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Man, I thought prices in Japan were notoriously high.
It does have good Chinese food, but my impression is that it is less than you would think for a city that size. For example, I think Houston is much better than Chicago in the Chinese food dept, despite being a bit smaller. My info on both cities is over 10 yrs old, though. Maybe things are different now.
Also āgoodā is relative. If youāre enough of a food snob, then āgoodā becomes very difficult to find.
Iāve heard once you get out of Tokyo, itās a different world. I assume this isnāt anywhere near Tokyo.
Plenty of places in Japan arenāt super high priced. Their fine dining options are definitely pricey, but a large bowl of Udon or Ramen is like $7-8 even in Tokyo. Same thing at an American restaurant is like $14-16.
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The best kept secret about Japan is that amazingly delicious cheap eats are abundant.
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This is the restaurantās daily loss-leader lunch special. Only 20 per day, and thereās always a line before opening. But yeah, if youāre lucky to score one, only $4.77 for an amazing meal.
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Even in Tokyo you can find amazing cheap eats galore. Cost-saving pro tip in Tokyo is to dine during lunch, not dinner. Competition for the lunch crowd is fierce and most places offer amazingly affordable lunch specials.
Also, no tipping makes a massive difference.
Your first snow cone?
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Ok, so how long did you have to wait in line to get it?
Arrived about 10 minutes before opening, so no big deal.
But in Japan, waiting in line for popular eats is almost a national pastime. Not at all unusual to wait an hour or more to get into a popular ramen shop or other dining experience.
Also not unusual for people to drive for hours for a well-regarded meal.
I even know a guy who regularly takes a flight from Tokyo to Sapporo, eats a bowl of ramen, and then takes a same-day flight back home.
iām sure iāve had snow and syrup at some point. but kantoro led me to believe that kakigori is something of higher culture
In Japan, kakigori is both of those things. Literally it means shaved ice or snow cone.
And it can range from the simple ice and syrup for about 300 yen to incredible artistic concoctions espoused by Kantaro that can cost several times that amount.
What flavor was yours?
blackberry ice. some basque cake thing on top.
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I was confused for a second when I started reading this, thinking it would be unlikely for there to be even one Michelin starred restaurant in Birmingham, let alone five.
Went to a duck tasting menu dinner at a newer Asian restaurant here. Grue this is the chef that owns Lat 14. It was amazing, I love duck so this was made for me. Only took the one pic of the 3rd course but the duck gizzard and liver dish was maybe my favorite. The passion fruit dessert was top tier too
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Grilled fish lunch at a nearby izakaya. 400 yen more than the sushi lunch I posted a couple weeks ago.
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You can get a $60 or $90 omakase menu in Vegas at Sen of Japan. I had it solo, but I think it would be better with a group who can discuss food.
@MrWookie - whenever you are comfortable venturing out for indoor dining / drinks; I highly recommend Scotch Lounge near Burnside. I had 2 unbelievable cocktails, the best oysters Iāve ever had (relative) and and insane whole fried crab sandwich with white kimchi on milk bread. Great bartenders and good vibes as well. Will return.
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