Roadlesswandering's Weblog

Jidoriya in Shinbashi

Michaela Chatman — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 14:20:29 +0000

Good eatin’!Jidoriya is the best yakitori (grilled chicken) place I have ever been to. They have a farm where they raise their own chickens. I think that’s why the chicken was so good and juicy. This year my friend took me on a mini-bonenkai (end of the year party). This place has to be the absolute best!

This name board showed some of the food that was available. The chefs moved the red magnets as they ran out of meat.

Now for the main event…..

Tsukue (ignore my spelling)

Don’t worry about my spelling! What you really need to know is that this is SEASONED ground chicken. It has bits of onions and green pepper in it to make it an absolute delight! You can eat it with egg or without. I have to highlight the seasoned part. A lot of times these restaurants don’t add a lot of seasoning. I know people rave about Japanese food, but most of it is bland to me. This stuff was Gooooood!! You can see the roasted garlic in the background! Yum! I ate all of it. My friend doesn’t care for it as much as I do.

Roasted Garlic with miso paste! You can’t go wrong with garlic!

Gizzards seasoned with lemon zest!

On the left, the tenderest chicken hearts I have ever eaten! I tell you, a lot of times chicken hearts are tough and tiny. These were super moist. I loved every bite! On the right is just chicken breast. It was good, well seasoned and tasty. But I loved the hearts more!

Very friendly staff! He just jumped into our picture! Check out the size of those chicken wings!

Until next time! Thanks Jidoriya!

Directions: Jidoriya Shinbashi

Chicago Deep Dish in Tokyo, Japan

Michaela Chatman — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 23:44:14 +0000

Can you believe the title of this post? If I hadn’t eaten at Devil Craft I wouldn’t believe it at all! Chicago Deep Dish pizza has made it to the Big Mikan! As a longtime lover of deep dish pizza it felt good to dig my choppers into layers of gooey cheese interlaced with fresh mushrooms, green pepper and other delights.

I was really impressed with the quality and selection of pizza choices. They have a few regular pies, but based on word-of-mouth traffic, most people said, “Don’t waste your time!” I’m sure this pizza spot will be around for a while. The only thing that bothered me about the pizza was the crust. The crust seemed a little thin. Maybe the amount of cheese overpowered it. Be that as it may, I strongly suggest you high-tail it out to Kanda for a taste of Chicago. While you are there order from their extensive list of craft beers!

Eden Veggie Pizza without tomato sauce. Loaded with Mozzarella, Parmesan, Provolone, Feta, Extra Fresh Tomato, Mushroom, Red Onion, Green Pepper, Spinach, Black Olive, Green Olive)

The Devil Works: Mozzarella, Provolone, Parmesan, Tomato Sauce, Salami, Sausage, Pepperoni, Mushroom, Red Onion, Green Pepper, Spinach, Fresh Tomato, Black Olive, Green Olive

The Abe Forman:Mozzarella, Parmesan, Provolone, Tomato Sauce, Sausage, Pepperoni, Salami

Location:

Devil Craft

JR KANDA St. South exit, 2min walk.
English and Japanese spoken

Map

Website

Me and Life Sized Replicas 7

Michaela Chatman — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 23:24:21 +0000

Me and Life Sized Replicas 6

Michaela Chatman — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 23:21:24 +0000

Shimbashi

Tokyo, Japan

Suntory Whisky Man

Before Harajuku, there was Sugamo

Michaela Chatman — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 13:08:44 +0000

Last year I trained for the Tokyo Marathon and while I was doing my Rocky thing, I ran into this area called Sugamo. There are a lot of links about the area, which I will post at the end, but check out some of these pics!

To get a real sense of the area, the best times to visit would be on the 4th, 14th, and 24th of the month. The monthly festivals take places on Toginukijizo Street. You can walk around and enjoy the obasans as they relive their youth.

Click to view slideshow.

Sugamo Japan-hopper

Sugamo Blog

Me and Life Sized Replicas 5

Michaela Chatman — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 02:28:15 +0000

A Little Habernero in Tokyo

Michaela Chatman — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 02:03:10 +0000

It’s amazing how some restaurants become the “it” spot, while others remain diamonds in the rough. Luckily, I was with a friend and we were checking out a commercial type Mexican restaurant near my house. I don’t really care for this place, but my friend wanted something that wasn’t Japanese food. Fortunately, the restaurant had a reservation and we weren’t allowed to go in. This lead us to walking the side streets of Yotsuya. We found two different Mexican restaurants. One looked a bit grimy, while the Grill Cantina had a pretty festive air about it. So we walked into a little place that served delicious Mexican food at a reasonable price.

Most of the dishes were tapas style so we had tiny servings. I was fine, but my friend needed a bit more which led him to ordering more food off the menu. I had a spicy quesadilla that was packed with haberneros. The peppers were steaming with heat and with a layer of cheese on top they were fantastico! I also ate enchiladas that were light and tasty.

If you are in Yotsuya your best bet would be to exit the JR line and cross the street. You will see a KFC. Once you are standing in front of KFC walk to the right. Then turn left at the next corner. Just walk down the street until you see a flag or Grill Cantina. It’s not that hard to find. Click to view slideshow.

Akabane, Japan

Michaela Chatman — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 11:38:17 +0000

It always feels good to get out of the city! A few days ago I headed out to Akabane to visit a friend. We talked for a bit and then went around looking for a place to have a drink. Akabane is full of the typical izakaya’s (Japanese pubs). We wanted something a little more accessible and focused only on drinking.

After combing the side streets we wound up on the main street arcade. We found a standing bar where everything was 300 yen or a little over $3.00.

*Note these pics are from last winter. I didn’t realize I had a bunch of posts sitting in the que. Please ignore that pimple. It’s gone now, but dang it was big!

Click to view slideshow.

African Festival in Tokyo, Japan

Michaela Chatman — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 14:09:45 +0000

I thought this was funny! I’m at the African Festival in Tokyo….but where is Africa? lol!

Me and Life Sized Replicas 4

Michaela Chatman — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 06:15:00 +0000

What are they replicating?They were cool about it in Hiroshima!

She didn't mind taking a picture with me.

When I moved to Tokyo I tried to take a similar picture, but they weren’t as friendly.

Location:Hondori
City:Hiroshima