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November 22, 2024
 

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Robbie Swinnerton
Robbie Swinnerton has been living, eating and writing about food in Tokyo for over 30 years. His column, Tokyo Food File, has run in The Japan Times since 1998.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 8, 2015
It's a mad, MAD world for committed chefs
Most chefs prefer to let their food do the talking. If they have anything else to say, it goes into a cookbook. But for Rene Redzepi there is far too much to be discussed — above and beyond the brilliant, inventive dishes he serves at his restaurant, Noma, in Copenhagen and (temporarily) in Tokyo....
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 8, 2015
Noma sets the table for a feast in Tokyo
As the clock inches toward midday on Jan. 9, the eyes and attention of gourmets around the world will be focused on Tokyo. The reason: The curtain is rising on one of the most hotly anticipated restaurant openings ever.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Jan 6, 2015
Ringing in the new year with some old favorites
What better way to start the New Year than by looking back? After all, how can we move ahead if we don't know the past? Here are five classic Tokyo ryoriya (restaurants) where tradition rules and the roots of today's food culture live on.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Dec 16, 2014
Pirouette, Craft Beer Market and more: some great new openings in Tokyo in 2014
The festive season is upon us, and 2015 beckons. But before we move on, herded into the Year of the Sheep, it's time to pause, celebrate and give thanks for the abundance of fine eating over the past 12 months.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Dec 2, 2014
Heinz Beck brings his Michelin-star flavors to Tokyo
Just in time for the festive season, Tokyo has been given a timely infusion of fine dining. And it has everything going for it: plush designer decor, one of the best locations in the city center (overlooking the Imperial Palace moat) and modern Italian cuisine from one of Europe's top chefs.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Dec 2, 2014
Ramen makes progress at Gonokami Suisan
Change comes in subtle increments in the ramen world, rarely in sudden leaps. That's why it was exciting to discover Gonokami Suisan and its hip, young crew earlier this year in the backstreets north of Kanda Station. Last December when it opened, lines formed around the block to sample the trademark...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Nov 18, 2014
Toyoken: Narisawa's take on 'yoshoku' cuisine
Curry-rice, menchi-katsu cutlet, kani (crab) cream croquette, and kaki (oyster) fry... Dinner at Toyoken reads like a roll call of retro comfort food from a long-passed era — but with one big difference.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Nov 18, 2014
Lizarran: Spanish 'pinchos' means a new taste with every bite
Sometimes you just want a snack, a light bite, a nibble with a glass of something red or white. Nowhere has that figured out better than Spain, with its tapas culture. And nobody in Spain does it with more elan than the Basques, with their variation known as pinchos. That's the kind they serve at Lizarran....
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Nov 4, 2014
Kanda Yabu Soba: Renowned soba restaurant reborn from the flames
Slurping and celebration: Those were the sounds emanating from Tokyo's historic Awajicho district late last month. The reason: Kanda Yabu Soba has risen from the ashes (literally) and is back open for business.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Nov 4, 2014
Nakamura Shokudo: Eclectic izakaya dining in Akasaka
If you're after sushi, tempura or yakitori, you head for a specialist restaurant. The same goes for eel, tonkatsu pork or wagyū beef. But what if you'd rather mix it up at dinnertime with a more eclectic selection of foods? No problem. Just head to a good izakaya.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Oct 14, 2014
Suzuran: A favorite ramen shop relocates and evolves
Suzuran has moved. After over a decade building up a large and loyal following, Shibuya's classiest ramen shop has shuttered its old wood-clad premises behind the police station and found itself a smart new home — down the road in Ebisu.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Oct 14, 2014
Ginza Maru: Kaiseki courses that won't break the bank
Sitting down to a kaiseki dinner is rarely a casual decision, least of all in Ginza. Like going to kabuki or shopping for pearls at Mikimoto, you need to budget time and cash for a multi-course meal of traditional cuisine in the glittering heart of Tokyo.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Sep 30, 2014
Malins: authentic fish and chips day and night in Roppongi
Fish and chips: The United Kingdom's best-known food is no stranger to Tokyo. You can find it at almost every Irish, Scottish and English pub in the city. Many versions are worthy. Some are good. But very few do it right. Not like they do it at Malins.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Sep 30, 2014
Pizza Slice: New York-style pie served one piece at a time
No prizes for guessing the specialty at Pizza Slice, or the way that it's sold. What does come as a surprise — especially when you've just schlepped it down to one of the remotest corners of Shibuya — is just what a big, bright, stylish, happening place it is.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Sep 16, 2014
Pignon: Bistro dining by different rules
Guacamole and merguez sausages on the menu, salsa and bossa nova on the sound system and not a check tablecloth in sight: Pignon is a far cry from the average bistro. But then again, owner-chef Rimpei Yoshikawa is anything but a typical Tokyo French chef.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Sep 16, 2014
Afuri: Classic noodles with a twist of citrus
Can it really be 10 years since the original Afuri opened, bringing its trademark yuzu ramen, stylish black uniforms and hip, post-industrial decor to the backstreets of Ebisu? A decade on, the lines outside are still just as long. But the good news is there are now half a dozen other branches around...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Sep 2, 2014
Toriki: Yakitori made with care but no frills
Yakitori is comfort food. No matter how high-end or low-rent the location, it's all about the simple pleasures of chewing on grilled chicken and kicking back with a drink or a few. That's the tried-and-true formula at Toriki.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Sep 2, 2014
Faro Slow Time: Take your time over the food, not the line
The distinctive orange-clad Shiseido Building in Ginza is more than just a showroom for the company's cosmetics: Its swish 10th-floor restaurant, Faro, serves some of the best Italian food in the area. It's also one of the most popular, meaning tables are booked up well in advance.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Aug 19, 2014
Nanakura: A lighter take on udon noodles
Is it possible to become a noodle addict? Technically no, but at this time of year it's not hard to build up a fierce dependence on food that is light, quick and easy on the digestion. And it always pays to know where to find a good fix. Around Shinbashi, it's hard to do better than Nanakura.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Aug 19, 2014
Bakka: Neapolitan-style pizza al fresco in the heart of Shibuya
Al fresco pizza and beer. It doesn't get much better than this in the middle of Shibuya. Who cares if your seat is a hard, narrow trestle, the view is an inner-city abandoned lot and the pies are served on flimsy paper plates from the back of a converted delivery van? You don't come to Bakka for home...
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Russia fired experimental ballistic missile at Ukraine, Putin says
Ukrainian firefighters work on a spot following an airstrike in Dnipro on Thursday.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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