18 October 2018
We set off from Noddyland late afternoon. Daisy’s packing for this holiday was epic; the case was so heavy we couldn’t even weigh it to conclude that it was overweight until we had removed enormous quantities of extraneous lotions and potions.
At one point Daisy decided that she was never, ever, ever going to travel again, while I decided that I would never, ever, ever travel again with her.
Yet somehow we got the weight down (partly by balancing between her iron-clad case and my feather-light bag), so off we set – perhaps not for the very last time.
An event free journey, really. ANA was a very luxurious way to fly – the evening meal in particular was superb…
Amuse:
- Cherry tomato caprese style;
- Crab meat salad stuffed baby paprika;
- Tandoori chicken with sour cream
We both chose Japanese Cuisine – Washoku
Zensai (A selection of morsels)
- Grilled scallop with egg yolk;
- Marinated thinly-sliced salmon head cartilage in bonito-vinegar sauce;
- Chinese yam rolled with smoked salmon
- Grilled welsh onion rolled with duck
Kobachi (Tasty titbits)
- Dressed vegetables with tofu paste
Nimono (Simmered plate)
- Simmered taro and eggplant in soy-based sauce
Shusai
- Simmered sea bream in soy-based sauce
Steamed rice, miso soup, and Japanese pickles
Deserts, Cheese, Fruits
19 October 2018
The breakfast/lunch meal was a bit of a bland let-down after the feast that was dinner – a Kobachi of simmered brown algae in soy-based sauce and a Shusai of Japanese sake-lees grilled salmon with steamed rice, miso soup & Japanese pickles.
We arrived in the afternoon Tokyo time feeling quite travel weary.
Daisy’s running joke for the journey had been a rather greedy, small man sitting next to us who kept asking for two portions of everything When we got off the plane he even had two items of hand luggage. We got our main baggage before his had arrived, but no doubt he had at least two big bags, perhaps more?
We were met at the airport by a rather nice lady who talked me through all the passes, vouchers and rail tickets that had been pre-booked for us and explained that tomorrow’s guide would sort out the rest of them. What seemed like several hours later, we were whisked away to our hotel, the Park, which, being in the South-Eastern hotel district, was a mercifully short ride from the airport.
We showered and I slept for a couple of hours before we built up the courage to brave the Hanasanshou Japanese restaurant located inside our hotel. We tried the chef’s recommended dinner which is an excellent tour d’horizon of Japanese food. The quality was high and the service charming too. When Daisy came and sat beside me for a few minutes while we awaited our food, they decided we wanted to sit next to each other and moved another table across so we could do so. Very sweet, we thought.
The excellent Chef’s Recommended Meal can be seen on this link.
The waiter is obviously a sake-sommelier in training. He recommended a couple of really nice sakes which accompanied the food really well.
The excellent sakes were Kirabi (from Toyama – went well with the fish courses) and Abukuma (from Kukishima – went well with the meats).
At the end of the meal we chatted for a while with Ieva, a charming young woman from Lithuania who is the food and beverage front of house at the Park Hotel.
We’d arrived.
Ian, I notice that the restaurant had to screen-off your shirt from the rest of its customers with a net curtain. A tad judgemental, I feel. Also, some of your food looked barely cooked at all…Will read further dispatches with interest.
Yes, indeed, fsog, we were often screened off (regardless of my garb, I think I was deemed sartorially inadequate throughout the trip). Further, the food was regularly either raw or we had to cook it ourselves. This despite the fact that we were eating in hotels, inns or restaurants where, in my opinion, the location and prices would normally justify having food cooked by professionals on one’s behalf. So much for the idea of the wonderful Japanese service ethic.
Here is but one more example among many: http://ianlouisharris.com/2018/10/23/japan-day-four-fukinomori-tsumago-and-magome-23-october-2018/
I hope you enjoy your further delving.