Sushi & Small Dishes at Sanraku (Metreon Location), San Francisco USA

I just revisited Sanraku for their lunch. Other than sushi, I tried many other appetizers and seasonal dishes this time. I have a few favorites that I can't wait to share with you!

ZenPop Japanese Ramen Pack (October 2019) REVIEW

***$3 OFF AND GIVEAWAY***
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For the longest time, I finally get to try another all-ramen box! I am beyond exciting to taste every single one of these cup noodles! Thanks to ZenPop, I actually found two of the favorite cup noodle of all times! Let's start with the review:

ZenPop Japanese Ramen + Sweets Mix Pack (October 2019) REVIEW

***$3 OFF AND GIVEAWAY***
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Use coupon code: JFOODIE

What I love about ZenPop Japanese Ramen + Sweets Mix Pack is the variety of ramen and snacks I get! There are too many types of snacks and cup noodle out there and sometimes I just don't want to hand-pick them myself. (Physically at a market or online shop) By getting a ZenPop mix pack, I get a cute box sent to my doorstep and it often brings great surprises! 

Sushi Omakase at Sanraku (Sutter Street Location), San Francisco USA

At Sanraku, you can explore both Japanese small dishes and nigiri as well as their American styled sushi rolls. I was surprised by how much I loved their appetizers, which reminds me of the flavors I had in Japan. Besides their delicious nigiri sushi, I highly recommend their seafood Chawanmushi! 

KOKORO Monthly Nourishing Essentials CARES PACKAGE (MAY 2019) REVIEW

I really miss the authentic flavor of Japan! This is why I am very excited to try out Kokoro's Nourishing Essentials Cares Package, which comes with 5 different types of essentials: snack, seasoning, beverage, sauce, and noodle! It's almost the end of the Spring season, so I take this chance to take photographs at my garden under the warm sun. *\ ^0^ /*

Soba at Soba Ichi, Oakland (San Francisco Bay Area) USA

Cold Soba (Seiro - Regular Size) with dipping sauce, pickles, and condiments

Soba Ichi is a restaurant specialized in Japanese soba (buckwheat) noodles. Their soba is freshly prepared every day from scratch. They are one of the Bay Area restaurants with Michelin-awarded Bib Gourmand status in the year 2019. Since they are the only soba specialty restaurant in the area, make sure to make a reservation one day in advance! 

Premium Matcha from JAPANESE GREEN TEA COMPANY

*** 10% OFF ***

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Use code: JFOODIE

Matcha 抹茶 (Green tea powder) is such a healthy drink, and I am so glad it is back to my diet recently. This time I am trying a brand from Japanese Green Tea Company, who sources their tea directly from Arahataen Green Tea Farms in the Shizuoka prefecture, Japan. This is a premium Matcha that I really enjoy, don't forget to use my coupon code JFOODIE if you are planning to give it a try!

Sushi Omakase at Sanraku (Metreon Location), San Francisco USA

Omakase Set

This week, I visited Sanraku (Metreon location) for their omakase dinner. Sanraku is a great casual spot with lots of Japanese food choices such as sushi, Japanese small bites and appetizers, rice bowls, udon, soba, curry, tempura, etc. Although sushi was best to be eaten almost right away after sushi chef hand it to your plate, I actually really enjoyed their sushi omakase in one large wooden platter as well. Now let's check out what my Omakase dinner look like...

Ryokan Experience at Miyamasou 美山荘, Kyoto JAPAN

In Winter 2016, it was my first time experiencing a Ryokan 旅館 or traditional Japanese inn. Miyamasou 美山荘 was not only famous for their unique Kyoto mountain lodging, their restaurant was also highly recognized and was already awarded with 2 Michelin stars at the time.

Cream Anmitsu, Age-Manju (Fried Mochi Dough), Tokoroten (Seaweed Jelly Noodle in Cold Sauce) at Takemura 竹むら, Tokyo JAPAN

Takemura 竹むら is a traditional Japanese dessert shop located near the historical landmark, Old Manseibashi Station. The specialty of this sweet shop is "Manju-Age", which is a fried mochi dough with azuki red bean paste inside! I also highly recommend traditional Japanese sweets because they contain only vegan ingredients: tea, fruits, agar jelly, soy sauce, mochi, azuki red bean paste, pea, etc.

Japanese Pancakes (Hot Cakesホットケーキ) at Pinocchio/Pinokioピノキオ, Tokyo JAPAN

Japanese Pancakes (Hot Cakesホットケーキ)

Owner Making Pancakes on an old style flat griddle!

Personally, I am not into pancakes (American pancakes), and I thought I will never be a fan of pancake. What really changed my view on pancakes is this small shop in Tokyo called Pinocchio/Pinokioピノキオ(Itabashi area). Their thick, fluffy pancakes are extraordinary! From the process of making the pancake, its beautiful color , delicious and crispy & spongy texture, I can't believe I fell in love!

** Modern Creative Kaiseki at DEN傳, Tokyo JAPAN

Chef Zaiyu Hasegawa with Black Cod Rice!

