Rainbow Rolls and Other Treats

A couple of recent food purchases.The rainbow rolls below contain avocado and cream cheese among other ingredients.














This lunchbox contains a small green salad on the left hand side.On the right are some spicy chicken knuckles while above these are three salmon rolls containing cream cheese and lettuce.

Yamachan Restaurant Chain

Yamachan is a restaurant chain in Nagoya.There are three such restaurants in close proximity to each other behind the JR Kanayama Station.
By the entrance you can see the company logo a half-man/half bird-like creature with feathers and avian like feet.It also adorns many of the plates and the menu.
The restaurant has the usual things on the menu you'd expect such as potato fries or fried potato and various noddle dishes.


















Also on the menu are examples of typical Nagoya fare such as misokushikatsu (below) which is breaded and deep fried pork dipped in miso sauce.Its a bit of an acquired taste being somewhat chewy and some people find the miso sauce a little overpowering and strong.

















The signature dish of the chain though is tebasaki or grilled seasoned,spicy chicken wings.
A local breed of chicken,the Nagoya kochin, is used to produce this crisp,crunchy fare.You can see an example in the shot below.



















The photo below shows the picture menu which contains photos of the dishes available.The picture menu is useful if you lack sufficent Japanese when ordering dishes.As the front page helpfully suggests you can just point to the dishes if you are language challenged.The menu also provides entertainment while you await your order.There are numerous spelling and grammar mistakes such as "you can also"choise" and the word "plane" instead of plain.
Yamachan provides reasonable food at a reasonable price while also giving locals and visitors alike a chance to eat some of the areas distinct fare.

Friday Flash...Green Tea and Chocolate Bagels

These green tea and chocolate bagels are available for purchase at a local department store.They have an unusual appearance,a light green tinge that sets them apart from the run of the mill cheese or poppy seed varieties.
As to the taste,they are slightly bitter,given that the green tea flavour is quite strong but this is tempered by the presence of small bits of chocolate in the bagels thick doughy mixture.
While I'd recommend trying them Im not so sure I'd go for seconds.

Soya Bean Flour KitKats

A new flavour of mini pack KitKats appeared on the shelves of a supermarket I visited last week.As my current employer deems it necessary to send me to the four corners of Nagoya City Ive been frequenting some unfamiliar suburbs recently.Its interesting to see how prices vary not only between chains but also individual stores.Ive only seen these mini kitkats available in two or three areas.
As to the kitkats themselves the filling is kinako or soya bean flour.Not especially sweet tasting they do seem a bit "floury" and have a thicker consistency compared to other kitkats.Not particularly memorable or provocative enough to try again.

Friday Flash..Tuna Bento and Green Tea Cake

Thick slices of tuna sitting on a small finger like portion of rice.The tuna is adorned with mayonnaise and chopped spring onions.










A slice of green tea flavoured sponge cake.On the top left is a green tea meringue biscuit which is quite chewy.The biscuit and the dollops of cream sit on a green tea cream like filling.Wedged between the green tea cream layers is a thick green tea flavoured sponge which provides some stability to the whole structure.
The green tea flavour is quite smooth and mild compared to other green tea products such as chocolate that Ive tasted.

Friday Flash..Spring Confectionery

A selection of confectionery Ive recently seen in the shops.Each season sees a new range of products often only available for a limited time.
The new offering from Haagen Dazs features cassis which I believe is blackcurrant and orange.An interesting mix of tastes











A mini pack that features some pale yellow coloured caramel flavoured KitKats.Quite sweet and sticky.












The KitKats above come in a box that contains a double pack of English tea flavoured wafers coated in dark brown chocolate.I found the tea flavour quite mild.













The final shot above shows the most recent KitKat flavour Ive seen recently.Again the hazelnut kitkats come in a small rectangular box containing four sticks in two packs.
The hazelnut filling in the wafers was quite thick compared to other flavours and a rich "peanuty" smell and taste.

Seasonal KitKat MiniPacks..Strawberry,White Maple KitKats

This pack contains 15 mini kitkats and is obvivously aimed for the Christmas season.
Once you open the wrapper you are greeted with a strong strawberry scent which doesnt smell totally natural.That said the brown chocolate on the outside and the smooth strawberry creme inside combine nicely.












