I've had several unexpected pleasures lately in the food category. The surprising part is that there were no dining extravaganzas involved, whatsoever. These have all been things that I've found a very short walk from the hotel, in some of the most common of locations...
1) There's this place in the Osaka/Umeda station. It's more or less a hole-in-the-wall, and is very popular, judging by the frequency at which it's filled to capacity. There are no tables, just a bar where people come up and sit. The amazing thing is their wonderful pot-stickers, or "gyoza". You can buy 7 of them for 180 yen, and make an moderate meal out of it. Remember, the rough conversion factor is 1 yen = 1 cent, making 180 yen about $1.80. This is certainly not bad for Japan (or the U.S., for that matter)! What's more, the last time I was there I got a coupon for 30 yen off of my next purchase.
2) I've been seeing these gummy, doughy, squishy-looking balls of God-only-knows-what at Hanshin for some time now. I had a pretty good idea that they were some kind of chewy, rice-dough desserts. The other night I bought two for $1.00. When I got back to the hotel, I opened the package up and took a closer look. First of all, the smell was very odd (big surprise there, huh?). Second of all, the one on the left was more of a kind of gelatin thing with something inside. Think of one of those small, ball-shaped jellyfish you can find at Galveston, only no tentacles, and about the size of an eyeball...yummy! Having resolved myself that a feat of bravery was in order, I picked up the jelly-thing. Of course, it was cold, firm, and very slippery. The gelatin was about 1/4 inch think and surrounded a harder middle. I nearly dropped the thing before getting it to my mouth. The surprise was that it was absolutely delicious (if odd). Basically, it was a lemon-flavored bean paste ball (covered in heavy slime that didn't drip). The second tasty treat was equally surprising. It was opaque, about 2 inches in diameter and very reminiscent of raw pizza dough. One taste revealed that it was indeed a rice-dough thing, only this time filled with bean paste and strawberry jam. All in all, it too was very good. I must say that some people are very appalled with the texture of this rice dough stuff...I think of it as an acquired taste.
3) The other day I paid 200 yen for a hot dog with fried noodles and bok choy (spelling could be off). It was also a very pleasant surprise. Since then I've been back for more.
4) Remember the teeny-tiny dried fishy's that I discovered at the Hanshin grocery department? This evening I was wandering through the place (a surprisingly entertaining pastime in itself), and one of the sample-weilding women in the aisles convinced me to give some a try (in Japanese, no less!). This was the about-one-inch-long brown variety. I'm amazed to say that they were very good! She indicated that they were to be eaten with beer. They were chewy, smokey, crunchy, a bit fishy, and a bit salty. I'll have to pick up some some time when I'm not looking for dessert and when I'm not going back to the hotel, where I would have to keep them in the room (that could get ugly, I think).
OK, a log entry just wouldn't be complete without the latest word on the camera. Good news! Dave has received it in Austin, and sent it on its way to Japan. With luck, it'll be here Monday! That's right! Just in time for me to leave for the 'States. With lots of luck, I'll get it tomorrow and be able to get out and about during the weekend and get some shots to post. At any rate, I'm looking forward to being able to take some pictures that I can post easily on the website.
That's all folks (for now)! Chuck