New look for Fried Sashimi...

Well after living amongst the Japanese for the last 10 months, I thought a more nationalistic look for this blog was in order.

I say bring back the rising sun! Bring meaning back to the red dot. What is a sun with out it's rays, it's like a bat without guano or a cow without an udder.

Sure some old timers might see the rising sun as a symbol of imperialistic Japan, others see it as a sign of tyranny and oppression... but hey, they lost the war, so it's time to cast aside old thinking and bring back a great piece of design!

Well, at least till I get tired of looking at it on my blog...

The big FOUR-O...

... came and went as quickly as summer!

Strange, last week we we're basking in 30 degree weather, since saturday, the temperature has struggled to climb above 20 degrees. In fact today is a chilly 18 and raining. I do like the cool weather, but it's a bit of a shock on the old system when it swings 12 degrees in a day.

Otherwise it's been another non-eventful week in Tokyo. Birthday celebrations were kept simple and sweet, a nice dinner at one of our favourite places and a simple cake and pressie ceremony back home.

I remember the days when birthdays meant drinking the night away till you can't stand up, let alone talk... those days seem so far away now.

Meguro houses...

Ahh, two quaint little houses in a quiet suburb in Meguro. Nothing particularly strange, but wait...

Why the hell is there a door on the second floor?

Smart-assed kid...

Sometimes I look at my six year old and think, she's still a little baby and sometimes you realize how fast they grow up. Coming back from school, a couple of days ago, Nicole was talking to her mother:

'Mum, you know my school starts in the morning and ends in the afternoon.'
Yes dear.

'Mum, I learn a lot at school.'
That's good dear.

'Learning new stuff is great.'
Yes, dear.

'But mum, learning new stuff is tiring.'
I know dear.

'Dad goes to work everyday too.'
Yes dear.

'When he comes home he's tired too.'
Yes.

'Then he gets to rest and relax.'
He deserves it. (I'm assuming my wife said this)

'He doesn't do any work at home.'
No dear.

'So why do I have to do homework and study for another hour after I come home from school?'
...

Shit...

...the big FOUR-O beckons. Half-time for most humans, but hey, 40 is the new 30 according to the optimistic. Looks like it'll be a nice quiet non-event here in Tokyo. When your age starts with a 4 and is followed by another digit, I see no reason to shout about it. Hopefully the next decade will be as eventful as this past one.

Dinner with the motley crew...

Trust Adrian to try and squeeze 13 people onto a table made for 10 at Beng Hiang, a chinese restaurant on Amoy street, but give credit where credit is due, the food was excellent so one out of two ain't so bad.


It was a really quick trip back to the Spore, with work getting in the way of everything else, I spent most of the trip either in the office or the hotel room. Still it was good to get out on a saturday night and dinner with my friends. Again my apologies to all I didn't get to catchup with, we should be back this Christmas!

Well, it's back to the grind in Tokyo, but feeling a little more recharged having tucked away a couple of helpings of bak chor mee... with extra chilli!

Quick trip home!

Looks like I'll be back in Singapore next week the 11th, I have a regional meeting to attend, unfortunately it's over the weekend and my stay will be short, but... at least I'm heading home!

My apologies to those I won't see on this quick trip, but let's catchup during the Christmas break!

Bak Chor mee, bak chor mee....

Singapore Seafood Republic

Our itch for an authentic Singaporean meal has so far gone unsatiated, having been disappointed several times with costly meals at mediocre Singaporean restaurants in Ebisu and Shiodome. Deciding that the Singapore Seafood Republic was our last, best hope, we finally decided to give it a shot. So, with reservations made, we arrived promptly at 7.00pm on a wet Sunday evening, with no expectations... as it turned out, the food wasn't half-bad!

Housed in a faux British/colonial building and lit with loud neon signs, adding to it's authenticity, the badly named Singapore Seafood Republic beckoned...

After a quick glance at the menu, I had to take a quick glance into my wallet to see if I had enough cash for this meal. I'm sure the Singaporean owners are gleefully rubbing their hands nightly...

Not a good start, several small prawns and 6 tiny 'you tiaos', surprisingly authentic, but really, how bad could it have been... by the way, that's 1000 yen for the small plate of 'you tiaos'... you can almost hear the rubbing of hands.

Hmmm, much better. The main course, a large (the Japanese definition of 'large') chili crab, not quite spicy enough and a little nutty, but close enough to the real deal.

The spread, chili crab, a small steamed crab for Nicole, a sample portion of sambal beef and a tiny dollop of 'kang kong'... I swear, that hand-rubbing sound is getting louder.

Finished off with a small plate of fried seafood noodles.

Just under 19,000 yen to scratch an itch, expensive? yes... but I would say (damn, I must be living here too long), it was worth it.

Rainbow bridge, Odaiba

Rumored to be the safest place in Tokyo... I wonder why?

Pure evil in a bowl...

Now I like spicy food, I put tabasco on everything, heck, I can even drink the stuff. So when my colleague (who knows I love spicy food) suggested a bowl of hot, spicy japanese ramen, I figured how hot could it be...

Forever the skeptic, I ordered the hottest bowl of ramen the restaurant had to offer, a 10 on their 'flame' scale.

This is the meanest, hottest, most evil bowl of noodles I have ever had in my life. One hour after the meal, I am still sweating, my nerves are shot and there's a rumble beginning to develop in my stomach.

Those of you who do manage to visit Tokyo, I will bring you to this noodle shop in Meguro and there you can all taste a little bit of hell in a bowl... excuse me the bog beckons.