The monks at Koyasan Temple in Wakayama have set up a temporary cafe in Jingumae, Tokyo where shojin-ryori (traditional temple vegetarian fare) has been done up in nouveau-Italian style. It’s quite excellent, actually, but only until the 6th of this month. The monks will also do chanting, and offer shakyo calligraphy and meditation. koyasan cafe
All sorts of people drop by my favorite neighborhood restaurant, J-Cook in Jingumae. It’s a hangout for photographers, some of whom leave their photos for other customers to look at. This family came to eat and look through an album of surprised and scowling 50- and 60-year-old women. It was the little girl’s idea to come: She first saw the book a couple of years ago and hadn’t been able to get it out of her mind, so she brought her mother along.
I usually try to keep the content here original, but I found this photo from englishrussia quite amusing. (In fact the entire series is very clever and moving). Since it shows sushi it’s here, in keeping with the Japan theme. The desription reads: “We often get emails from people asking to cover something from the famous Russian cuisine. Well, here is an example of the modern Russian cuisine, of its starter dishes.”
Vodka would seem a natural partner to sushi, but I wonder what purists who poo-poo beer and insist that only japanese sake is appropriate would say. Tokyo-related stuff to come.
I found this picture of an octopus made fom crab roll and hot dogs in my hard drve. It’s a creation by Kasumin, queen of the “torture lunchbox” 虐待弁当.
She made these lunches for her teenage son every school day for about a year or so. He would mash them up as soon as he removed the lid — to avoid the humiliation of havng his friends see them — but eat them nonetheless. The vibe that developed between them is why she calls her lunches “torture.”
