Food Touring

Trying food from all over the world, at home & abroad!

Northern India & Pakistan: Salty Lassi

Restaurant: Dishdash Grill  null
Address: 181 Ranch Dr, Milpitas, CA 95035
Phone: 408.262.6949

I took my family to this Middle Eastern restaurant to celebrate my parents’ 33rd wedding anniversary, last June. Dishdash Grill had two different types of lassi on their menu- mango lassi, and salty (mint) lassi. It was the first time we’d heard about salty lassi! So yes, we had to order that! Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in India, Northern India, Pakistan

Japan: Corn Potage Ice Cream

Restaurant: Pablo  null
Address: 〒542-0085 大阪府大阪市中央区心斎橋筋2丁目8-1
Area: Shinsaibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka, Japan
Nearest Station: Shinsaibashi (心斎橋)

Japan is notorious for inventing weird food, some good and some bad.

My cousin said we couldn’t leave Japan without eating something weird, so she got each one of us a corn potage ice cream in a waffle cone at Pablo (a dessert chain found throughout Japan). Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Japan

Osaka: Yaki Gyoza

Restaurant: 大阪王将 (Osaka Ohsho)  null 
Address: 〒530-0017 大阪市中央区道頓堀1-6-13
Area: Dōtonbori, Chuo-ku, Osaka, Japan
Nearest Station: Namba (なんば), Nippombashi (日本橋)

I love gyoza! These dumplings were actually influenced by the Chinese, where they are more popularly known as potstickers. The main difference between potstickers and gyozas lie in the wrap; potsticker wrappers are thicker, while gyoza wraps are thinner and almost translucent. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Japan, Kansai, Osaka

Osaka: Negipon Takoyaki

Restaurant: 甲賀流 (Kougaryu)  null 
Address: 〒542-0086 大阪府大阪市 中央区西心斎橋2-18-4
Area: Amerikamura, Chuo-ku, Osaka, Japan
Nearest Station: Shinsaibashi (心斎橋), Yotsubashi (四ツ橋)

Osaka is famous for takoyaki. You can’t leave Osaka until you’ve tried it from the most popular takoyaki shop in Amerikamura (アメリカ村, translated as ‘American Village’), or Ame-mura for short. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Japan, Kansai, Osaka

Osaka: Torikara Stick

Restaurant: 金のとりから (Kinnotorikara)  
Address: 〒542-0076 大阪府大阪市中央区難波1丁目5-12
Area: Shinsaibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka, Japan
Nearest Station: Namba (難波), Shinsaibashi (心斎橋), Nippombashi (日本橋)

Shinsaibashi is a shopping district with several pedestrian-only streets. There are also food shops scattered throughout the area, selling various street foods, perfect for eating while walking around while shopping!

Kinnotorikara is a popular food stand known for their torikara stick, which is fried chicken breast eaten with a stick. There are three size options (single, double, or mega for ¥260, ¥500, or ¥1,050), and various spice/flavor toppings depending on the location (original, sweet chili, mayonnaise, lemon, rock salt, honey mustard, etc.). Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Japan, Kansai, Osaka

Nara: Kakinoha Sushi & Miwa Somen

Restaurant: ゐざさ (Izasa)  null 
Address: 〒630-8212 奈良県奈良市春日野町16
Area: Kasugano-cho, Nara-shi, Nara-ken, Japan
Nearest Station: Nara (奈良) & Kintetsu Nara (近鉄奈良)

After a few days in Kyoto, my sister and I met up with our cousins on a day trip at Nara. We only spent a few hours in Nara, before heading to Osaka.

Nara is famous for their deer park next to Todai-ji (Buddhist temple), where there is literally deer everywhere!! You can pet them, and buy deer crackers to feed them. Just be careful not to get head-butted by a deer!

We went to Izasa, a sushi restaurant in Yume-Kaza Plaza, just around the temple. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Japan, Kansai, Nara

Kyoto: Okonomiyaki

Restaurant: 壹銭洋食 (Issen Yosyoku)  null 
Address: 〒605-0073 京都府京都市 東山区祇園町北側 238
Area: Gion, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto-fu, Japan
Nearest Station: Gion-Shijo (祇園四条)

Issen Yosyoku (also spelled as ‘Issen Yoshoku’ elsewhere on the internets) is a shop in Gion that’s famous for their okonomiyaki. Their storefront can’t be missed; there’s a statue of a dog chasing after a boy and pulling down his pants! Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Japan, Kansai, Kyoto

Kyoto: Kaiseki-Ryori @ Kikunoi

Restaurant: 菊乃井 本店 (Kikunoi Honten)  null 
Address: 〒605-0825 京都市東山区下河原通八坂鳥居前下る下河原町459
Area: Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto-fu, Japan
Nearest Station: Gion-Shijo (祇園四条)

Kyoto has several Michelin awarded restaurants serving Kaseki cuisine, a meal (usually lunch or dinner) that has a set of dishes that are very elaborate and exquisite. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Japan, Kansai, Kyoto

Kyoto: Takoyaki @ Takotora (蛸虎)

Restaurant: 蛸虎 本店 (Takotora Honten) null 
Address: 〒606-8182 京都府京都市左京区一乗寺赤ノ宮町15-3
Area: Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto-fu, Japan
Nearest Station: Chayama (茶山), Ichijoji (一乗寺)

Since we ate lunch super late, we wanted something small for dinner. Several sites (like this one) reported that the best takoyaki in the Kansai region was in Kyoto, from Takotora.

Takotora has has three locations in Kyoto, with two locations were a bit far from a train station. The one in Sakyo-ku was a 30 min train ride from Gion, plus another 10 min by foot. Tokyo has many trains that cover the entire city; Kyoto (and the rest of Kansai) has fewer lines, so we found ourselves walking further from train stations than in Tokyo.

Takoyaki is a ball-shaped snack filled with a piece of octopus (tako) inside, that originated from the Kansai region. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Japan, Kansai, Kyoto