The white maple minipack are another limited seasonal addition to the KitKat range.I spotted them among the Christmas confectionery shelves last week.The name of these kitkats,"white maple" describes their taste and appearance exactly.
In appearance,the smooth white chocolate exterior contrasts nicely with the crumbly texture of the biscuit and maple creme interior.
To be honest,I found them a bit too sickly sweet.The novelty of the maple flavour soon wore off as it overpowered the white chocolate.A case of the whole being less than the sum of the parts.

Friday Flash..Apple KitKats

This small KitKat box contains two apple flavoured KitKats.On opening each KitKat wrapper you are greeted with a sweet apple scent.The creamy apple flavouring and biscuit are surrounded by thick dark brown chocolate.
Im not sure that eating one of these apple KitKats is "a moment of precious indulgence" as written on the box front but nonetheless its a pleasant enough treat.

Haagen Dazs Kokuto and Kuromitsu

This new flavour has a distinctive bitter coffee/burnt caramel taste.Kokuto translates as brown sugar while kuromitsu translates roughly as sugar syrup or treacle depending where you google.It seems that both kokuto and kuromitsu originally come from Okinawa where the main sugar cane fields are found in Japan.

Friday Flash..Mild Bitter Kit Kats

In between applying for jobs,trying to keep up with the continuing Nova saga and attending meetings I spied these Mild Bitter KitKats on the shelves of my local convenience store.
My first thought was...WHY? Mild bitter...KitKats for the indecisive?
After sampling a couple of bars(there are 6 in this pack) I thought they still tasted rather sweet so Im not sure who they would appeal too.What next sweet and sour kitkats?

Caramel KitKats

Another addition to the Limited Edition KitKat range.Obvivously marketed for the upcoming Halloween season it comes in an orange wrapper adorned with a pumpkin.As well as having a carmel flavour theres a definite coconut taste evident as well.

I deeply regret to inform..
As predicted on Friday a fax arrived later that Friday after work (conveniently enough) informing instructors that salaries wont be paid on Monday October 15th.
To quote from the fax"Instructors are now scheduled to be paid on Friday October 19th".
Im not holding my breath.Speculation suggests that pay day may be further postponed until October 25th.My thoughts are with the new instructors still to get their first pay after six weeks and the Japanese staff still waiting for their pay and summer bonuses.
So much for the dark clouds being cast aside...

Anko KitKats

Another Limited Edition seasonal KitKat offering graced the shelves this week.Anko flavoured KitKats.
Anko is red azuki bean paste.Azuki beans grown throughout Asia are small red beans though white,black and other varieties exist.
To make anko azuki beans are boiled,mashed and sweetened with sugar or honey.There are apparently two types of anko.The first is a smooth paste in which the beans are mashed and strained using cheesecloth or similiar material.Alternatively a sieve can also be used.Straining or sieving removes the husks and broken bits of beans from the paste giving it a regular consistent texture.
The second type of anko paste is unstrained so retains the broken bean bits and husks giving it a rougher,irregular texture.
In Japanese a number of terms are used for red bean paste including an,anko and ogura.
Locally,ogura toast which is red bean paste on buttered toast is a well known and popular item on Nagoyan kissatens(coffee shops) breakfast menus.
As for the anko kitkats above they have a subtle sweet taste and make an interesting conversation starter.

Bretagne Caramel Walnut Ice Cream

I recently sampled this offering from Dean and Deluca`s Super Premium Ice Cream range.It has a sweet caramel toffee taste.Embedded in the thick,smooth ice cream are pieces of walnut which made for an interesting mix of textures and tastes.
The only thing that puts me off eating it more often is the price. At 280 yen it really can be classed as a treat and luxury item for me.

Friday Flash..Noisette Chocolat

Noisette ice cream? Curious name.Given my carnivorous upbringing in New Zealand Ive always associated noisettes with meat such as lamb.Delicate small round boneless slices of baby sheep with a garnish of rosemary or a sprig of fresh mint atop.
A quick google suggests that as well as being a portion of meat noisette can also refer to either 1...something made from hazelnuts such as beurre noisette or hazelnut butter or 2.a chocolate made from hazelnuts.
Obviously this latest seasonal offering from Haagen Daz is chocolate hazelnut flavoured ice cream.Its very light and seems to melt faster than say the classic chocolate which is of a thicker consistency and heavier taste.
Its ok as far as flavors go but I wouldnt go out of my way to hunt another tub down during the limited time its available.

