Gastrolust

Seattle is drawing ever closer to having a bigger street food scene. With kimchi quesadillas, gumbo, and poutine coming out of carts, we’ve come a long way from hot dogs.
But let’s not forget the lovely hot dog, and its potential for greatness.
Modeled after the popular Japadog carts in Vancouver, Shinsuke Nikaido opened [...]

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Dish: Ramen (chosen with chicken)
Place: Okinawa Teriyaki, Downtown
Price: $6.99
In the bowl: Ramen noodles and broth. (So far, so good, sort of. And then it gets weird.) Chicken. Strands of egg. And lots of vegetables: Mushrooms, carrots, broccoli, cabbage, and zucchini.

Supporting cast: Nothing.
What to do: Wonder what you’ve gotten yourself into. Eat.
Noodling around: There [...]

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At Japanese restaurants, I’m usually all about the sushi. But when I went to Chiso during Seattle Restaurant Week (or partial weeks, as they actually are) to capitalize on a three-course lunch for $15, I was more impressed with the bento box than the sushi sampler. (The bento box wasn’t all; [...]

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Issian is an izakaya in Wallingford that advertises itself as a stone grill and a sushi bar. This Japanese pub is a perfect place for a group to enjoy drinks, share small plates, and engage in spirited conversation.
During a recent visit, my group went a bit wild for grilled and fried [...]

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In the second of three food reports from Vancouver (the previous covering some splurges and snacks), I offer a Japanese interlude. The featured eateries:

Kingyo
Gyoza King
Manzo Japanese Restaurant
Japadog
Benkei Ramen
Kintaro Ramen
Motomachi Shokudo
Hokkaido Ramen Santouka
G-Men Noodle House

Izakayas
Immediately after a multicourse meal elsewhere, this power eater kept a commitment to meet a friend at Kingyo, a [...]

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Sometimes I get so obsessed about comparing restaurants that I do crazy things.
Like creating a sushi (financial) spreadsheet.
I did this in comparing the three restaurants that reside in my top tier of favorites in the Seattle area: Kisaku, Shiro’s, and now Sushi Kappo Tamura, in Eastlake. The third is Taichi Kitamura’s new place, following [...]

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I have a new (co-) favorite sushi restaurant to recommend: Sushi Kappo Tamura. Oh, I still love Kisaku, with some unique offerings and slightly lower prices, but Tamura offers a slightly more upscale dining experience and high quality fish at prices slightly below Shiro’s—which rounds out my top tier of sushi restaurants in Seattle.
But as [...]

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She knew she wanted to be a baker at a young age, back when she was living in Osaka. “At age 5 or 6, I would make a mess in the kitchen,” Setsuko Tanaka tells me. “I wanted to see how things mixed together, and what happened when you [...]

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Dish: Soba ten-zaru (”tempura on the side”)
Place: Maneki
Price: $7.95
On the tray: A tangle of cold soba (made from buckwheat flour) topped with strips of dried nori (seaweed) sits on the zaru, which is a slotted bamboo tray.
Supporting cast: A plate with four pieces of tempura: shrimp, zucchini, carrot, and cod. Also a [...]

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Last weekend, I attended the 13th Annual Worlds of Flavor International Conference & Festival at the Culinary Institute of America’s Napa Valley campus. The theme was “Japan: Flavors of Culture,” and a team of 39 of Japan’s most talented chefs came to teach other chefs, foodservice workers, suppliers, food writers, and [...]

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