Restaurant Review
Konparu Osu Honten: Nagoya’s legendary kissaten-cafe chain
Konparu is one of Nagoya’s most famous kissaten (喫茶店) cafe chains known for its authentic retro vibe. Here’s […]
Articles by sushisandwich81
Restaurant Review
Sekai No Yamachan Honten: Nagoya’s legendary izakaya chain
Sekai No Yamachan (世界の山ちゃん) is a Nagoya-based izakaya chain specializing in Nagoya comfort food. Here’s what Sekai No […]
Restaurant Review
Yabaton Yaba-cho Honten: King of misokatsu chains in Nagoya
Yabaton is a misokatsu (deep-fried pork tonkatsu with miso sauce) specialty chain based in Nagoya, Aichi prefecture. Here’s […]
Restaurant Review
Ebisugawa Gyoza Nakajima: Kyoto’s only gyoza specialty sauna
Here’s what Ebisugawa Gyoza Nakajima Donguri-ten / Gyoza-yu(京都 夷川餃子 なかじま 団栗店 / ぎょうざ湯) looks like. Ebisugawa Gyoza Nakajima […]
Restaurant Review
Matsukawa Liquor Store: Kyoto’s most famous kaku-uchi izakaya
Izakaya is a Japanese tavern. Among the three kinds of izakaya, kaku-uchi (角打ち) izakaya is considered the dopest. […]
Restaurant Review
Watte Chai: Kyoto’s only Indian tea stall
In Uji (宇治), the mecca for Japanese green tea ‘Uji tea (宇治茶)’, tea shops and cafes are everywhere. […]
Restaurant Review
Burisho, Kyoto: THE yellowtail specialty restaurant
Opened in 2022, Burisho (魚師匠) has been gaining attention as Kyoto’s only yellowtail specialty restaurant / the master […]
Restaurant Review
Rub A Dub: Kyoto’s oldest Jamaican reggae bar
In Downtown Kyoto is Kyoto’s oldest/first reggae bar ‘Rub A Dub(ラバダブ)’ which opened in 1986. Or it’s Jamaica’s […]
Restaurant Review
1G, Kyoto: Ruin bar in abandoned kamaboko factory
One might have heard of Naruto. It’s a Japanese manga series about ninja students / its protagonist’s name. […]
Restaurant Review
Suba, Kyoto: THE contemporary soba shop
Soba shops (or buckwheat noodle bars) are as popular as ramen shops in Japan. One of a few […]
Restaurant Review
DIG THE LINE, Kyoto: European beer bar at ShinPuhKan
DIG THE LINE (or DIG THE LINE BOTTLE & BAR) is a stylish European beer bar at Kyoto’s […]
Restaurant Review
Bisan: Tokyo’s only Palestinian restaurant
Bisan (ビサン) is Tokyo’s only unequivocal Palestinian restaurant by Chef Sudki Mansour Sudki from Bisan (or Beit She’an […]
Restaurant Review
Rutubo, Kyoto, Japan: Smoked food bar in Gion
Downtown Kyoto’s prominent Gion (祇園) neighborhood is where Rutubo is at. Past the antique store-ish facade of Rutubo […]
Restaurant Review
Daidokoro Tenya, Kyoto, Japan: Downright cozy izakaya
A discreet alley behind Kyoto’s poshest shopping mall ‘BAL’ is where a cozy izakaya ‘Daidokoro Tenya (台所 てんや […]
Travel
Ernest Fenollosa’s Japanese grave at remote temple in Shiga
A Japanese grave of Ernest Fenollosa, who was a Massachusetts-born Spanish American art historian, is at remote Homyoin […]
Restaurant Review
The Kosher Wok, Brookline, US: Best Chinese schnitzel ever!
During my 3-year stay in Israel, I was basically a Japanese diaspora who was craving for pan-Asian food. […]
Restaurant Review
Imai Shokudo, Kyoto: Legendary simmered fish shop
Simmered fish (煮魚/nizakana or 魚の煮付け/sakana no nitsuke) is a quintessential seafood dish in Japan. Especially with mackerel (鯖の煮付け/saba […]
Restaurant Review
Ki: Kyoto’s only Lebanese bistro
Ki (汽) is such a sophisticated, fast casual bistro in chic Gojo in Kyoto City. It’s impossible to […]
Restaurant Review
EAGLE TOKYO & EAGLE TOKYO BLUE: Best Gay Bear Bars in Japan
EAGLE TOKYO and EAGLE TOKYO BLUE are the best gay bear bars / the most tourist-friendly gay bars […]
Event
The Big 3 of Kyoto festivals
Here are highlights and basics of the Big 3 of Kyoto’s festivals: Gion Matsuri (祇園祭), Jidai Matsuri (時代祭), […]
Restaurant Review
Sameya, Hyogo: Kobe Chinatown’s shark ramen
Jaws! That’s what I said when I saw Sameya’s signboard. Lame, I sounded naive: I wasn’t ready to […]
Restaurant Review
Pyongyang Reimenya, Hyogo: North Korean-inspired cold noodles
Pyongyang Reimenya (Ganso Heijo Reimenya Honten / 元祖 平壌冷麺屋 本店)’s founder is said to be the first to […]
Restaurant Review
Vegan Ramen UZU Kyoto: THAT teamLab ramen shop
Vegan Ramen UZU Kyoto is sort of understood as a teamLab ramen shop. teamLab is a Japanese company […]
Restaurant Review
O Thanasis: Athens’s best kebab shop
O Thanasis in Athens is probably the most famous kebab shop in Greece. If not, definitely in Athens. […]
