Umami Mart

We went to Hoteresu the other day, Japan’s premiere restaurant show. Like any convention at Javits or Moscone Center, the massive spaceship of a building had been filled with food and drink companies, appliance mega-conglomerates and tableware producers, displaying their newest products and inventions for all of us brainwashed consumers. Like a well-oiled machine, Hoteresu […]

We made it! After a restless 16 hours of travel — I read this month’s New Yorker (excellent expose on Amazon and its monopoly on the publishing industry) and Vanity Fair (The Hollywood Issue! Rupert Murdoch’s marital betrayal!) cover to cover, whilst listening to Howard Stern — Yoko and I have touched down and are […]

I’m on my longest trip to Tokyo yet. I moved here! They granted me a one year visa, and I’ve been here for twelve days now. I still can’t believe it. My dream for many years has finally come true. I left Los Angeles before Thanksgiving to spend time with my family in Ohio; and […]

This was one for the ages. Jiro is legendary. It’s spawned a slew of imitators, one of which crossed an ocean. Many think it’s an entity unto itself, like tsukemen, rather than a type of ramen. I’ve known about Jiro since the very beginning of my ramen journey and although I’ve visited a few jiro-kei (aka […]

I went to the future the other day and found this synopsis on an IMDB page from 2018: A lonely Tokyo ramen shop proprietor secretly pines for a local bar owner and former model. His three most devoted customers, two wacky foreigners and their Japanese friend, fear the ramen master will die without passing his […]

At first glance it didn’t look like there would be anything out of the ordinary in Akabane. A 25-minute ride from Shinjuku, Akabane Station is thronged with commuters coming home or changing train lines — the mark of suburbia. Its local Book-Off has a rather crappy selection of books. The shopping street nearby looked tired […]

On my recent trip to Japan, Kuni and I went to a kona-ya (flour shop) in Ikebukuro, Tokyo called Hokutou Seifun. They hold soba and udon noodle-making classes on the second floor of their storefront. Our fingerless noodle master was dedicated to his craft. HOKUTOU SEIFUN Minami Ikebukuro 1-15-22 Toshima-ku, Tokyo T: 03-3971-7131

Hambagu (hamburger) curry rice with an over-easy egg and a touch of fresh cream. Our uncle’s curry shop Hungry Ajikawa has been around for 35 years. HUNGRY AJIKAWA 2-17-8 Misaki-cho Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo T: 03-3261-5323

A few weeks ago, one of my professors went off on a tangent while lecturing: “I was looking through a text book which read, ‘Japanese are nature-loving people.’ As if other people don’t love nature! I don’t know where you’re from, but many places also have seasonal changes! If you were from Boston, it’s not […]

*Kid Skwid is a sous chef at Spago restaurant in Beverly Hills. On his rare days off, he enjoys riding his bike around LA and going to the beach. Follow him on Instagram (@kidskwid5) to see his gourmet breakfasts at Casa de Kei.