I didn't enjoy.

Many of the wrappers were problematic. I bit into the "pimp shrimp" and the wrapper tore, the too hard filling squirting out from one side.

The flavor of the basic pork and cabbage dumpling was decent, there was a nice amount of liquid in the dumpling. But the meatball was really tough and the wrapper too brittle.

The best texture, in terms of wrappers was oddly, the egg and cheese dumpling.

The bottom was nice and crisp, the wrapper not too thick, the top nice and plump. Though I'm not a big fan of cheese dumplings……eggs yes, in a good vegetarian jiaozi.

So, nearly half a year later, it seems that the dumplings have gotten slightly better here. But, like Facing East, it's more of a concept versus substance type of place. And like I said before, probably more of a place for the younger crowd to eat and hang out in.

Steamy Piggy
4681 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111
Hours:
Sun – Thurs 11am – 10pm
Fri – Sat 11am – 11pm

Road Trip: Solvang and Los Olivos – Olive Oil, Markets, and Birkholm’s Bakery

January 20, 2018 mmm-yoso Bakery, Markets & Grocers, Road Trip, Santa Barbara County

I mentioned that back in October, the Missus and I took a roadtrip to Santa Barbara. Here are a couple of stops along the way.

I think we really developed our love for Olive Oil during our visit to Crete all those years ago. We both enjoyed our visit to the Peza Union Museum and Tasting Room. Since then, we've always had at least 3-4 bottles of Olive Oil; different grades, for different purposes. These days, it's what we've tasted in Spain, the peppery-grassy olive oils we find fascinating. And while there are places here in San Diego to grab a bottle or two. I thought it would be nice to stop and have a few tasting in Los Olivos along the way.

But first, I needed to grab something for the folks in the office. The last time I was in the area, we got a bucket of cookies from Birkholm's Bakery. Man, that stuff was gone in less than a day!

Since Solvang is pretty much on the way; we decided to make a stop, get those cookies, and stretch our legs a bit.

This time, we even had some coffee.

Really friendly folks……

I loved this sign on the back corner table.

And the folks at work got their bucket of cookies. Not sure why they like this stuff so much. But whatever makes them happy, right?

Birkholm's Bakery
460 Alisal Rd
Solvang, CA 93463

It was a bright, sunny day so we decided to take a walk around the town. It was before the holiday rush and things were still fairly calm and quiet; even on a Saturday.

Another return stop was El Rancho Market.

The Missus and I split a bottle of sparkling water and watched this really aggressive crow beg for demand handouts.

El Rancho Market
2886 Mission Dr
Solvang, CA 93463

Next stop; Global Gardens. This little stand was fairly small and discreet. We chatted with the young lady who was amazingly knowledgeable. We decided on doing the tasting; she wasn't very pushy and we actually only paid for a single tasting. She directed the products tasted to our preferences and could speak to everything we tried.

Some of the blends and styles here are excellent….so good that we spent over $70 on two bottles of olive oil.

Nice job young lady!

Global Gardens
2450 Alamo Pintado Rd
Los Olivos, CA 93441

Meanwhile, we weren't as impressed with the products at Rancho Olivos Olive Oil.

Very nice folks and the dogs were really fun and friendly though….

Rancho Olivos Olive Oil
2390 N Refugio Rd
Santa Ynez, CA 93460

We took a stop at Los Olivos Grocery.

The place was charming.

Though it seems the main draw here is the deli and little restaurant. In spite of what I had heard, there didn't seem to be a large assortment of local products.

Los Olivos Grocery
2621 W Hwy 154
Los Olivos, CA 93441

A short drive later; we arrived in downtown Los Olivos. It's a quaint little town, everything seems centered around 4-5 blocks. We were surprised that the place seemed quite busy.

We had stopped for lunch, but we decided to just do some browsing. This is wine country and there are over 30 tasting rooms in the area. Though, we decided to stop here.

You remember this from my Halloween post?

We took a look at the rather large variety of olive oils available and I chatted with the very nice guy behind the counter…..

We mentioned different flavors; we were looking for something neutral, but still with personality, and he nicely gave us some samples….I offered to pay for the tasting, but he said "no problem". We ended up buying three bottles. Two as gifts; one for us.

Olive Hill Farm
2901 Grand Ave
Los Olivos, CA 93441

Now we were done shopping…..it was time for some lunch!

Revisits – Pho Hut and Saigon 5

January 18, 2018 mmm-yoso Vietnamese Restaurants

I think everyone knows…..it's been quite a bad flu season this year. And I didn't escape the wrath of it. I must be getting up in years, because once I recovered; I still felt drained. Not wanting to go too far from home after getting home from work; but still wanting some noodle soup, I went for easy options nearby.

So here are two of the places fairly close to home.

Saigon 5:

**** Saigon 5 has closed

Located in the food court of the new 99 Ranch Market, I mentioned in my previous post on the place, that it opens early. I'd get home from work and crash by 7 or 8 pm. I'd be tired but hungry the next morning, a weekend, and Saigon 5 opens at around 930am.

I went with the dumpling egg noodle soup.

And while I still think the broth here is a little too light; it wasn't overly salty…no M-S-heebie-jeebies. It could use a bit more richness and pork flavor though.

That piece of pork hock was fairly tasty; the meat just chewy enough and was very nice.

The dumplings were on the tough side, with even less shrimp than before. Though the noodles had a nice pull to them and wasn't over-cooked.

Nothing amazing, but when feeling rundown and wanting to stay fairly close to home, well, this was okay for this morning.

