Dancing Robot Waiters

I was scanning thru my feeds this morning (I’m woefully behind on lots of them) and saw this from DVICE. It’s about a Japanese restaurant in Thailand called Hajime where the food is served by four robots that resemble Japanese Samurai. The robots travel along a track and bring food to your table that you cook Shabu Shabu style. They even dance for you if they’re not too busy.

Check out the original story at DVICE, and check out this video of Hajime on YouTube.

Back to Luang Prabang—via EatingAsia

Ok. I think EatingAsia is trying really really hard to make me homesick. They have been blogging about food from northern Thailand and I can’t get enough of it! The photographer, David Hagerman, is amazing, and so is Robyn Eckhardt who does all the writing on the blog.

From EatingAsia.com…

Two days days ago we flew from Chiang Mai to Luang Prabang. We were last here in 1995. As might be expected, things have changed.

Perhaps the biggest shock is the town at daybreak. Almost without exception, in Asia rising before dawn has guaranteed us peaceful near-empty streets. Not so here. By 6:30am Luang Prabang is buzzing with tourists, alone and in guided groups, many toting cameras and stalking alms-collecting monks like hunters in a wild game park. Not a pretty sight.

But the small morning market in the center of town is much as we remembered it: gaggles of shoppers-with-a-purpose choosing from such a plethora of fresh ingredients that it makes me ache for a local kitchen to call my own. Happily, for the kitchen-less among us there are also plenty of tempting foods to eat on the spot.

Read the rest of the story at EatingAsia.com

In the Most Unexpected Places—via EatingAsia

One of my favorite dishes from Thailand is “Khao Soi”. It just so happens that The EatingAsia team are traveling through Chaing Mai (A major city in the north of Thailand). They really captured the dish with photos and words. I’d like to thank them now that they made me hungry.

From EatingAsia.com…

…We stopped here nine days ago on the way out of town with friends. The taxi driver turned off an ugly stretch of road at an unattractive yellowish concrete building into a vast, dusty parking lot. We got out of the car, squinted in the sun. Our friend pointed and there it was, as if conjured out of nothing — a squat little wooden restaurant hunkered in a patch of greenery beside a trickle of a klong.

It’s a pleasant place to while away an hour or so. The decor is classic Thai country-casual: open-air, lots of timber, bench and stool seating around family- sized wooden tables. Across the street, a sundries store but not much else. A little oasis of deliciousness in an unlikely location — but on a Sunday around noon nearly every table was occupied.

See more at EatingAsia.com

Eating Out: Austin – Kolaches Edition

I knew that Texas has a rich, intertwined, German tradition whose influence can be seen culinary through sausages and even country fried steak.  What I didn’t know was that there is also a Czech contingency who also influenced the culinary landscape in the lonestar state.

The biggest influence can be seen in the popularity of kolaches, a Czech baked treat, both sweet and savory.  When it comes to breakfast, Austinites like breakfast tacos (another future post) and kolaches.  There’s nothing  like a warm, cream cheese or fruit topped pastry and a cup of coffee.  Want something more savory?  How about a croissant rolled with a juicy sausage, locally-produced and oh so delish?

Oddly enough, central Texas seems to a hot spot for these Czech treats.  In fact, Burleson County, a Czech settlement years ago, holds an annual kolache festival in the Fall season.

Kolaches are a great alternative to your average fast food choices.  They are portable, fresh, sweet and savory, incredibly afforable (most are less than $1.50 each), and a great pick-me-up for your morning rush.

When I moved here, I realized there was an absence of Dunkin’ Donuts and Krispy Cremes.  The reason is simple.  Austin is a haven for local businesses.  Small bakeries have the chance to flourish and feed hungry Austinites delicious kolaches.

Here are some favorite places of mine:

Kolache Shoppe – a small bakery shop in North Austin.  It’s one of those small, local businesses with  that charm of a mom and pop shop.

www.kolacheshop.com

Kolache Factory – a small franchise that is mainly in Texas.  May not be local but still a good choice if you want to get yourself a delish kolache.

www.kolachefactory.com

What Should I Get? – Vending Machine Edition via Top Cultured

Ah yes another in the excellent series of What Should I eat flowcharts. I saw this on Eating the Road today, and it made me think about vending machines. While I eat from them often (there is a bank of them I have to pass every time I leave or return to my office), I never really thought much about them until I went to Japan and they were everywhere. Mostly drink machines… they were on every corner. Serving up sodas, waters, teas, fruit juices… they were so damn convenient. There was even on on the top of Mount Misen, some 1700 feet above sea level! Seriously who wants to be the guy who has to haul the drinks up the mountain to refill that thing?

