SHIROKANE-TAKANAWA: E-Jyo-Ban イジョバン Korean Restaurant....zzz...zzz...

Late night dinner in Shirokane-Takanawa (just one stop from Azabu Juban) and what better meal to warm us up during a very cold Tokyo night...

When you step inside the smell of Yakiniku is quite overwhelming... definitely not a date spot or a place you want to hit up first before heading out for drinks... unless u don't mind smellin like smokey beef.

Honestly... this was the highlight of the entire dinner... and its was free.  Yeah, those little dishes Korean restaurants provide you with but in this case it was just a single dish of seasoned bean sprouts.  Tasty tasty~.

Hot barley tea... hit the spot.

Special sauce for the ....

...1,300yen Potato-Chjimi... chopped up potatoes baked with flour about the size of my hand... hmm... hmm... 1,300yen... hmm.... I can buy a sack of potatoes for 130yen at the supermarket... hmm... 

Please goto 1:00min mark for a very nice "Sack of Potatoes" reference :)

Next came the 1,100yen Tofu-Chige Soup... fairly bland and very little soup... zzz...

At the end of the meal the waitress will offer Vanilla or Green Tea ice cream that's included with everyone's meal.  I have to say hands down the service from all the staff was excellent... smiles, friendly and prompt.

I can only assume that looking around most of the customers were enjoying Yakiniku so perhaps our choices and my review doesn't truly reflect how good this restaurant might be... it has a respectable foodie ranking of 3.40 on Tabelog so someone really enjoyed their meal... but unfortunately not me. 

Restaurant: E-Jyo-Ban - 李朝房 （イジョバン）

Nearest Station: Shirokane-Takanawa (Nanboku-Line, Mita-Line).

Foodie Blog: http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1316/A131602/13013221/

Gourmet GYAO: http://ggyao.usen.com/0002112982/

Address J: 東京都港区高輪1-1-11

Address E: Tokyo, Minato-ku, Takanawa 1-1-11
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NIHONBASHI MITSUKOSHI: Fortnum & Mason roast beef revisited!

Its 10:55am WTF!?!  So I have this Korean friend that said the only kind of TV shows in Japan are all about food... Cooking Drama's, Cooking Shows (SMAPxSMAP), programs featuring ramen rankings and of course the ever so popular nightly TV News spots that feature great little restaurants...

...anyways I gave up on this delicious looking Oedo-Tendon for 880yen...cause that line was ridiculous~... There were no salarymen in that line just a bunch of folks that watched the same TV show that featured this restaurant.

Anyways if you want to go here are the details.  I'll be back when things calm down.

http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1302/A130202/13118694/

So decided to walk across the street to Mitsukoshi for some...Roast Beefu!

Old dude chilling in front of the Xmas window displays...

Yeah, it was only 11:10am so the hordes of housewives and elderly couples had yet occupied the place.

Free water!  Saw little things floating in this...hmm...

When they hand the menu to you just put your hand up and say "Roast Beefu Lunchi Kudasai."  1,200yen plus 60yen tax and you get a coffee or tea with the meal.  I'd definitely get the dessert set for a +210yen.

There it is... Salad, 2 kinds of hot bread, whole bunch of green peas, potato fries, radish and beef!

For location details goto my previous entry!

http://tokyobelly.blogspot.com/2011/02/nihonbashi-mitsukoshi-fortnum-mason.html

YURAKUCHO: Shoku-An Shoten... Vending Machine Standing Beer spot!

I've walked by this tiny rather dirty standing vending machine bar area under the JR Yurakucho tracks many times during my time in Tokyo but was never really interested in standing outside with a vending machine beer in hand...

There are about 5 vending machines in this small space offering beers and non-alcoholic choices.

And there I was with my 240yen 500ml beer (vs Supermarket 160yen or Convini 205yen)... across the street were waves of Japanese salarymen and OL's heading to Yurakucho Station... 

There is a guy sitting in the back that offers small junk food type snacks...

At 9pm it was a pretty big salaryman crowd enjoying mostly One-Cup-Ozeki outside in the cold...  There were quite a few smokers so if you don't mind it or just need a quick one to kill time then its a easy and cheap way to have a beer.  

