Even in a country with one of the lowest rates of beef consumption – there is evidence of the burger craze. We dropped into pakutchi in Shibuya for a taste…

menu
パクッチバーガー Pakutchibaga
パクッチチキンバーガー Pakutchichikinbaga
タワーバーガー Tower Burger

Here’s our pakutchibaga…

It’s not as often that taste demands your awareness of each component of the burger (beyond the beef). Here, I was surprised that even the lettuce – so fresh! – contributed so much to the flavor/texture. What’s great is that you could deconstruct a pakutchi burger and enjoy each ingredient separately. Not sure how many burgers stand up to that challenge back in the states…

Here’s a full ‘brand’ shot (including the Tower Burger) from GourNavi:

There’s always been a really strong culinary connection between France and Japan and we’re seeing it everywhere from Tokyo’s sidewalks and street carts to the menus and cookbooks. When Beard Papa opened in NYC on Broadway near Astor (you could smell the pâte a choux for a least a three block radius) – it was a pretty great example of this ‘coming-together’ as a full concept – from the packaging to the product. (They ended up relocating to the UWS – for anyone who wants to check it out…)

In Tokyo we’ve seen several stores like Beard Papa (which originated in Osaka). Here’s a shot from our stop at Tai Putit – where the choux is shaped into delicate little fish puffs piped with chestnut, red bean, caramel, vanilla and milk chocolate cream:

We were all starving when we finally got to the hotel – and, with most businesses closed for the holiday (today was a ‘transfer holiday,’ or furikae kyūjitsu, in honor of Thanksgiving Day: Kinrō Kansha no Hi) – we decided to take a walk into the busy part of Shinjuku to explore some of the local favorites.

Here’s a shot of Koji outside one of the many kushiyaki restaurants we passed:

Don’t forget to look up once in awhile…

Japan, meet SUSHISAMBA!

We just arrived on Delta flight 173, Tokyo-Narita, and the inspiration is already kicking in.

Koji, Mere and I grabbed our bags and booked it onto the first bus to Shinjuku (新宿区). We decided to stay in this area because it’s home of Shinjuku Station (our primary transportation hub) – and it’s a great midpoint for some of the other districts we plan to visit.