Eating Osaka

 

Osaka was my first taste of Japan and after the 4 days we had stayed I did not want to leave! My introduction to Japan was certainly overwhelming but I really, really loved Osaka, and you know what, I don't even know what it was about Osaka that stole my heart, it just felt... good.

When I was growing up, we took family holidays in Hong Kong, and that city and Osaka give me similar vibes- crazy but really safe. It's busy and old and new and delicious smells waft around every corner, the districts have distinct personalities and getting lost is just FUN. I think Osaka was my favourite.

A great start was the fabulous hotel we stayed in. I wasn't familiar with the Hotel chain 'Citadines' but both of the Citadines we stayed in (Osaka and Tokyo) were outstanding. The rooms were big and beautiful and had living space and kitchenettes. Pour over coffee was supplied in the rooms (and was DELICIOUS). We also had breakfast included with this stay and although not massive, the breakfast spread was varied and all very good.

The hallways still have an Art Deco vibe: building built in 1920s

pour over coffee sachets: game changer

Lets head down to breakfast. 

For a small buffet, the Citadines really offered everything anyone could want and dare I say, more. The classics of cereal, yoghurt, fruits, coffee and juice, breads, rolls pastries, cheeses and cold cuts, salads, all the Western hot breakfast staples as well as a good Japanese and Eastern selection.

coffee, juice, yoghurt and mixed berries, croissant, cold meats, cheeses, potato salad, pinkish bread

coffee, juice, inari, steamed chicken, potato salad, and a really nice pickled veg side

soft boiled egg, smoked salmon, steamed chicken, salad, seaweed salad, and what I believe is braised burdock root.

Japanese curry and rice, pickled ginger, okonomiyaki, braised greens

I'm not a big breakfast eater but really enjoyed breakfast every day. Dad combined East and West on his plates, and the eggs, bacon, sausage were all great quality.

A beautiful and wonderful surprise, we stumbled across by accident while looking for a loo. We found the epic, posh, stunning food hall of Daimaru. Daimaru is a department store chain and maintains that beautiful elegance and nostalgia: when department stores were a destination in themselves. I love a food hall and have not had such a delightful experience since visiting the Harrods Food Hall.

Everything on display was pristine, expensive and divine. We also made an effort to visit another Daimaru food hall in Kyoto and the meat, seafood, fruit and veg areas were something to behold ($90 for a bunch of grapes?)

We spent the first day exploring and found the cutest cafe for some caffeine and a little bite in one of the many miles of underground subway malls.

Finger sandwiches and flat whites served in Wedgewood China. Perfect after a day of exploring.

I couldn't say no to the opportunity to see a whale shark, so a visit to the aquarium was a must. Lunch was one of Osaka's signature foods: Takoyaki- octopus balls. Delicious!

Whale shark encounter

Next up was another lovely find in the underground world of subway malls was a very unpretentious eatery (Dad's only proviso was somewhere he could get a beer- my proviso is no tourists)

Miso, rice, fish croquette, big, crumbed, deep-friend prawn and one large beer. A perfect meal. It was this cafe where the older waitress spoke no English at all that I suggested to dad that he let he know the meal was meccha oiishi (super tasty) and oh my goodness, the squeal of joy and delight that the waitress emitted, I will never, ever forget. #perfecttravelmoment

We did two visits to Dottenbori, but it was very busy and hectic, we didn't eat there, but the photos are lovely.

After Dottenbori by night, and a wander through Namba Parks illuminations (Christmas lights), we headed to a izakaya near the hotel.

I'm not even going to try to attempt the name so here it is:

Unassuming but warm and the salerymen that surrounded us looked like they were enjoying the food and drink and merriness very much.

We ordered beers and highballs and tried the mixed sashimi as well as the tuna sushi. Both were wonderful.

I really enjoyed Osaka, I think I could easily spend a good amount of time there and eat a lot more food there.

Still to come in my Japan series is my post on Tokyo, the amazingness that is Convenience store foods and eating on Shinkansen. Thanks so much for reading.

Eating Hiroshima

 

Atomic Bomb Dome

Hiroshima was lovely. A destination chosen from my fascination with military history and boy did I get out of it all that I'd hoped for.

Apart from visiting the Atomic bomb dome, the Peace Memorial Park and the Peace Memorial Museum, we were also treated to lovely gardens at Shukkeien Garden, we also wandered aimlessly through downtown, browsed antique and curio stores, took in the Christmas lights with childlike enthusiasm and thorough enjoyed staring out of the window of our lovely hotel, The Knot Hiroshima.

The Knot Hotel

One of my must-dos over here was visit a conveyer-belt sushi, a sushi train. At lunchtime after the gardens we found ourself near Kura Sushi, we took a number and waited for a table to become available.