Friday Flash...Veggie Bento

A small but filling vegetable selection from a local supermarket.Looking from the front there are two slices of pumpkin on the left.Nestled beside these are a couple of slices of boiled or steamed red skinned sweet potato,satsumaimo.
Two white circles of potato squat on what tasted like sticks of celery in the foreground.Wedged between the potato balls and the two blocks of tofu are the heads of two small mushrooms.
Toward the middle on the left are two circular pieces of crunchy lotus root or renkon that remind me of catherine wheels or the old style rotary dial telephones.
Beside the renkon is what I believe is a bamboo shoot,takenoko, again crunchy and fibrous.
Atop the blocks of tofu is a piece of carrot cut out in the shape of a maple leaf.Behind the tofu are two slices of slippery gelatine-like konnyaku.Hidden away top left are two small lumps of lightly fried renkon which if I heard the shop assistant correctly was renkon no suage.
Quite a colorful collection for the start of autumn.

Friday Flash..Autumn Chestnut KitKats

Despite the continued heat being generated by a stationary high pressure area hanging off the Pacific coast of Japan there are some signs that autumn is coming.One sure sign is that on Monday its the autumn equinox.Another is the appearance of seasonal food,drinks and confectionery in the stores and supermarkets.
The latest limited release in the KitKat range is this chestnut flavour.It comes in a beige coloured box.The wafer biscuits are also encased in a beige-like chocolate.

Personally I dont think they taste much like chestnuts or marron at all.More like a light coffee, almost carmel taste.Two willing assistants who sampled the same flavour came to a similiar conclusion.Still they are edible and quite pleasant.

Friday Flash..Fishy Bento

This fishy snack has a variety of fish,textures and tastes to it.From left to right there is an omelette-like slice of egg,then a slice of Pacific saury or sanma,a fish that resembles a sword.It is often grilled with salt or served as sashimi.Next is a thick slice of salmon or sake,which apparently tastes good also grilled with salt.To its right is shrimp or ebi and finally a bite size morsel of eel.Each of the above sit on a small "finger" of rice.The usual condiments of parsley and ginger can be seen as well as thin green plastic strips which divide the various items from one another.

Friday Flash..Vanilla Beans KitKats

Another addition,albeit on sale only for a limited time,to the growing range of KitKat flavours available here in Nagoya,Japan.As with the recent orange and chocolate kitkats I spotted late last month,these also bear a label indicating their short term availabilty.
Which got me wondering...if the flavour is a hit would the KitKat people continue making them or stop producing them after a short time as shown on the box and run the risk of disappointing consumers who have become addicted to that particular flavour.
Surely some flavours are more popular than others and deserve in terms of sales and customer loyalty to be available 24/365 at ones local convenience store.I mean surely the banana kitkats deserve a regular spot on the shelves more so than the sickly sweet lemon ones.
As for the vanilla beans kitkats above,they do taste and smell strongly of vanilla and bond well with the accompanying wafer biscuit.Nothing really special though as with the chocolate and orange ones or in fact any KitKat product eaten in the humid lingering Japanese summer they are best enjoyed after being briefly refrigerated.

Friday Flash...Orange and Chocolate KitKats

Another KitKat flavour made a brief appearance on the shop shelves this week.Like other seasonal flavours the orange and chocolate kitkats above are of the limited edition variety.In fact when I went back to purchase another box the next day,the convenience store had already sold out.The kitkats have a kind of jaffa taste and a distinctive sweet orange smell once the box is opened.

The heat continued through the week.It seems the last month or so the temperature has hovered round the thirty degree mark which is ok if you are a cactus but somewhat trying if you need to sleep or function in any intelligent manner.Consequently Im too exhausted to do much again this weekend except nap and read on the tatami in my bedroom.

KiwiFruit KitKats

Another addition to the expanding range of KitKats.I found these KiwiFruit KitKats at my local convenience store over the weekend.I found the colour,kind of vivid limey a little off putting and unnatural.
The KitKats themselves did have a distinct kiwifruit taste and were quite tasty.The chocolate around the kitkat biscuits tended to melt in your fingers due to the humidity and heat of the day and I think they would be best consumed after being put in the fridge.If you can wait that long that is...