GarDEN salad with 20+ vegetable variety

While listed on "The World's 50 Best Restaurants" for a few years already, DEN傳 also just received their second Michelin star in November 2017. Thanks to Cityfoodsters's recommendation, I finally get to try DEN in Tokyo! Unlike many other upscale restaurants, DEN gave me a really heart-warming feeling from when I first stepped into the restaurant. The meal at DEN is like omakase, all depends on the chef. Here, I got 8 courses and 2 desserts, and they are all really impressive and fun by owner and chef Zaiyu Hasegawa!

ESIAN BOX BY ESIAN MALL | REVIEW

Esian Snack Box by Esian Mall

$5 OFF DISCOUNT 

Esian Box is a snack box by Esian Mall, who is a monthly subscription box service that offers snacks, beauty products, and unique items for gamer, geek, anime, or movie fans. From this box, I got an umbrella with design of Harley Quinn (a fictional character from Batman) on it. Other than Japanese snack, there's also a South Korean instant noodle pack, some Chinese bean curd snacks and seaweed soup. I feel like this snack box is guiding me to try variety of things!

And how do they know if you are getting something you might like? Each snack box is customized based on the type of flavor and snack you prefer, as well as the type of entertainment you enjoy the most: comic, movie, anime, cartoon, Disney, etc...

Shoyu Ramen, Tori Paitan, & Karaage at Touhichi らぁ麺 とうひちKyoto, JAPAN

Shoyu Ramen

Karaage (Fried Chicken)

While browsing Google Map in Kyoto, I found a very high rated ramen shop far away from the city center. Before the shop opened for dinner, a line is already formed at shop front. Everything I ordered here are undoubtedly really good! Plus, I found one of the best karaage I've ever had!

SNACKOO (LOVE BOX) REVIEW

Snackoo Love Box 

Kobe Pudding

"Love Box" is consisted of Snackoo team's favorite snacks of the month, including lots of sample-sized snacks! Snackoo is a snack company based in Hayward (North California) who focuses to bring a wide selection of snacks from Asian countries. The most interesting snack in this box is the "Kobe Pudding," which is this adorable Japanese caramel custard pudding you see all the time! This is the first time I am having a non-refrigerated packaged pudding! ^ 0 ^

*Don't forget to get an extra $10 off at Snackoo.com at HERE!

MATCHA WELLNESS Organic Matcha Green Tea Powder | REVIEW

Organic Matcha Green Tea Powder (Ceremonial) & Organic Matcha Green Tea Powder (Superior Culinary) 

*20% OFF CODE: 5E3J2VJC

As many of you already know, Matcha 抹茶 is Japanese green tea powder. It has so many health benefits and it is very easy to make at home. That's why I love Matcha a lot! I recently tried a brand called Matcha Wellness. I have both the Organic Matcha Green Tea Powder, Ceremonial type and Superior Culinary type. Let's see how they turn out! 

Hakata Ramen at Marufuku Ramen in San Francisco, Northern California

Hakata skinny ramen noodle, a style of ramen originated from the ward of Hakata, Fukuoka Province of Japan

Marufuku Ramen just opened 4 months ago, and it's been pretty popular since its grand opening inside San Francisco Japantown. They specialized in Hakata-style ramen, which is a Tonkotsu (pork bone soup) based ramen. Its noodle is rather skinny and whiter than the typical ramen noodles you see. Overall, this ramen spot is not bad if you want a slight taste of Japanese ramen. I would say they are trying to make it as authentic as they can with the ingredients available in the Bay Area. So if you are a Tonkotsu fan, don't forget to try out Marufuku! (See menu at the bottom of this post)

Shoyu, Shio, and Spicy Ramen at Shiba Ramen, Oakland (Northern California) USA

Clear Dark aka Shoyu Ramen

Shiba Ramen opened their second location in Oakland Downtown. I am so glad they finally can serve their ramen at an actual restaurant now. They still have their original shop inside "Emeryville public market," which is a food court that really limits their potential to serve pipping hot ramen. Anyway, I tried three ramen at the new location: Spicy, Clear (Shio), and Clear Dark (aka Shoyu Ramen). Out of all, I highly recommend Clear Dark, which its soup shows the strongest depth in flavor.

BBQ Pork Fried Rice (チャーシュー チャーハン Chashu Chahan) + Video | RECIPE

BBQ Pork Fried Rice (チャーシュー チャーハン Chashu Chahan)  is a delicious Chinese dish that is also very popular in Japan. With the aroma of sesame seeds, minced garlic, and green onions (scallions), it brings a new life to your overnight cooked rice within 5-10 minutes of cooking time! BBQ Pork is a great choice in fried rice, but feel free to use ham, chicken, or shrimp. (Read TIPS below)

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🥕 Ingredients List (Servings: 1-2)

GIVEAWAY: Win a super cool 3-in-1 Japanese Griddle Set! [Ended on 6/5/2017]

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