These are a BIG deal over here, this pic from their website gives an idea of the proportions of the restaurants.

photo courtesy of Kura Sushi

Plates were available to order on screen, or as they passed around the conveyer belt and the menus was vast, and very good prices.

Dad ordered a beer and a ramen, and I got a mandarin juice, fried chicken and tempura udon. I had heard that Japanese fried chicken was pretty good and was happy to give it a go. It is, without doubt, the best fried chicken I have ever tried. Dad went on to get an order as well.

Takoyaki which I thought were better than the ones I had in Osaka, the home of Takoyaki. Takoyaki is a very boiling hot ball of just set dough with octopus pieces. They are umami and very good. 

I simply HAD to try the cheddar cheese tempura Sushi, and I can safely say, it was one of the best things in the world.

melty

I also had a very nice pork sushi. And lets talk about value... at the moment AUD1 is about 100Yen, so 200 yen is $2, 1000Yen is $10 and so on. Have a look at how cheap these plates were! Crazy!

I really enjoyed our visit to Kura and I'm quite sad we only got to one on our trip.

Afternoon martini and view from the hotel Rooftop.

Next door to our hotel was a very charming looking French bistro. On our first night I had some wines on their front terrace and it was just lovely, so on the second night we decided to have dinner there.

Bistrot de Paris Otemachi was such a surprise. If I had known how good the food was going to be I definitely would have ordered entrees. Alas, I ordered the roasted duck breast and dad had the lamb, and also made his a set meal which included garlic bread, salad and French fries. The sides came out before the mains and all the were just perfection.

Our mains came out not long after and looked divine. But it wasn't untill I cut into and tasted it that I realised this was way, way beyond my expectation. I ate so slowly, savouring every chew. This was literally Michelin Star, or Hatted Restaurant quality, it was utter, utter perfection. The quality of both meats, how they were cooked and seasoned, the sauces and sides were all literally perfect.

We were so happy with our meals and decided to go desserts. A gorgeous baked cheesecake and chocolate mousse French Bulldog.

Both were divine.

Breakfast the next day was a coffee, muffin and white chocolate and macadamia donut from Starbucks, which is SO popular in Japan. And these muffins poo-poo all over McMuffins.

Mmmmmm Delicious. Thanks for your time.

Eating Kyoto

Kinkakuji- the Golden Pavilion

The highlights of Kyoto for me were Kokedera: the moss temple, the Imperial Palace and Gardens, the gorgeous autumnal colours of the maples and ginko trees, the rabbit warrens of backstreets but also some real gems when it came to eating.

Kokedera- The Moss Temple

Kamo River

Dad had discovered a lovely looking place not far from our hotel called Kyoto Sakagurakan  which turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip. A modern interior with a welcoming feel. The omakase, or chefs choice was mixed with taster plates on the menu and worked like tapas, which was great for the two of us to taste and share with our drinks, for dad a draft beer and for myself a yuzu cocktail.

We started with the omakase of 6 and the scallop and mushroom

Our six-tasting small dishes consisted of pumpkin is a vinegar dressing, a mushroom and steamed greens dish I think the third was tofu, potato salad which would become a staple of my diet, a wintery pork stewed meat and veg dish and boiled veg in one of the most flavoursome and nurturing broth.

The scallop and mushroom was deep fried and crisp in the style of a chunky pakora and was very tasty indeed.

We followed on with a sashimi platter which turned out to be one of the best and freshest we had all trip. I couldn't tell you which fish were served, but the one in the back with the dark scored skin was utterly incredible.

This was, prepare yourself, and I'm not even going to describe it cause you know how good it was when I tell you what it is: Deep fried Gyoza wrapped in chicken skin. Yep.

 

Beautiful and succulent duck breast.

Deep fried camembert served with salt. Magic.

image courtesy of restaurant

image courtesy of restaurant

This unassuming coffee shop, in the backstreets served me a lovely late lunch. Takagi Coffee.

image courtesy of Ichi Oka

I'd actually popped in here for a toasted sandwich, because toasted sandwiches are my comfort food and I just needed some comfort, but alas, sold out of bread. But their coffee was lovely, as was their fish croquette and potato croquette. And of course, potato salad. As I type this I realise how carby this photo is, and I'm okay with that.

Another 'quick bite for lunch' turned out to be another amazing surprise. This was JuicyMeat Shijo Karasuma and this is their perfect Philly Cheesesteak. God it was GOOD. Dad had a steak from here and the steak was a stroke of genius, and neither were expensive at all. Very very good.

