Don "The Last Yelpicorn" B.
Portland, OR
- 2882 Friends
- 2265 Reviews
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“The Gluttonista”
Reviews
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Wajoryomen is a classic hole in the wall ramen joint hidden off the main street in downtown Kyoto. Photos of the front of the business and map markers will help you determine just where it's at, unless you're unfortunate enough to show up when there's a line out the door, then it's kind of obvious. Aside from the line, all you find when you walk up is a small hobbit door in a wall of wood, which leads down a long dark hallway to a vending machine. Once you negotiate for your ramen or tsukemen, you move on into the courtyard to wait for your spot at the counter. Hint - use the helpful photos on Yelp to determine how to order your ramen if you don't read kanji.
The ramen here is thick and delicious. With no English I can't decipher what exact type of ramen this is, however my tsukemen was excessively thick and not the same pork style as Rokurinsha or Tsujita. Mushroom or miso, maybe? Dunno. But it comes with some chicken neck meat and a bowl of awesome noodles. It's rich, unctuous, thick, and delicious. Make sure to get some water for soup-ware before your noodles run out! Also I scored a side of what loosely translated to "egg chowder" which was raw egg, ground daikon, and green onion. Yum.
Staff is friendly and welcoming, but English seems fairly limited here. Or maybe everyone was just waking up, as we were here right at the first turn. Chill music in a more modern setting. Dark lighting, lots of wood, and really cool drawers with these awesome click-style spice grinders. Like a cross between a pepper grinder, a large click pen and a hypodermic needle. Everything you need in your own personal drawer right beneath the counter.
I would definitely recommend this joint for some legit ramen. -
Fun alley in Gion just off the main strip. It has an old-school feel. Lots of restaurants and bars, mostly open in the evening. Many river-view options on the east side, and various hidden small bars on the west side. Lanterns and decorations add that classic Japanese feel.
Definitely worth hitting up while you're cruising around Kyoto. -
As far as JR stations go, this one is not quite to the same scale as the big guns at Shinagawa, Tokyo, Kyotio, etc. However true to form, there are restaurants and shopping options galore, as well as car rental services nearby. This is obviously a smaller stop along the Shinkansen just outside of Tokyo. We disembarked here for Hakone and points beyond, and spent a bit of time here on the way back from Hakone to Tokyo.
The dining options here pale in comparison to the larger stations. There are a few options that range from ramen to udon to tempura, etc. Nothing breakfast-y except the standard take-away options from Starbucks or Hakone Bakery. There is a large bookstore, and a shop with a bunch of grab-n-go options like musubis, bentos, etc.
Nothing too stellar, but as par for the JR course, the station is clean and well-appointed. -
There are good bars, there are great bars, and then there are home bars - those spots that just click for you on so many levels that you consider it to be a solid home base. Top on your list for casual beverages, first stop when you have friends from out of town, or just a downright damn good place to have a drink. Bit House Saloon is easily on my home bar list.
The folks who run Bit House have everything dialed in tight here. First and foremost, the cocktails are incredible. I haven't had a single drink that's anything less than superb. And there's very little pretense that comes along with the drinks. No upturned noses, or exclusionary snobbery. Just delicious imbibables served up with a warm, welcoming smile. That alone merits 5 stars from me.
The food, however, is much more than you'd expect from a place so focused on the drink. The fare is, as the drinks are, unpretentious but much elevated from your average bar fare. Take the bone marrow, as an example. No need to go off-menu to get your bone luge on. They offer an add-on sherry shot for $6. The house-made chicharrones? Delicious, and served up with a charred lime for squeezin'. Crunch-a-licious. Everything I've sampled from the menu over my numerous visits has been delicious.
The service? As mentioned, it's welcoming. This seems like an industry-heavy hangout on some nights, and at other bars that can often mean that if you're not on the inside, you're on the outside. But not here. I've never felt like a second class citizen whether I'm hanging near a crowd of bartenders or I'm there on a consumer-heavy Saturday night. I love that. Floor staff is on point, and the bar staff is great.
Story short? Bit house is on my short list of favorite bars in all of Portland. -
The map marker for this bar is not exact. It's on the 3rd floor of one of the buildings on the east side of Pontocho alley. And it's definitely worth the adventure.
As is common for Golden Gai and Pontocho bars, this is a little tiny space shoehorned into the 3rd floor of a nondescript building that hosts a few other bars as well. What makes this one special? It's an anime/cosplay-themed bar! YES! Tons of great figurines, posters, manga and a couple of screens playing anime. Foreigners welcome and the drink prices don't gouge. The proprietors speak a little English and they're totally welcoming.
We stopped in here for a couple of drinks. The bar has a small selection of booze, which is par for the course. The drinks are okay. And the atmosphere? It's cozy and fun. They asked us for our favorites and started playing some original Cowboy Bebop for me. Love that shit.
I'm a huge fan of this style of bar/drinking. Totally niche, totally home-y, totally fun. Do yourself a favor and escape the crush of gion and spend some cash here. -
Standing style bar! This is a totally fun, locals-style experience right in the middle of tourist ground zero in Gion. Just a few steps off of Shijo Dori near the Gion bridge, you'll find this walk-in-closet size space packed with locals smoking, drinking, and putting back advanced drinking food. We ambled in here to grab a beverage and found a little bistro round-top to stand at. The shochu is tasty and amicably priced, as is the biru.
