Yoshinoya Hanamaru - Gurney Plaza

If you didn't know that they've been open for a month already , well , you'd better get a move on down because , I don't know about you , but even though I think it is probably halal , the meals are quite satisfying to me !

To Asakusa for divine sashimi

At times I pick out good eats by the aroma wafting out of the outlet itself . And most of the time , I hit it right on the dot .

While that's how I zeroed in on this little old timers place just outside of Asakusa , I was a bit off mark this time . 

Aeon Mall - okra , yam and wasabi udon

Once you begin to explore Japanese cuisines in Japan itself , and not just limit yourself to all the familiar dishes , you will discover that the variety is not only vast , sometimes certain dishes are consumed with more gusto than others , as it coincides with seasonal change and therefore helps the body to a certain extent , cope , adjust and rejuvenate .

Nano Sato - Hakata free range chicken

Hakata is a reknowned brand of free range chicken from the Fukuoka prefecture .  

Arashi - Terminal 1 , Narita Airport

Last time I was in Terminal 2 , I ended up raving over one place . In the end , I think some of you actually went through my post on that particular restaurant facing the runway , because when I went back to look for it , there was a large Malaysian halal certified logo up at the entrance . 

Good news for Moslem clients in search of a good halal Japanese meal , but

a major turn off for me , since I know that the taste will be highly affected when that happens cos there are simply some ingredients one cannot omit or else it won't taste the same . 

If I never ate here before , that will be fine by me ....I might give it a try , but because I did eat here before that sign went up , I have the choice to walk away . Which I did. Because I'm not going to pay for a meal which might end up making me feel pissed off  . 

Yeah , this is the dilemma which food operators may face when they want to cater to the Halal segment . You gain a whole new market but you might end up loosing your former patrons .

Thus I headed towards Terminal 1 and after a bit of wandering found this completely non halal outlet called Arashi .

Kawatoyo Honten - grilled unagi and carp soup

Narita is known amongst most travellers as an international gateway into Tokyo .

But not many know what the town is famous for .

Grilled eels .

There are 2 eel restaurants within a stones throw of each other , more small ones further away and open for business at night.

Right now, I've reached Kawatoyo Honten first , so I'm gonna take a look around .

Deep fried baby crabs - Tamago kani is very yummy

Been ages since I last feasted on a whole fleshy , sweet and meaty crab with roe . No thanks to that stomach churning crab tale to do with the Umno Tower collapse .

Seem to have effectively lost my appetite for those kind of crabs ever since .

But I just could not resist this when I saw it on the menu . It's not often that you can find it in Penang . So , so , sooooo yummy and scrumptious , lap up everything and crunch together the gills , legs , head , eyes !!! ...everything in a few dainty bites .

Oishi Grand Buffet - Siam Paragon

For old times sake , we trooped over to Siam Discovery to pop in for dinner. It was then that we found out that they had relocated to Siam Paragon , just below the cinema floors .

Xpress Teppanyaki - Siam Center

We had passed by the outlet a couple of times on the way to MBK and each time , even though the foodcourt next to it was under patronised , the teppan chefs here managed to hold court , captivating a mostly foreign crowd of caucasians .

Miyatake Sanuki Udon - EmQuartier

Sometimes , I sniff out a place , like literally . By the smell wafting out of the kitchen alone , it reminded me of one very delicious Udon stop in Odaiba , Tokyo . Very , very familiar aroma detected by muah .

And to justify the authenticity of it all , there were some single male Japanese diners slurping it up wholeheartedly .

Ok . That does it . We're definitely having some .

Bake - Hokkaido Cheese Tarts now in EmQuartier

Update : Kindly take note . Bake Hokkaido and Hokkaido Bake are NOT the same company . Bake is from Japan . Hokkaido is from ....( will somebody please enlighten me ? tks )

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On first impression , I thought these Hokkaido cheese tarts resembled Portuguese egg tarts , which I don't really fancy . Ah , but since there was always a queue each time we passed this section , filled with enthusiastic locals and happy looking Japanese women , let's join in the fun and give it a try . 

Fuji Restaurant - Megabangna

Edged on by our positive dining experience at their MBK outlet, we walked in here expecting nothing but good food. 

Tako Tao - my untakoyaki quandary

Of course Nagoya was not the best place in Japan for me to sample Takoyaki. However, because we were there at a time where anti- Japanese demos were riling up the nationalists in Japan, we were left with little choice. 

Under the tight guard of our friendly but very vigilant translator, I walked away not too impressed with the hot octopus balls. 

So how'd I end up wanting these made by Nepalese chefs in Malaysia today ?  Crowd mentality. See, there's always a line plus if you arrive too late they like to tell you it's sold out while they make the last 2 batches for themselves to takeaway . Garrghh

Sushi Sei - Tsukiji

Being Malaysians , what to do....our currency is well you know, thus we have to try and look for reasonably priced outlets. Like Sushi Sei for instance

Should we splurge a bit or not ? 

Tempura Bowl Tenya

I remember reading somewhere that this restaurant was supposed to serve cheap and good tempura.

Ok, I found out the hard way that cheap tempura isn't always good. Good tempura can be found a few shops down from this outlet. Of course I didn't know that yet...so in we went

Premium Sushi Train Kai - 2nd visit

We just had to come back a second time and figure out how to get the bullet train to deliver our orders to our table.

This below is the standard price of per colour coded plate here. Bear in mind there is a hefty 8percent tax added on to each plate....not your entire bill..but each plate

Yoshinoya - Joypolis

Walla....here's the most addictively mouthwatering donburi I've had to date.

Had the intention to pop into a 24hour restaurant nearby but since this chain outlet is soooo famous, I would be stupid to pass up the chance to try it out.

Premium Sushi Train Kai

Why are sushi train outlets so popular ? 

Let's go in and find out.

At every table , there will be a blatant display of gluttony.

Say what ?

 Nobody cares cos that's the way they do it here.

Pile it up like an eating trophy. I just followed suit.

Tokyo Gourmet Stadium Food Court

Tried out two outlets here upon arrival. Two completely different outlets which sent a jolt to my system.                   First was Tonkotsu Ramen. Has a really fancy kitchen window which catches your eye upon entering the food court.Okay, I was sold, I want whatever it is they're labouring over.

Second was this very popular ramen stall. 

( NH ) Sushi Zento - Precinct 10

Frankly speaking, I've put off coming here for so long..

...because I always imagined it would burn a big hole in my pocket