I choose to start my Japan Trip preview talking about something that didn't happen in Japan. I think >80% of these will be aroudn Japan, but let's start with Anan. It was tremendous. The first time I went in 2019, maybe they had a tasting menu but I went a la carte. The next time I went, I did the "tasting menu" but it was picking some of the a-la-carte dishes. Now, it's a real tasting menu, worthy of its Michelin Star (the only one in Vietnam) and its place in the regional Top-50 list. It deserves to be higher. Everything was so well thought out, so intelligent in using ingredients and flavors from all over Vietnam. It was a great, great meal.
B. is for Bellwood, Bees Knee's and Bar Trench
I wanted to talk about the cocktail bars in Japan, and coincidentally many of my favorites all began with the letter B. The Bellwood and Bar Trench were the best ones we went to in Tokyo, good enough we went to each twice. Bellwood was in pure old timey speakeasy style, down to the ragtime-era music they would play. The drinks were inventive and all so different. Same thing really with Bar Trench, one of the more reputed in Tokyo. They had great, creative uses for absinthe which was a nice hit. Bee's Knees was our favorite in Kyoto - maybe not as showy and expressive as L'Escomateur, but also not as lengthy a line to enter. All in all, Japan has taken very well to the cocktail scene, headed by these three 'B' joints.
C. is for Craft Beer in Remote Places
Going into this trip, I knew Pasteur Street in HCMC was great. I figured there would be good craft options in Kyoto and Tokyo. What I didn't really expect to any real degree, but showed itself to be true, was finding great spots in Takayama and Nikko. We've really reached such a point with craft beer that not only are there places in these cities, but they're proudly either in the case of Murmur in Nikko brewing their own beer, or in the case of Al's, serving random craft options from all over Japan. Al's also had some great decor and feel of the place as well. Someday I'll sit down and right a post about my favorite craft beer spots in random locations. Not sure how to draw the cutoff on the random aspect, but wherever I would, these two would easily qualify.
D. is for Den
Den is Japan's most reputed restaurant, being a two Michelin Star place (granted, Japan notably has a ton of 3-star spots, but most are uber-high end delicate kaiseki types), and the highest rated on the World's Top-50 List. It was such a strange, but great meal. They didn't go overly tweezery or overly refined from a look or presentation sense, but went almost super refined from a flavor sense. Dishes like a lightly cooked fish in a green onion and mushroom dashi were so perfect, so clean, so just, well, tasty. Take even his "Den Friend Chicken", with a chicken skin fried chicken thigh stuffed with mushroom and truffle - again you're basically eating a chicken thigh on a stick, but the taste was divine.
E. is for Emperors
The emperors and their palaces man, from the Niko Castle in Kyoto (the old Imperial seat), to the gardens of the actual Imperial Palace in Tokyo, to elements like the Todai-Ji and various temples that were built relatively recently, commissioned by Emperors, that legacy, be it the modern Meiji to now run, or the Shogunate era, really gives Japan its culture in many ways. Sure, some will look a bit down on Empiric rule, but it has left quite a legacy behind.
F. is for the Forests of Japan
Japan is largely mountains. The main flat areas have been overly developed into maw (namely the Tokyo Metro area). We planned this trip to have two little reprieves in the mountains, first with Takayama and then with Nikko. You could see the difference immediately from the JR Train on the way there, and then even more in our days out in the nature beyond even these two small towns. From the Kamikochi National Park, which so easily could be in Canada or something like this, to the half day at Lake Chuzenji adn Kogen Waterfall. We barely scratched the surface of the forests and mountains of Japan. I'm not really a skiier, so in that sense not sure how much further I would go, but having done Takayama and Nikko was a great decision by us.
G. is for Gaggan Anand
Third Time was basically as good as the first two, with a couple notable differences, both good and bad. First off, it was a bit sad that the visit was unfortunately timed with a period when Gaggan was travelling, so he was not there to entertain and regale us like he was last year. The upside though is I actually think the food was better this time than the second time. Nothing can top the original - though some of that might have been the whole lead up of the event to begin with. I'll end it by saying what I love the most is he'll always have 1-2 Goan dishes on the menu, which is something I will always appreciate.