The bar actually neighbors the famous Andy's Izakaya ever so popular with the foreign crowd.

http://www.andysfish.com/Shin-Hinomoto

Shop: Shoku-An Shoten

Location: JR Yamanote Yurakucho (Below Tracks)

Foodie Website: http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1301/A130102/13120721/

Blog with pics: http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1301/A130102/13120721/

Address J: 東京都千代田区有楽町2-4-3

Address E: Tokyo, Chiyoda-ku, Yurakucho 2-4-3
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HIBARIGAOKA: #1 foodie ranked Ramen Jiro in TOKYO! Salty salty! Thirsty Thristy! But Friendly Friendly!

Got an invite to try out Tokyo's #1 foodie ranked Ramen Jiro in Hibarigaoka!!  Its so popular that if you Google "Hibarigaoka" it appears in the top 3 results~.

40 minutes and 300yen later I arrive at Hibarigaoka Station at an early 11:13am for my earliest ever Ramen lunch :)

We arrived at Jiro about 11:35am, walked inside and noticed 2 open seats side-by-side at the counter only seating... super lucky as they seat you as seat open up meaning you rarely get to sit next to friends.  If you go with friends the earlier the better so you can chat while slurpin'. 

Went for the least expensive 650yen "ramen"...  chips pops out of the dispenser and just set it on the counter.

There was red pepper and white pepper to help you out~... Friend recommended adding red spice to give you a second wind as you slowly get stuffed~...

And there it is!  This is the regular size ramen with 1/2 veggies and no-garlic.  It was way too early in the day for me to have the taste of freshly chopped garlic linger in my mouth for hours after the meal but if its your first time do ask for it!  1/2 size veggies because it such a huge mountain of a pile that takes me too much time to  get down to the delicious chewy noodles.

Hidden under my boiled bean sprouts was the super soft...

...PORK!  The pieces were much smaller than #2 Ranked Ramen Jiro in Jimbocho but just as tender.  And if you go with a girl then you'll surely get a nudge to help her finish some pork and noodles due to the volume.

Hours and Menu... click to expand. 

Overall another very filling Ramen Jiro lunch but does it deserve to be #1? Hmm... I think we came to the same conclusion that the soup was way too salty (shoyu based) and will leave you craving tea throughout the meal... If you want a truly amazing ramen experience then you need to go no further than Jimbocho Jiro!  BUTTT hands down the service was Excellent... Ramen chef threw out so many "welcome" and "thank you"'s that he displayed an unusual appreciation for people going out of their way to have his ramen... 

Shop: Ramen Jiro Hibarigaoka-Branch

Foodie Website: http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1328/A132801/13024745/

Address J: 東京都西東京市谷戸町3-27-24 ひばりがおかプラザ １Ｆ
Address E: Tokyo, Nishi-Tokyo, Ichitani Tomachi 3-27-24
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AKASAKA: Yakiniku Chon-Jin-Don for 600yen Tofu-Chige! Great Service!!

It was freezing today in Tokyo so I was soooo excited to hit up my favorite 500yen Lunch Samugetan set at Kudara!  Arrived at an early 11:28am and it was a full house... wait, doesn't this place open from 11:30am - 2pm?  Anyways seem they had a rush of salarymen all after the same dish... SOLD OUT~.  The kind owner patted me on the back and said sorry.  So I wandered around Akasaka and noticed 20 only servings of 600yen Tofu-Chige special... i'm there!

Waiter welcomed me with a smile and the cook was a very well dressed Korean lady who was all smiles.  I shared my table with a lady that walked in alone... 

Everything on the menu was around 980yen... but I was just there for the 600yen Tofu Chige.

There it is!  This was a very complete meal... nice serving of rice, salad, 3 kinds of Korean appetizers, kimchee and my Tofu-Chige soup.

They provide nice Korean hot barley tea... refills at the table.

Had 4 small clams in my chige... 

Check in Korean~...

There are so many Korean restaurants offering Chige in Akasaka but very few with such a low 600yen price point.  I would definitely recommend this spot... clean, friendly, tasty and so reasonable.  Oh the foodie ranking is an extremely low 2.93pts but just go for the Tofu-Chige on your visit~.

Shop: Yakiniku Chon-Jin-Don

Hotpepper.jp: http://www.hotpepper.jp/strJ000796347/

Foodie Website: http://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1308/A130802/13027624/

Address J: 東京都港区赤坂2‐13‐17

Address E: Tokyo, Minato-ku, Akasaka 2-13-17
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