So without further ado… the flow chart. Via Top Cultured

Ice Cream Sundae on a Hot Dog Bun in Thailand—via Serious Eats

When I saw this post on Serious Eats, it brought back lots of memories. It’s been 2 years since I visited home. As a kid, I used to go with my mom to shop at the farmer’s market and one of the things we used to do is to get coconut ice cream, serve exactly like what Lee Zallben described on his post below. I think I need to dig out my coconut ice cream recipe and start making some.

The ice cream on the hotdog buns may sound odd to westerners but it is very good. You should at least try it before you decide if it is in fact a bad combination. Plus, with all the extra condiments they add to it makes it even more interesting…I guess you can called it a “Thai Coconut Ice Cream Sundae”

Original Post by Lee Zalben

“A nice take on a portable sundae, minus the paper or plastic cup.”

Extra peanuts please, and don’t forget the sweetened milk!

Read more on SeriousEats.com

What Should I Eat – Candy Edition

Well the folks over at Eating the Road have come out with yet another hilarious flow chart telling us what we should eat. This time it’s a wonderful flow chart for Candy! This one is HUGE! I do like that if you’re in Japan you should just get right to the Green Tea Kit Kat! It’s one of personal favorites and Kit Kats are huge in Japan they come in some amazing flavors! Do you see your favorite?

Where should I eat? Chain Restaurant Edition

(via http://eatingtheroad.wordpress.com/)

As a follow up to Chuti’s post about the Where Should I Eat – Fast Food flow chart (link), the Eating Road put a new flow chart, this one for Chain Restaurants. Every bit as funny as the last!

Where should you eat?

(via http://eatingtheroad.wordpress.com/)

I found this Flowchart today and I though I would share it with you. It should help you decide what to eat as far as fast food goes.

Sushizanmai – Tsukiji Market

My last food adventure of note in Japan was a trip to the famous Tsukiji market. The Tsukiji fish market is where all the fish caught the day before is auctioned, sold and processed. It’s supposed to be an amazing sight but alas tourists are no longer allowed. Our goal however was to explore the outer market. The market is not only a huge selection of stalls selling fresh fish, vegetables, fruits and wares but also of restaurants selling fish that is amazingly fresh, as it was just caught the day before and bought that morning. This was our goal, to eat at one of these restaurants and hopefully have a life changing sushi experience. Did we succeed? Read on.

My guide book said that one of the best places to eat was at a restaurant called Sushizanmai, however it cautioned to stay away as it was incredibly busy most days. With this warning, we didn’t even think about it until we were suddenly standing in front of it as if it was destiny. We had a quick peek inside and confirmed with the baker on the street (who had a radio to check on how long the wait was) that the restaurant was relatively empty. We took a peek a the menu, a giant picture board on the front of the restaurant (like most Japanese restaurants) and chose our adventures. We were taken upstairs and sat facing the sushi bar and ordered our plates. I chose the all tuna plate while my friends both chose the assorted fish plates. What struck me was how unbelievably inexpensive the sushi was. My tuna plate consisted of 8 pieces of nigiri, two maki and a hand roll all for 1480¥ (about $16.30). I was quite pleased with my plate:

as were my friends:

I started in on my nigiri. I picked up my first piece of tuna, dipped it in my soy sauce and put it in my mouth. I can honestly say that it was the most amazing piece of fish I’d ever eaten. The flavor was so perfect, the texture was just right and it just set my taste buds ablaze! Until… I hit the wasabi under the tuna! At that point my sinuses were ablaze. I had no idea that they’d put the wasabi (the freshest I’ve ever had) under the fish! Each piece of tuna I ate was better than the last. I’d never had spicy tuna rolls quite so spicy or so tasty. The hand roll was a huge slice of tuna wrapped with rice and nori. You think it’d be plain and boring but it was the most amazing hand roll I’d ever had. I was also lucky enough to trade a piece of tuna nigiri for a amai ebi nigiri (sweet shrimp)… absolutely the best shrimp I’d ever eaten. I can’t being to describe how fresh and wonderful the meal was. Just as I was sitting back to contemplate just how wonderful the food was, my friends suggested we try otoro (fatty belly tuna) and raw whale! The whale was delicious and delicate, almost like a raw bacon. I’m not sure if it was cured or not but it was so good.

Next came the otoro.

I don’t think being a non foodie I have the words to detail just how delicate the flavor of the tuna was. Add to that, due to the high fat content of the belly, the tuna seemed to melt in you mouth like it was butter. I think it may have even been more tender and buttery than the Kobe beef I had eaten just two days ago. This was the best sushi meal of my life!

If you are ever in Tokyo, be sure to get to Tsukiji and try the sushi at Sushizanmai!!!