H. is for Ho Chi Minh City
Just a general shoutout to Ho Chi Minh, which stayed just as good on my third visit as it did on my second. I took great pains to do a decent amount of new things, and found some hidden gems, like the Temple of 1000 Buddha's, to the brilliant cocktail spot Summer Experiment, to the Art Museum which did such a great job of showcasing the beauty in the pain of Vietnamese art. Of course, the old stand-by's were great, from the two that got their own letter, to the continuing solemnity and pilgrimage that has become the War Remnants Museum. Every time I visit, the joy and life of the people only continues to improve as HCMC makes it way on teh global scale.
I. is for Izakayas
Izakaya roughly translates to "come and enjoy" or something like that. They're an interesting combination between a restaurant and a bar, just a place where people come to hang out and eat and drink and shoot the shit. What we figured over time is many of these places are mom and pop run and there is such pride they take in serving great, creative, extremely well prepared and flavorful shareable dishes. The best of which we went to was effectively a tasting menu shop with stuff like a salted whole local fish, and hiba beef grilled o so perfectly. Others were just great tapas places. They were a great reprieve when we couldn't find dinner our last night in Takayama. In the end, Izakayas are wonderful places that are so perfectly Japanese.
J. is for Japanese Efficiency
I don't have a more insightful way to talk about this, but Japan is so great for being so thoughtful and exacting about basically everything it does. From the care the Izakaya chef's take, to the bartenders at the cocktail bars in places like a Takayama, to the little niceties like every toilet having a bidet and buttons to push to flush, to each hotel or AirBNB giving us a set of slippers, if not robes. Japan just takes a lot of time to care and plan and take pride in all these things. Efficiency really isn't the right word for it. I'm not sure what is, but whatever it is, more countries should follow Japan's lead.
K. is for Kinkaku-Ji
The Golden Pagoda, one of Kyoto's leading sights, comes across amazing in photos but they don't come close to doing it full justice. It is so stunning from every angle, from a glistening Golden sight in the distance as you approach it from the south end of the lake, to the fact that even up close it doesn't loose a scintilla of its golden sheen. I have little idea what the temple means from a religious perspective - and the grounds do have some more traditional looking temples, but the star is the golden pagoda. It was a clear day when we came, so it was even more shining and beautiful than normal. Just an exceptional site in Kyoto.
L. is for Lurra
Our first true meal of the trip was at Lurra. It's version 1.0 of my idea to start off your vacation with a babng in the meal department (looking back, I very much did not do this in Taiwan in 2019, or with my friends in Barcelona in 2021, or in Seoul last year). We weren't sure if we would even make it to dinner, but somehow we staved off jet lag and had a wonderful meal. Lurra was special - traditional in the tweezery nature of its food, but using local Japanese ingredients brought it all to life. We also met some really interesting people in Lurra. It was a really great way to start the trip, and could argue to be our best meal in Japan.
M. is for Meeting People
It is probably due to a combination of us being another year further out from the heights of Covid shutdowns, and Japan being anyway a bigger tourist destination than Korea (and a thrid reason with us being a group instead of me alone last year) but it was great meeting so many travellers. Almost daily at the craft beer bar, or the cocktail bar, we would strike a conversation with traveling vagabonds like us - from teh guy who sold his craft brewery in Amsterdam, to a couple of amazingly chill Australians in Tokyo, to a surprising amount of Americans all over - it was great interacting a lot with other travelers, all of us enjoying the niceties of this country together.
-N. is for Nara Deer
On those deer, those perfectly docile, cute, adorable, interactive deer. If one thing has changed a bit in ten years since I last visited the deer, is I think they've basically overrun central Nara, in the best way possible, extending far beyond the main Nara Park, towards the temples that run more into the city, to the Todai-Ji. They own Nara, and why not - they're perfect. Some with antlers, some adorable little baby deers. It is all a bit overwhelming. Even as an adult, and someone who has twice hit deer driving back home, I couldn't resist being won over.
