Grocery shopping is sometimes a chore, or a task to cross off your list, but quite the exciting trip for me. You know that feeling that little kids get when they walk into a toy store?

Equivalent of myself in a grocery store. I tend to have shoukugeki no souma reactions when grocery shopping. My cousin is never impressed and is never ready to deal with this hyper-excited child.

But how to contain oneself when you see this one (AND it's on sale): 

Bubbly sake

IT'S PINK = VICKI MUST PURCHASE. Who cares about the taste. (although it tastes pretty good)

Chik-Fil-A is always on promotional stuff on Postmates LA. Cousin stocks up on sauce. I don't think we ever made use of them though. CORRECTION: Cousin brought them all back home with him. Did not offer me any at all.

Why has brusell sprouts got such a bad rap amongst children? Is it because TV shows says they are the enemy to the palette of those under the age of 12? What a tragedy - because these are delicious. A sweet, very umami soy glaze coats each ball, flecked with chilli (I see they enjoy flecking with chilli at this place). Generous squeeze of lemon (meaning, squeeze every drop of juice you can get from that lemon) is needed. It is quite oily and heavy from the sauce and oil in which its been roasted.

Beef tongue. The least amazing. Was not bad, but wasn't great. They used sichimi togarashi (the Japanese seven spices powder) all over (again). The red sauce on the bottom was so unmemorable that I have no recollection of what flavours it brought upon my tongue.

Sliced hamachi (I presume this was near the belly. The fat was so graciously marbled), avocado. This was one of the specials (the other one was a roll if I am remembering correctly), and it really just alternating slices of avocado, hamachi, topped with tobiko and the yuzu sauce. Hamachi was very fresh. But still was not worth however much we paid. Not sure how the avocado helps the hamachi (or the other way around). Both are so fatty and moreish. At least place the tobiko on more neatly - maybe in small blobs and not just sprinkled all over. Looks messy. The microgreens also make an appearance here. They were not eaten.

Service was amazing though. The owner took care of us well and is a friendly guy with some long time friends of >10 years that still come to visit him here. Okay that is all I have to say.

Why my love for izakayas is greater than yours:

1. the variety of small-portioned dishes allow me to eat a greater variety without sacrificing stomach space

2. pork cheek is almost always on the yakitori option (and I love pork cheek/neck/jowl)

3. my alcohol tolerance increases, and devastation of hangovers decreases when consuming asian alcohols

The most delicious firm-ish tofu ever. The texture holds, but is also soft. Creamy, but with a touch of graininess. It is accompanied perfectly with the freshly grated wasabi and a clean tasting soy sauce.

Lovely sauce here. The tomato was a beautiful addition.

I believe that there is a anti chicken breast field emitting from my body as I'll never buy it nor will I order a dish containing it. But friend who says, let's order the chicken breast yakitori, has defied my wishes. I ate a piece and was mindblown. Wtf is this tender piece of what I had previously perceived as a cardboard of a meat. So juicy, soft, flavourful (the japanese have a knack for seasoning savoury grilled foods really well. I suppose it is so that it can be better accompanied with beer). My anti chicken breast field shall not only be turned off when I'm in Rintaro.

 

The outside area where you can enjoy some okonomiyaki on Thursday nights. They'll bring it to your table if you're dining at Rintaro and there just for the Japanese pancake. The crowd of Japanese people just chilling out here makes it all feel so authentic and real deal.  Okonomiyaki courtesy of the stall just beyond the doors of Rintaro - all with their own tables and steady gathering of peoples constantly ordering. I love that they bring it to your table inside of Rintaro. Other than that, it's pretty mediocre. Probably would not order again.

Omg doneeee. Getting ready for the next post now.

There weren't many choices. It was either this place or the other, after consulting Yelp which didn't provide many 4+ ratings to choose from (why eat anything less than 4 stars though?)

So we ended up here and were so glad we did when we sat down on an outside table after placing our order at the counter:

Owner Tammy greeted us and knew we were tourists cause a Chinese family of four stuck out so hard in that city. She gave us a list of places to which we should, and warned us of the tourist traps. 

Possibly the best first stop we could have made on our East Coast Canada trip.

Lobster roll was not like the ones from fisherman's wharf in SF. You can actually see the lobster claw meat here, which is not mixed 50/50 with mayo. Shredded lettuce, and a toasted bun with a drizzle of the melted butter that they serve with boiled lobster was missing. Whole leaf lettuce made taking bites of this thing rather awkward. Not piping hot toasted bun makes a bad mouthfeel with the lobster. Lobster/mayo part was good, the entire lobster roll was okay.

Batter is like super crispy, thin, and stays on the fish even when you cut it up. This was our first fish and chips upon landing, and since then we had many more fish and chips places. So I can say that this was by far the best one. The fish they used was not too flaky, and they cooked it so that it was still nice and moist inside. Very good

We came here a second time to eat their fish and chips again because the fish was that good.

A big thank you to Tammy who treated us to great food and the extensive list of places to eat and visit!

I really rarely eat ramen. The last time must have been last year, and I also happened to be in SF as well. Also have zero recollection of where it was in SF, or what ramen I ordered. In the back of my mind, ramen gives off an instant noodle vibe - which I love, when you scramble in an egg.

So we came here after a long day at work. Actually I'm not sure if it was long or we just happened to stay back later than usual. Seeing that none of us had consumed anything for our meal of the evening yet, one of us had suggested this very *amazing* ramen place that has notorious lines and a killer broth.

And the four of us embark on a ramen trip. Where there was no line and no wait for tables *gasp*

Chicken broth. Did they make this broth like how the French makes their beurre blanc? Cause the creaminess was no joke. A viscous broth with an equally intense and creamy taste that coats each ramen strand more than it needs too. Also very salty. The lack of veggies in this makes me concerned about my well being after a few spoonfuls of the broth. Okay.

The shoyu/soy sauce one is very different from the chicken broth. Not as salty and pleasant to drink. Clean taste - is that kombu I suspect? Reminds me of the clear korean soups too. Good.

Wow my favourite one. This soba has everything your soul desires: egg yolk, thick savoury sweet sauce, pea sprouts, more veggies than the other two, peanuts. Reminds me of the noodles we have in Malaysia. If only we ordered the spicy version of this. Good.

Between the four of us, we still managed to struggle to clean the bowls. This is the kind of food that knocks you out and makes you fall into an eternal slumber.

Good night dear friends.