Tokyo Food Affair Part 1

I can never put into words how much I love Japanese food. That's why during my trip to Tokyo, I made sure to eat a lot of food! Be it savory meals or snacks. 

On my first day, Ali and I went to Harajuku and she treated me to crepe! We both got the custard strawberry cream crepe (JPY480)!

You eat it with a tiny spoon, apparently. Glad to have Ali with me. Otherwise, I would have eaten it like an ice cream... which is going to be so messy haha. The custard was sweet and I was actually expecting the strawberries to be sour but they were good enough. The whipped cream wasn't really sweet but it was great because overall, the crepe just had the right amount of sweetness.

Ali and I just shared this takoyaki for dinner (JPY500 for eight pieces) because we were still full from the crepe. Eating REAL takoyaki was an awesome experience. I actually miss takoyaki a lot.

Breakfast whenever I'm in a hurry (well, not that I ever got late there): ONIGIRI. MY FAVORITE even in Taiwan, remember? Knowing hiragana and katakana is really helpful. Unlike in Taiwan, I always had to guess what's the filling of the onigiri because I cannot read the label at all. In Japan, at least, I can read and understand the label sometimes.

Typical lunch during the conference: consomme (soup), curry rice (I SUPER LOVE JAPANESE CURRY), tonkatsu, korokke (croquette), thin pizza, potato wedges, lettuce and fried pork or chicken and fruit cocktail. It was still best to eat with chopsticks. Eating with spoon and fork was messy. Also, needless to say, with this amount of food during lunch, I don't get hungry until sundown.

It's basically cafeteria food but it was still an experience, nonetheless! Oh, I also learned that in Japan, they really eat with their plates on their trays.

And indeed, knowing very little Japanese was still useful! Whenever I wanted to ask what the name of the food was, I just say "Kore wa nandesu ka?" "これはなんですか？" (What is this?) and I'd usually be able to understand the cafeteria staff.

There was a supermarket in TokyoTech so after the first day of the conference, I went to buy snacks I really wanted to taste! I would have bought more but I knew I won't be able to finish them. I also would have gotten out to eat "real dinner" but I was already full! Clockwise from top left: curry cup noodles, dorayaki (pancakes with red bean filling), manju with red bean filling and peach jelly. I was looking for peaches at the supermarket but I couldn't find one.

Ramen dinner in Shibuya (JPY800). Totally different from the ramen here in the Philippines.

I love going to the convenience store at the hotel's ground floor [in my cotton pants and hoodie] every night just to buy Japanese snacks. Did I also mention how much I love azuki (red bean)? Here's vanilla ice cream with azuki filling (JPY137).

I also tried the Kirin milk tea (JPY139). I just wanted the normal Kirin milk tea but I mistakenly bought the Earl Grey with lavender. The taste is as fabulous as the packaging. Can you imagine Earl Grey with lavender?

This tiny sakura donut is from a bakery in Oimachi station. It's really tiny and costs JPY63 but it was really tasty although a bit oily. There's sweet sakura-flavored filling inside. I wish I bought more.

Gunplayaki (taiyaki with a Gundam shape) with custard from the Gundam Cafe in Akihabara! Ma'am Sandy bought this for me. It was super tasty and the crust was crunchy. Stychan got the azuki-filled one and it was tasty too!

I still have more to share but I'll continue next time! This post is making me too hungry.

And no, I did not gain weight during my stay in Tokyo. I actually lost some. Most probably due to all the walking. :))