O. is for The Observatory
My favorite club in the world is still holding that spot strongly, if not improving on it. I had such perfect nights there on my first trip in 2019, my first introduction to baloons and first time chilling with ex-pats in Vietnam. Each time both things have still remained true. This time it rose a notch due to their redesigned, and now fancier, terrace bar/DJ set-up, moving a from very much a side stage to something that is front and center. I'm still partial to the dark, fog machine, intimate club interior, but the views of Ho Chi Minh City, plus a nicer, larger space, is mighty intriguing as well.
P. is for Priciness??
I came to Japan knowing it to be an expensive country. The yen has weakened relative to the dollar since my last trip in 2013, but inflation has kept prices fairly stable. And in certain things, it is expensive, namely fancy restaurants and hotels (hotel prices in Tokyo were insane). But what I was surprised by was how much was affordable, even compared to say Korea the year earlier. Cocktails at top spots were generally in the $11-15 range. Non fancy meals were in the $20 range. The massive subway system within Tokyo was super cheap. There is one hidden pricey aspect that is unavoidable, and that is taxis. They are very expensive in both Tokyo and Kyoto. Luckily, Kyoto isn't big enough for it to matter, but with Tokyo we found out the hard way when staying up North the first few days. It was basically like me taking Uber's back to Hoboken from Central manhattan.
Q. is for Quaint Districts
From the Geisha district in Kyoto, to the Sanmatchi in Takayama, to even the little 3x3 (with half-width lanes, so more like 1.5 x 1.5) block of the Golden Gai in Shinjuku in Tokyo, these little lanes are what make Japan so special. My favorites were the Kyoto ones, be it the Geisha district as a whole, or even the Pontocho Alley in Kyoto, a pedestrian only drag of bars and restaurants, with one half bordering the river in Kyoto. Life is perfect amongs these quaint alleys, from the shops to the restaurants. The Takayama one even had some nice sake tasting shops. Without yet doing inventory of what I bought back as souvenirs from Japan, I'm not sure if I actually did buy anything from the shops in these districts, but I certainly got some great memories.
R. is for the Rail Pass
It's Japan, so like most things in Japan, getting the Rail Pass is expensive. It also doesn't cover the Tokyo subway (which maybe it never did, and I'm mis-remembering things from 2013). But man does it make going from place to place in Japan so easy. The trains also run on time, run perfectly. The schedule is pretty easy to follow. You can get reserved seats on Shinkansen trains now, which is a change from before. But even when I didn't go for the reserved seat, it was never too busy and always a comfortable, smooth ride aroudn Japan.
S. is for Sake
I'm not a wine drinker. Never have been, and probably never will be. But I am 100% a rice wine drinker, overdoing it in Japan, and growing to truly love that slightly funky tasting beverage. I can have it forever and not get bored - from dry, to fruity, to what you should have ice cold to what is served at room temperature, to the creative nature of the bottle labelling, some graduating to works of art. What was even better was the amount of places that offered a sake tasting menu as an alternative to wine, be it the Izakaya's to the Sake bar in Kyoto, to the sake tasting menu that accompanied sushi at Sushi M. I will certainly start trying it more back home, but do worry we just don't ahve the range, options and affordability combination of the best stuff in Japan.
T. is for Todai-Ji and Toyushro
There were dozens of temples/shrines/pagodas et.al. that I saw over the course of my trip. Most had some unique or differentiative aspect - be it color, or location or size, or how active they were. But the two that stood out (well, the two that allow me to use the letter here) were the Todai-Ji in Nara, and the Toyushro in Nikko. The Todai-Ji just for its huge size. Haven't done the math, but I do think it was the largest purely by area. Also it used the landscape and the defining factor of Nara, the cuddly little peaceful deer. The Toyushro was so intricate, with so many levels and layers of walls and temples and the like. It had so many small features, like a house adorned with depictions of monkeys, and of course its use of the surrounding forest. Of coruse, the Tuyoshro I also saw in miniature form in teh Nikkokan museum in Takayama of all things. In retrospect, I could have just gone with 'Temples' for T, but giving a specific shout-out to these two is what this A to Z piece is about.
