If you’re in Tokyo, Ginza is a reliable place to seek out traditional Japanese wagashi (sweets) in a bubble economy-era setting. Try itįrom supermarket cans to artisan vendors, it’s highly likely that you’ll come across anko in some form or another on your travels. Anmitsu, made of agar jelly, topped with anko, and lots of fruit is a classic Japanese dessert beloved by grandpas and grandmas out for an afternoon coffee and a sweet. How about trying taiyaki next? These cute little fishies come with not only the traditional anko filling but also chocolate, custard, and matcha. These mini pancakes are filled with pure red bean goodness and rated by top pastry chefs like Dominique Ansel. Take Doraemon’s namesake, dorayaki, for example. For those who can get over their initial reservations, there is a whole new world of related goodies for you to try. Like lots of ingredients used in making traditional Japanese sweets, anko (red bean paste) isn’t that sweet, and its texture can sometimes be off-putting to foreigners.

There is also Katsuya, a popular fast-food chain where you order via a ticket machine and wolf it all down at a counter lined with businessmen doing the same. Miso Katsu Yabaton in Nagoya is a regional specialty. A sauce-loaded katsudon is really popular in Fukui, but you can find it practically anywhere. Tonkatsu-specialty restaurants almost always offer up a variety of katsudon as well as the regular tonkatsu dish (the cutlet served with shredded cabbage and a barbecue-style sauce). Recently, katsudon has become more familiar to western audiences because of the popularity of the figure-skating anime, Yuri on Ice, and its main character’s obsession with the dish. It’s also become a tradition for Japanese students to eat it the night before taking an exam since “katsu” also means to win. Made with a solid helping of rice, onions, deep-fried pork cutlet ( tonkatsu), and eggs poured over the top, this is the ultimate Japanese comfort food. The sea enriches us every day with incredible taste-experiences that we can- not. At first sight, katsudon is not the most appealing of dishes aesthetically-speaking, but it sure is tasty. Starters: tuna tataki, sashimi of salmon and tuna and grilled broccoli.

Kontasu tunacan