Culture Segment: FOOD!

Alright then, like I mentioned last week, I am going to start a few segments on different cultural sects of Japan. Before I begin my food talk though, I want to let you know I spent my weekend doing some Karaoke and exploring Osaka. I stumbled upon this part of Osaka known as Ame-Mura (America Town). Seems like Osaka thinks we're all gangster rappers or love American Apparel, oh international stereotypes. On another note, I stumbled upon another interesting place that needs no explanation, just look below.

So yeah, that is Osaka's Pokemon Center, filled with a bunch of Pokemon goods. Pokemon is actually not even remotely as popular as it used to be, but it is nice to see that it is still thriving. Yeah, that was my weekend, pretty low key, I will be traveling to Ninja town and the moss temple in the near future, so stay tuned!

Back to food now. When I first got here, I was petrified: live fish, chopsticks, rice all the time. These new concepts did not seem overly appealing to my American palette. That being said, I've adjusted really well, and I might even prefer the Japanese food to the food back home (minus mom's home cooking, but does anything compare to a home cooked meal?). Here's a quick rundown of what there is to offer to Japan (note: this is not a full list, Japan's food varies between regions). One other caveat: In Japan, stores basically cook one type of food i.e. a Ramen shop only does Ramen and maybe side dishes of Gyoza (dumplings). There aren't really too many menus with various entrees here, which I'm cool with. Now onto the food! First there is Okonomiyake, which is like a cabbage pancake with delicious fillings inside. Sounds gross right? Well it isn't, actually, it's my favorite dish in Japan! A close second is Ramen. Now I'm sure most of you all have tried some form of Ramen back home, but none of it can compare to Ramen in Japan. Ramen here will knock your socks right off. If you need further proof ask my parents. They were so impressed by a Ramen shop they went to without me that they had to go back the following day to show it to me (and yes, it was incredible). After that, I'd probably say I love a good Omurice (truncated version of Omelet Rice). Basically, it is exactly what the name states: an omelet filled with rice. The kicker is that there are usually many sauces and accompanying vegetables or flavors to choose from, really bringing out the flavor of the dish. Here's a quick picture of Okonomiyake.

Moving on, another popular dish is Yakisoba. Yakisoba is buckwheat noodles accompanied with cabbage, other vegetables, and sauce. It's delicious, but what you see is what you get, you rarely mix things up. Sukiyaki is when you boil meat in a broth and dip in egg before you eat it, sounds weird, but tastes good. Donburi is usually a mix of vegetables and meat over rice, but you can change the meat depending on the type/restaurant. That one is another classic, pending the meet is good. Yakiniku is another awesome dish. You are given food to roast on a grill at your table and dip in various sauces. A bit pricy for the college kids, but definitely worth it. Udon is what you'd expect if you were to go to a Japanese restaurant in the US, only difference is that the broth here usually has a bit more flavor to it. Sushi however, is night and day when compared to home. It is amazing, not to say that the sushi back home isn't good, but I'm yet to have a piece of bad sushi here, no matter what restaurant I go to. Tempura is also what you'd expect from home, nonetheless, very good. Besides that, we have dumplings and man, both similar to dim sum, but incomparable to their versions back home imho. I know I'm forgetting some food, but I'll be sure to edit my mistakes in.


As for the ingredients in the food itself, I have had a pretty easy time eating most of it considering my palette. As most of you know, I'm not a big seafood guy. While I still stand by that, I do like tuna a lot and I've learned to love octopus. Nothing is better than a good piece of Octopus, especially raw. That being said, I find squid to be a little on the chewy side, salmon still doesn't agree with me, and I haven't gotten over my fear of shrimp coming to life and swimming in my mouth. But hey, octopus? Give me some props.


Onward to my favorite part, dessert! Right above you is Taiyaki. These are fishcakes that are thankfully not filled with fish but instead various fillings. Fillings include custard, creme, chocolate, caramel, strawberries, etc. Do I even have to say whether this is any good? Other desserts include cakes that are perfected in every slice. I really appreciate the Japanese care for perfection in food. Moving on, Ice cream is OK, but there is no way I'm going to be a fan of Green Tea Ice cream, gomenasai Japan. There is also mochi, which are rice cakes with good fillings as well. There are also different candies (such as hi-chew, which is like one specific flavor of starburst) that can be gobbled up in seconds. It's amazing to see how popular candy and sweets are in Japan considering just how small the average weight is of a Japanese person. There has to be something genetic going on here, that being said, I think all my friends and I have lost weight since we've been here, score for us!

Finally, the liver and onions of Japan i.e. the stuff I haven't loved. While it may be wildly popular in Japan, I just cannot seem to like Takoyaki. Takoyaki are small balls of batter with a piece of Octopus stuff inside. Like I said, I love octopus now, but this combination does not sit well with me. Furthermore, fish flakes (or bonita flakes) may be my new least favorite food. While a few may taste OK, if there are too many on a dish, it totally overpowers the rest of the food, and you get an obnoxious fish taste in your mouth, which I just can't handle. Finally, there is Pizza here. While I wouldn't classify it as something I've disliked, there is no comparison to the pizza back home. Moreover, they have really weird stuff on the pizza here such as bacon and eggs on one, and corn on another. Bacon and eggs? Kinda gross. Corn? Kinda awesome. People have asked which food I like more, and it's a really tough call, so I'm going to go with a draw, but I do love those first two dishes up there a whole heck of a lot. Now all I need to do is find a country where I can get the majority of the food here, a good pizza parlor, some steak action, and my mom's cooking, and then forget about it, I'd be good for life.

This post turned out to be longer than I expected, so I'm going to cut things off here, hope you enjoyed. To my loyal readers, feel free to send an email or a comment if there is any sort of souvenir you'd like from Japan. I'm going to start doing souvenir shopping after my next trip to Tokyo. Thanks a lot, talk to to you all soon! For the picture of the week, I'm going to a goofy purikura shot, I know you'll enjoy, mata ne!