U. is for Ueno History Museum
On one end of Ueno Park lies a trio of museums dedicated to history, both of Japan and Asia as a whole. The National Museum three-building complex is so easily laid out, so wonderful to walk through. It goes in logical order, be it various countries in the "Asian History" museum, to a mixture of chronological to material types in the main museum. Then saving the oldest bit of history for an annex building on the side. The Ueno Museum complex does best at what Japanese museums are so great at, namely having an orderly way to go around and see everything. The only weirdness was the random nature seemingly of what items they did not want pictures taken of, but all in all it was a great way to spend a few hours within Ueno Park.
V. is for Vent
Out of all the clubs we went to in Japan, nothing lasted with me like Vent. It was our first night in Tokyo, the only night with a significant amount of rain. Because of taht, we picked a closer club to walk to from our cocktail spot, so we went to Vent instead of whatever we had planned. It was a fine decision. The decor is amazing, with exposed stone everywhere, and some great trees and greenery. High ceilings and great ventilation gave it a truly airy vibe. The bar was quick to serve and fairly cheap. It was a great crowd as well - maybe driven by the rain so wasn't too crowded. We certainly enjoyed Womb (the multi-story one we went to Saturday Night), and the smaller joints at the tail end of our time in Tokyo, but nothing will stay as long as Vent.
W. is for Wagyu
There is wagyu sold in America, it's becoming something of a fad and rage, if anything. But let's be honest, what we're talking about here is the real stuff - the incredible marbling, the buttery quality, the truly melt-in-your-mouth nature when its made as well as possible. Obviously it was enjoyable in yakiniku form, but the most ideal version was the set meal I had in Nikko. First, it was a bit weird for Nikko to be the place with my most "real" wagyu experience, but that steak, that delicious 8oz cut, with truly melt in your mouth stuff. We somehow turned a simple steak into 30 minutes, savoring each bite. Sure it may seem silly but really it is one of those things Japan just does so tremendously well.
X. is for Xcess of Art Museums
I don't know when I became a full on "Art Museum Guy", which has overtime even extended to modern art (though not overly haute stuff). I guess what helps is it is generally an excellent reprieve from the unending humidity of Japan, specifically those days in Tokyo. But I what realized over time was just how good the art museums were in Japan - specifically doing their best to overly focus on just Japanese artists. The National Art Center in Roppongi, with its seven exhibits showcasing the best of sculpture and art of modern Japan. The art was so resplendent with loud, deep, bright colors; with interesting subject matter be it the flora, fauna and urban maw of Japan. I probably still missed a few for sure, but hey, there's more for next time.
Y. is for Yakiniku
I weirdly didn't really know the term for what the Japenese open-grill BBQ was when I had a metric ton of it in 2013. I fell in love with it then, especially having a surprising amount of appreciation for the innards. Like with the last letter to come, I again dabbled a lot of yakinku, from places very much reminiscent to ones I went to in 2013 (there's a non-zero chance Rokkosen is the place I went to once in 2013...), others that I went to randomly because everything else in Takayama was somehow booked, to a Yakiniku tasting menu which was absurd. Japanese beef cuts are brilliant, and other than maybe going to some A5 Steakhouse, there really is no better way to enjoy the variety.
Z. is for Zushi
In certain instances, Sushi gets translated into Zushi (Gaitenzushi is the term for the conveyor belt places) so while it might be a half-cheat, I think it's fair enough. I probably had more sushi this time than in 2013. Certainly more high end sushi, particularly our meal at Sushi M, which I still think about today from how perfect it all was. But even the conveyor belt places, we were a bit more discerning on where we went. And then there was the first place, in our day at Nara at Sushi Ichii, which was a small place where you just tell the sushi master what you want bit by bit. The set-ups are great, be it the soy, the ginger, the taps that pour hot water. Japan has turned sushi into an art form - certainly at high end concepts, but even at the more moderate places. So fresh, so perfect.
