foodie-land!

This city is a foodie's PARADISE! I had the most amazing day yesterday exploring (and being overwhelmed by) two places: Tokyu Hands and Tokyu Food Show. Naturally, I'll start with the food. I'm not sure how much I've gone on (and on and on) about the food here - at least to you. Steve hears about it all the time, and hopefully soon he can see for himself. A few days ago I came home after having discovered what I thought was Tokyu Food Show but was only a small portion of it - the bakery section. Was I in baked-goodness heaven or what?! It was truly amazing. Rows and shops displaying most perfectly, most delectably, breads of every kind and shape (nut bread, raisin bread, raisin nut bread, cranberry-blueberry bread, pumpernickel, sourdough, whole grain, whole wheat, brioche, baguettes, olive bread, olive baguettes - mouthwatering, no?), pastries of every size with fillings galore (nuts, fruits, chocolate, custards), muffins, scones (green tea, avocado, raisin, cheese), cookies, donuts (cinnamon, frosted, sugared, dipped, iced) cakes, tortes, croissants, cheese buns, meat buns, sugar buns - need I say any more? It was like I'd died and gone to glutton-goodie heaven. Also in this section of foodie-land is prepared sushi and bento boxes, curries and rice bowls, salad stands and delicatessens, gyoza shops and tempura shops, there are gelato and smoothies and juice stands, a tea store, coffee shops and more. QUITE overwhelming. So anyways, yesterday I discovered that this is but a part of the land - there was much, much more. I went south through the vegetables, passing liquor and wine and beers of every kind on my left, and found myself in sushi-fish-seafood heaven. Imagine every kind of sushi or fish you'd ever want to eat (and some that you might pass up), in one place, but in many different forms. As far as sushi goes, you could buy it with rice, without rice, sashimi style (in small, medium or large packs), in huge long cut-up-yourself chunks or diced and sliced and ready to be rolled. The same options (more or less) applied to octopus and squid, though I wasn't too sure where the eat-it-raw section ended and the cook-it-up section began. It was all just so yummy looking. And then there were rows and rows of groceries - there was everything: three or four (at least) kinds of maple syrup, spices and baking ingredients galore, cookies and pastas and sauces and cheeses and meats from the world over - and this isn't even the city's biggest Food Show (I don't think). As a matter of fact, most (or all? I'm not sure) department stores have this kind of smorgasbord of ridiculously amazing foodstuffs - in their basements. I can tell you one thing - this is going to be a year of good eats!!!

These pics are from but one of the bakeries...


Cakes or tarts anyone?

Someone was giving away samples of this BLUEBERRY goop (sp?) from Oregon - the jars were going for 990 yen - almost $12! I may have to sneak-export some of this stuff from my parent's freezer and sell it... sooooo yummy!

sushi sushi and more sushi...

Sigh. Okay, next. Tokyu Hands ("your creative life store") was absolutely, unbelievably amazing. I googled craft and paper stores and came across a website that gave a general run-down of Tokyo shopping - a where-to-go-to-get-what kind of a thing - and decided to start with this branch of Tokyu department stores. I spent three hours in this seven-story mega-store, oggling at all of the amazing goods; some of the floors I may have spent more time on include Stationary Goods, Quality Stationary, Furniture and Lights, Beauty and Health Care, Games/Party and Variety Goods, Kitchen Supplies (all the gizmos and gadgets ever created live here), Art and Design and Crafts and Science. I know this is more than seven floors - each level is broken up into three parts... ooooh yes. Again, I had to exert self-control to walk away with just one bag of stuff (I bought a few things for crafts and cards and writing, a travel mug and a few gifts). And so, I made it to two of my four stops yesterday afternoon (I also wanted to check out Loft, another department store's version of Tokyu Hands, Seibu - a famous department store, and Tower Records) before heading to a volunteer meeting for next week's Run For the Cure Pink Ball. This city is truly never-ending and amazing, and I've only seen the tip of the iceberg...

Each floor in Tokyu Hands had a "Hint Pit" - not sure what hint you were supposed to take but I assume that this is where the tired male shoppers congregate until the female shoppers take the hint...