Gourmet

I've been visiting Higashikawa, Hokkaido, several times a year for nearly 10 years now. This summer was a bit hectic, so it was a short 2-night stay decided at the last minute. Since the food is so good and I have friends there, I usually eat at the same spots...

I got a request to buy an apple pie from Matsunosuke N.Y. in Daikanyama, so I went for a stroll. This photo is of a drawing, or rather, graffiti, by Yoshitomo Nara on the entrance of an izakaya I passed by.

I often see the name 'Fukude Fishing Port' on fresh fish sold at local fish markets. It had always piqued my interest, so I decided to cycle there. The adorable fishing port buildings caught my eye, but even more so did the delicious 'Mochi Katsuo' (sticky bonito) and fresh 'Nama Shirasu' (raw whitebait) available at Nagisa no Koryukan, an adjacent facility. The late lunch of raw whitebait rice bowl and beltfish bone crackers was absolutely exquisite!

Whenever I go to Fukui, I can't help but buy Takeda's abura-age. It's crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside, and a gentle soy flavor fills your mouth. So delicious!

Weekend eBike cycling adventure! This time, I headed to Sengan Waterfall, which I found on Google Maps, and Dlofres Campus in Miyakoda. Sengan Waterfall's emerald basin was stunning, and I was surprised to find such a beautiful spot so close to the city. Dlofres Campus, which I'd been curious about for a while, turned out to be an absolute paradise for Nordic design lovers!

I bought a couple of juices called "Yamagata Daihyo" from SUN&LIV – a peach and a grape flavor I found in Togoshi shopping street – and I was really surprised by how delicious both were!

A while back, my colleagues took me to Surugazushi in Iwata. It was so incredibly delicious that, as they said, it's hard to find sushi with such amazing ingredients even in Tokyo. I really wanted my family, who came to visit me in Hamamatsu, to experience it too.

One of the delicious things I discovered shortly after moving to Hamamatsu was Torii Sauce. I tried their Chuno sauce in the green packaging—a thick sauce based on Worcestershire with a lovely apple sweetness—and I was hooked.

The photo isn't the best, but this is bonito sashimi. I remember visiting my grandparents in Shizuoka as a child; they'd often buy half a bonito, slice it into sashimi, and we'd eat it with ginger soy sauce. We also used to indulge in a luxurious 'ochazuke' after eating our fill, with bonito sashimi over hot rice and tea poured over it. So, bonito sashimi is truly a taste of my childhood memories.

On my way back from a business trip to Fukui, I was in a hurry, but I really wanted to grab a Fukui-style dinner near the station if possible, and that's how I found Fukufuku Chaya. But then I thought, what exactly is "Fukui-style"? The locals I chatted with during my trip did mention that the fish is delicious, which is totally true.