Restaurant Review
Nasco Food Court: Japanized kebab at Tokyo’s Islam Alley
Nasco Food Court on Islam Alley (イスラム横丁) in Tokyo’s Koreatown “Shin Okubo (新大久保)” offers traditional, Japanized Turkish-ish doner […]
Restaurant Review
Mustafa’s Gemuse Kebap: Berlin’s best kebab
Here’s what Mustafa’s Gemuse Kebap (Mustafa’s Gemüse Kebap) in Berlin looks like. There are also a menu, a […]
Restaurant Review
Komakata Dojo, Tokyo: THE loach specialty restaurant
Komakata Dojo’s founder Sukeshichi Echigoya (越後屋助七) is said to have invented dojo nabe (dozeu nabe / どぜう鍋 / […]
Event
Department H: Tokyo’s legendary fetish night
Department H (Department H 2099 / デパートメントH / デパH / デパチ, etc) is the longest-running fetish night in […]
Restaurant Review
Tsurutontan Soemoncho: Osaka’s most luxurious udon chain
Tsurutontan is an Osaka-based Japanese udon chain. Here’s what the original location of the chain “Tsurutontan Soemoncho (つるとんたん […]
Restaurant Review
Falafel Garden: Kyoto’s only Israeli restaurant
At Demachiyanagi Station (出町柳駅), one of the Kyoto-est stations, it’s a signboard of Falafel Garden that first welcomes […]
Event
KYOTO RAINBOW PRIDE: Gayest day in Kyoto
Here’s what Kyoto Rainbow Pride (京都レインボープライド・パレードフェス) and Pride Month (プライド月間) in Kyoto City look like. A map of […]
Restaurant Review
Men Tenten: Tel Aviv’s best ramen bar
In Tel Aviv, Israel’s Tokyo (but not the capital city), sushi is as popular as sandwiches in Tokyo. […]
Restaurant Review
Nautika Restaurant, Dubrovnik’s most famous restaurant
Nautika Restaurant is prestigious: Pope John Paul II dined there, the first female president of Croatia “Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović” […]
Restaurant Review
Seirinkan: Best Neapolitan pizza in Tokyo
Seirinkan (聖林館) is considered as one of the best pizzerias in Japan partly because it appeared in a […]
Restaurant Review
Best restaurants at Ace Hotel Kyoto
Ace Hotel Kyoto is the first Asian location of an American hotel chain “Ace Hotel.” Here’s a list […]
Restaurant Review
Mr. Gyoza, Kyoto, Japan: Realest chuka joint
Chuka joint (中華食堂 / chuka shokudo) means Japanese-Chinese restaurant. It’s got a vibe. Like people don’t call diners […]
Restaurant Review
Uri Buri, Acre: Best seafood in Israel
Sashimi, Coquille St. Jacques, and more. *I last visited the restaurant in 2018. Uri Buri is a legend […]
Restaurant Review
Totto Ramen, Boston: Japanese chicken paitan ramen chain
Here’s what I ate at Totto Ramen at South Bay, Boston. Totto Ramen T-shirt at the entrance of […]
Restaurant Review
Ogawa Coffee USA, Boston: Japanese cafe chain from Kyoto
Kyoto is the sister city of Boston and the capital of tourism in Japan. It’s also the capital […]
Restaurant Review
Tsurutontan, Boston: Japan’s udon chain from Osaka
I tried their signature udon, perfect sushi, and New England Japanese appetizers at Tsurutontan Udon Noodle Brasserie, Boston. […]
Restaurant Review
Okonomiyaki Mizuno: Osaka’s Michelin-listed soul food eatery
Here’s Okonomiyaki Mizuno’s signature okonomiyaki. Japanese yams, pork belly, and scallops. Yum. *I last visited the restaurant in […]
Travel
Downtown Kyoto: 5 areas you must know
Here’s the list of the five most famous areas in Kyoto’s downtown (Downtown Kyoto). I, as a Kyoto […]
Restaurant Review
3 best Israeli restaurants in Osaka
Israeli food is often interpreted as Middle Eastern food in Japan. That means homogenized Turkish-ish Japanese doner kebab […]
Restaurant Review
PIKAPOLONCA: Japan’s only Slovenian restaurant in Kyoto
A Kyoto house disguised as a Slovenian eatery. It’s a real-life Studio Ghibli movie. – Sushi Sandwich PIKAPOLONCA […]
Travel
All 11 wards of Kyoto City (explained in one word)
Kyoto City is the biggest city in Kyoto Prefecture. Here is the list of eleven wards of Kyoto […]
Restaurant Review
LE CAFE V, Osaka: The first Louis Vuitton cafe in the world
In 2020, Louis Vuitton opened LE CAFE V in Osaka, Japan. LE CAFE V, Louis Vuitton’s first cafe, […]
Travel
All 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Kyoto +highlights
Here is the list of all 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Kyoto. I, as a Kyoto native, […]
Restaurant Review
Tacofini, Osaka: Mexican Japanese taco stand izakaya
Tacofini (タコフィニ / Tacos Del Infinito) offers authentic tacos and classic izakaya repertoire with a Mexican twist. It’s […]