Another wonderful discovery, and we totally chose it for it's wonderful and whimsical name: Madam Clink. We had a couple of wonderful French Malbecs (one of my favourite reds) and wanted some nibbles to go with.

This is our assorted pate plate of oyster and spinach, chicken liver and citrus, salmon and olive and mushroom and almond. All delicious.

And the assorted meat plate: with salami, proscutto and mortadella, with gerkins on the side.

Some delightful eats in Kyoto. Please note, I will be dividing my trip into cities: Kyoto, Hiroshima, Osaka and Tokyo and also 'Conbini', or convenience store foods (which were INCREDIBLE!) And not all meals are included cause I was on holidays.

Unfortunately I can't supply prices on all meals as I didn't put in the usual diligence I would with a blog post, but know that eating and drinking in Japan is very, very CHEAP! Everything was outstanding value, and most of our lunches with drinks were under $20 per person, and fancy dinners including wine and cocktails or beer never topped $100 per person and was always more than one course (and more than one wine!)

Thanks for taking the time to read.

Jetstar Business Class Brisbane Osaka Tokyo Brisbane

I went to Japan! It was great!

I will have more posts coming covering all the deliciousness that was Japan.

Lets look at this edition of plane food.

We flew Jetstar Business from Brisbane to Osaka and the return route Tokyo Narita back to Brisbane. It was a very lovely flight, it was very comfortable and the 9 hour flight there and 8 and a half hour flight back were easy and manageable. Jetstar Business class is equivalent to International Premium Economy or domestic Business class, so no lay-flat seats or lounge access, but a good sized seat with lots of room and recline, a toilet for just the 21 seats up front, plenty of check in and carry on luggage and of course, full service on board.

The flight from Brisbane was delayed for around one and a half hours and the lack of communication meant we weren't at the gate for priority boarding, but once on the plane we took our seats of 1A and 1C (bulkhead) and were offered sparkling wine, juice or sparkling water. Father and I both had sparkling wine.

Before we had taken off we were brought menus and asked what we'd like for our lunch and also for the later snack service and what we'd have to drink with those meals.

Shortly after take off drinks were brought around with pretzels. I had another sparkling. Very shortly after that meals were delivered. I had selected the salmon, and Dad had the lamb shank.

Also served was a salad of lettuce, pumpkin, edamame, sourdough bread and butter as well as a dessert.

It was an all-round lovely meal, no complains at all. the main was fine if not forgettable, but the bread was fresh and warm, the salad was lovely, and the dessert was a blueberry cheesecake which was delicious

I tasted some of dads lamb shank and it was much better than my salmon, very delicious. He had a Byron Bay lager with his meal.

After the meals we got comfortable and enjoyed the journey. There was plenty of room for me to wriggle in my seat when I got ants in my pants. I watched North Country with Charlize Theron and the travel map.

After a bit I got peckish so asked for some cheese and crackers and olives to accompany the Australian Cab Savs I was enjoying.

And after a bit I asked for some chocolate: Lindt- nice.

This photo also shows the wonderful amount of legroom available. Even in Business class I always try to get the front/bulkhead seats to save anybody reclining into my space, This meant I could easily get to the loo without disturbing dad. 

About six hours in, our next meal was brought out, vegetarian pie which was really nice. I had forgotten I had requested sparkling with both meals, so I had Cab Sav as well as Sparkling with my pie. This was also served with the lovely bread and this time a tasty and moist orange and almond cake.

It really was a very comfortable flight, and reminded me of how flying used to be before stakeholders and cost cutting. Our delay meant we did get into Osaka a good 3 hours later than expected at around 10pm. I think the service was a little underwhelming and less than I had expected but that aside it was a MILLION times better than economy. 

Our return flight two weeks following was a late night flight. It was just as comfortable, however I found the service to be of a much higher standard on this leg.

Dinner was an Asian-inspired soy fish dish which was absolutely delicious, the salad was radicchio, fresh coconut, green bean and was fantastic. I had this with a gin and tonic and the dessert was a baked cheesecake- also delicious.

I didn't sleep on this overnight flight which is somewhat unlike me, but watched a great HBO doco called After the Bite which was very good, and requested some cheese and crackers and peppermint tea at something ridiculous o'clock. 

A breakfast service came out around 4 or 5 am which I allowed my father to tuck into while trying to close my eyes for a moment or two before my Brisbane transit and following flight.

Jetstar Business flights are around twice the price of standard flights and I think absolutely are worth the price. Flights are so often the worst part of trip and to be able to eliminate that is priceless. I think this style of Business class or regular Premium Economy which are comparable and usually come in at similar prices are fantastic value.

Looking forward to writing my next posts from Japan. 

Thank you for reading.