Within about 5 minutes a local made eyes at me and bought me a cup of some sort of fermented chunky rice wine spirit thing. I think he was expecting it to freak me out. Little did he know I'm a glutton for crazy local booze in any form, and I put it back with the swiftness. He seemed impressed. Then a trio of drunk gentlemen swerved into the bar and started chatting us up in broken English. A few salarymen were attacking their booze in the back like it was the end of days. I could tell that this communal experience was on the verge of breaking out into an all-out booze battle royale, with people buying us drinks, and us buying them back. I can't think of a better way to tap right into the local pulse.
However our mission for the evening was not to get shithoused with a bunch of locals at a standing bar. I returned the favor and bought my benefactor a drink, we saluted and knocked 'em back, and our group moved on with the swiftness.
I could see spending an afternoon getting totally blotto with friendly folks here. Fuck chairs, standing bars are where its at. If we hadn't just eaten food, I'd have gone in for some of the ikura and squid they were serving. Great drinking fare. Mmmm... -
Things that I love:
Powerful women.
Grilled meats on a stick.
Japanese booze.
Legitimately local dining experiences.
Well, Teppen Shibuya Onnadojo has all those things, in spades. This izakaya is seemingly partnered with men's house across the street. Over there, the dudes serve up a great mix of izakaya food. Over here, these ladies kick serious ass on the yakitori grill, as well as serving up insanely delicious izakaya food and drink - all with a smile.
What to eat here? Well first and foremost it's about the yakitori. Don't miss the bacon-wrapped lettuce, the rare chicken, the chicken skin, the bacon-wrapped-cheese-filled pepper on a stick, and... well... just get one of everything. From the regular menu, the absolute must order is the pickled cream cheese. Not sure what goes in to it, but it tastes like a funky cheesecake filling. A bit sweet, a bit funky, and all delicious.
The vibe here is lively and fun. I walked by this joint a few times as the crew was gearing up for service, chanting away and getting hyped to welcome you into the dojo. Smiles welcome you and top-notch care is taken.
Drinks? Oh yeah. You can go regular with the shochu and biru, but don't shy away from the random "blue drink" - it's way, way better than you ever would have expected it to be. Just trust me. It's dangerous good.
This dining experience is up there with my top food experiences in Japan. The mix of excellent service, great no-bullshit food, locals atmosphere, and camaraderie makes for a perfect place to get into your cups and polish off some meat sticks. -
That image you have of Japan from various movies and TV shows - the overwhelming multi-level department store filled to the rafters with every shiny, neon, plastic thing available... that's Don Quijote (and I wish it were spelled correctly). This store has so many things that you could never need, lots of things you want, and a bunch in between. Groceries? Sure! Sex toys? Yup. Crazy Kit-Kat gift boxes? Uh huh. Toys, electronics, accessories, clothing, pet supplies, you name it, it's probably here.
This glittering bazaar of all things bizarre could easily be a one-stop shop for your gifting needs... if you're fine with your gifts being mass-manufactured things. We did find some good stuff to bring back to the kids in our life here. Some nano blocks, and various other toys. But I generally prefer getting one-of-a-kind gifts for my discerning friends, and there's nothing artisan about this place.
You should check this store out for the experience alone, unless you're claustrophobic. Then put your armor on before you squeeze into these overstuffed aisles.
Prices are decent, service is nonexistent. -
赤坂1-12-32
港区, 東京都 〒105-0000
Japan
Dined here with some local expats, and while I wasn't expecting much from American food in a foreign country, this was some legit fare. It's in a high-rise, very business-lunch-type setting, but it offers something a lot of Japanese restaurants don't - breakfast. However we went for lunch.
My burger was on point. As tasty as I'd expect from a high-end burger in the states. Big, thick, juicy, and cooked right. No weird substitutions for standard American ingredients. Tasty add-ons and variations. Just a damn good burger served up in a home-y cafe setting. Yum.
Other folks in our group had various lunch and breakfast dishes and all were happy. All the dishes looked plenty appealing to me. Service was on point - a mix of Japanese and American style service.
I'd definitely recommend if you're craving a burger or American breakfast in Roppongi. -
As far as international airports go, this one is pretty great. In fact, compared to the chaos that is Narita (and the excessive travel time required to get out there to NRT), I like Haneda as the better airport in Tokyo.
First off, this airport is pretty relatively new, and you can tell. The fixtures are in good shape, it's got a nice, wide, open, airy feel to it. There's a lot of light. And as with most things in Japan, it's very clean. The shopping options are acceptable (with the exclusion of the standard Duty Free exorbitant pricing at some) and we even found some interesting gifts there on our way out of town.
Food-wise, there's a Rokurinsha here, which is all you need to know. Go eat their noodles. It's worth showing up a little early for. The spot is past security. Yay!
As far as general layout, everything moves very quickly and efficiently here. Security, access to gates, walkways, bathrooms, etc. Lots of space and great flow.
And the lounges? They're nice. Real nice.
Given the chance I'd fly in here over Narita any day.
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