Saigon 5
5950 Balboa Ave (Inside 99 Ranch Market)
San Diego, CA 92111

Pho Hut:

One evening, the Missus was at work and I was feeling quite run down. I wanted a bowl of egg noodle soup and decided to revisit Pho Hut and get the Mi Sui Cao; the dumpling egg noodle soup. Which, on one visit was decent, but then on my next visit was disappointing. It's also now $9.95.

This was more like my last visit. The broth so thin, like MSG water, though the dumplings….which I thought were missing at first and were just four in number were better than the last time when the wrappers had separated from the filling.

The portion of noodles were generous and cooked nicely.

But this just isn't very good overall.

The most entertaining moment of the evening was trying to convince the guy sitting across from me that "bun" didn't mean bun. That is; he wanted a banh mi, but thought it was "bun" on the menu. And for the life of him, could not figure out why a noodle dish would be called something in a "bun". Luckily, his wife/partner talked some sense into him and I managed to show him the photos in the menu. So you can imagine what the typical demographic of this restaurant is these days, right?

Pho Hut & Grill
5252 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

On the good side. I'm finally feeling just about back to (ab)normal……..

Midweek Meanderings – Da Nang Food to Go Becoming Mi Quang Mien Trung and Liang’s Kitchen is Now Another Location of Private Kitchens

January 17, 2018 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Vietnamese Restaurants

Just a quick post on a busy week for me.

Da Nang Food to Go Becoming Mi Quang Mien Trung:

I was recently driving on El Cajon Boulevard when I noticed that Da Nang Food to Go and all the other businesses next to the 7-11 had closed down. I took a quick look at the sign and was surprised. Mi Quang Mien Trung? I'll have to ask then next time I visit Mien Trung. On a side note; I've never been a fan of the Mi Quang at Mien Trung, so we'll see.

4745 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92115

Liang's Kitchen is Now Another Location of Private Kitchen:

Here's another surprise as I really didn't notice the change in signage. But rather something looked different so I did a quick turn into the strip mall.

Then I looked up and saw that Liang's Kitchen had become another location of Private Kitchens (aka Sister Ma’s Kitchen).

Based on my last visit to Liang's I'm not surprised. But strangely, didn't even notice the change until this past weekend.

4681 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Finally, on New Years Day; the Missus got called into work. So I decided to take a drive around the neighborhood. It's strange what catches your eye…….I saw this guy sitting at the outdoor table at Seisel's. All the businesses were closed. For some reason I find it sad and kind of haunting.

Kanazawa – Kuroyuri

January 15, 2018 mmm-yoso Japan, Japanese Restaurants, Kanazawa and Ishikawa Prefecture, Travel

We had really enjoyed our first afternoon in Kanazawa; checking out Omi-cho Market and having a nice lunch. We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing before heading off to dinner. Which was really close by. I'd had a friend make reservations at Kuroyuri; a Oden restaurant. Kuroyuri is located in the Hyakubangai Shopping Center which is attached to Kanazawa Station. And was rather easy to find.

Man, this place was busy. There's a packed u-shaped bar area on one side of the restaurant and packed tables on the other. And we did have a table waiting for us when we arrived.

I had heard that one of the iconic dishes of Kanazawa is Oden and Kuroyuri has been around for more than a half-century specializing in Oden. The menu has oden; here you order by item and a whole bunch of really good looking izakaya type dishes along with another iconic dish of the Kaga Domain, Jibuni.

So, of course we ordered it all. Along with a nice bottle of sake.

The oden here is very light and clean; not too salty, but with an mild ocean-savory flavor. As a whole, we enjoyed this, but not as much as other items we ordered. Our favorite item by far was the egg wrapped in fish cake. What a symphony of textures!

Our favorite item by far, was the amazingly savory and sweet Kasuzuke (fermented in sake lees) Fugu…yep, blowfish.

We were surprised at how relatively tender (it is after all dried and marinated) the fish was; without being too salty. We actually had a second order.

The Nukazuke (fermented in rice bran) seemed a bit saltier without the complexity of the previous version.

The strong fragrance and oiliness of the Nukazuke Saba(Mackerel pickled in rice bran) was a bit much for the Missus.

It was on the fishy side and quite salty, but I thought it to be really good bar food.

The Jibuni; a classic Kanazawa duck stew arrived in a pretty lacquer bowl.

Man, this was quite rich and hearty. the salty-sweet flavors shone through, along with the gamey duck. Loved the mushrooms in this along with the seitan. Very nice overall.

We ended with a cleansing mushroom – egg drop soup.

And some yaki-onigiri to keep any future hunger at bay.

We really enjoyed our meal at Kuroyuri. The Missus loves izakaya style dishes. The service was excellent as they usually are in most restaurants in Japan.

We'd gladly return….especially for that fugu and more sake of course.

Kuroyuri
1-1 Kinoshinbomachi
Kanazawa, Japan

We walked through Kanazawa Station on the way back to the Nikko Hotel. The gate at the front of the station is called the 'Tsuzumi-mon' (Drum Gate) The two pillars are shaped like traditional hand drums.

The area behind the gate is covered by a large glass dome; known as the 'Motenashi' (Welcome) Dome. This was all built as part of the project that eventually brought the Shinkansen to Kanazawa. If you'd like to read a bit more about the history of Kanazawa Station, click on this link.

It was an easy walk back to our room. I found that the beer I had bought in Hida-Takayama was now nicely chilled.