Koshihikari Echigo Beer

COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION


(Translated from the Japanese on the bottle) We’ve used the delicious water and Koshihikari rice that Niigata’s nature has provided and made this in a German-style decoration mash. This is a dry beer with a crisp palate and finish.

This beer is a nice pale lager, pours with a great foamy head. Finishes clean with a nice hint of rice and hops
I buy this at my local Japanese market, not cheap at 4.75 per bottle. The store manager told me this is an "everymans" beer, especially in the country side. Next time I'm there I'll check that. I find it goes great with a steak

some grilled zucchini with some miso paste on top and grilled shishitto  (Japanese hot peppers)

If you ever get a chance to try shishito, please do. They aren't that hot, but sometimes you get a tongue burner !

You can buy them at most Asian markets and sometimes at the big chain stores. My favorite way to cook them is to skewer them and grill them on the BBQ with whatever else I'm eating. This time I just grilled them in olive oil and added dried Bonita flakes afterwards. yum yum!! See eating healthy doesn't mean cardboard taste, so might say that a nice thick steak is bad, but hey you want to live forever?

Cheers!

Ice cream donuts at Beach Cities Donuts

A nice refreshing treat for the summer weather we are having this fall. Go figure! What Beach Cities Donuts has to offer is one of their regular donuts filled with vanilla ice cream and topped with whipped cream. Totemo oiishi desu!

Gardena Ramen

Gardena Ramen is a nice little place located in, wait for it.... Gardena!

They have a very simple menu, shoyu (soy sauce) ramen and miso (soy) ramen, so for those of you who feel overwhelmed by restaurants with pages of choices, this is the place for you. This place feels like a typical noodle house in Japan, minus the haze of cigarette smoke

The menu is tacked on the wall

No need to getting glassy eyed staring at tiny print and wayyyy too many choices at some overpriced restaurant. They also serve gyoza and a few other side dishes.

This noodle house is very clean and light, in the bookshelf near the door are various manga to read, that is if you read Japanese ! The old women who runs the place is very kind and takes great care of her customers. The soup is really good, with a light taste. The noodles are not mushy and have a firm texture to them.The bowl is a good size, but if you are real hungry, you can get a bigger bowl for a dollar more. Everything about this place gives one a nice homey feel.

The pork is real tender and tasty, Oiishi desu!!

They are located in the shopping center on the southwest side of Western and 182nd in Torrance. 1840 W 182nd

Yamadaya Ramen noddle house in Torrance

A new ramen noodle house just opened down the street from me. They have a limited menu, but what they do serve is totemo oiishi desu!  Note the seedy looking bar next door. No, I haven't been inside there (yet!)

 The soup base has a great flavor. If you want a thick rich soup, order the Tonkatsu shoyu Raman.

You can also ask for fresh garlic to crush into your soup, adds great taste, plus has the bonus of keeping those pesky vampires away. Unless of course you like that sort of thing. 

Fresh garlic!

The pork is very tender and with the addition of some fresh garlic and black pepper, you've got a delicious meal with a bit of zing

They are located near the corner of Crenshaw and 182nd. Next to Burger King (why go there when for about the same price, you can get something, that has ingredients you can pronounce and your body will thank you for when you are an oldie). They have a few tables inside or you can get it to go. Go slurp some noodles and let me know what you think.

Onsen John

Update to Beach Cities Donuts

A quick update to an earlier post. Beach Cities Donuts also makes special "doggie donuts". They also provide water for your mutt. There is also a few tables outside, so you and your 4 legged friend can enjoy your goodies together. Woof woof!

They also offer oatmeal with almonds,raisins and brown sugar. A tasty way to start the day

Bistro Miyoda

This is a nice little noodle shop that specializes in homemade wavycut noodles.This shop has a nice selection of fresh noodle soups and whiteboard specials.

This noodle house reminds me of the ones in Japan. All the staff is Japanese and most of the background chatter is Japanese. The radio is playing old rock hits from the 70s/80s, just like in Japan! I stopped in for lunch and had curry ramen. It took awhile for it to arrive at my table because they had to take time to make up a fresh batch of noodles. The beef was nice and tender and the curry had just enough spice to give it a very nice flavor.

The waitress brough a nice starter of bean sprouts and tofu.

Oiishi desu!

The food has a very light taste and didn't leave a heavy feeling in my stomach.

They have a nice selection of adult beverages, beer and sake

You can see the chef making noodles. This place used to be a sushi bar, which explains the sushi cases at the counters. This is located on Western, just a few blocks south of Redondo Beach Blvd on the West side of the street. If you want a different and freshly made noodles give this place a go

Onsen John

Sushi Ken

A great little place in Torrance is Sushi Ken.

The food style is from Toyama, which is on the Japan Sea side of Japan

Ken, pictured above is a very friendly man and makes very wonderful sushi

Ask for the sashimi sample plate (above)

This makes a great starter and will wet your appetite for  more.

This dish is anago (eel) in a sandwich of tofu.

This is a nice light summer dish.

Here is a nice fresh plate (board?) of hamachi and tai. Ken cuts the pieces into generous sizes.

Lots of happy customers!

Nice fresh saba. Oiishi desu!!

Scallops with rock salt from South America freshly ground on.

The large hunk o' rock salt

The address is 22833 Hawthorne Blvd in Torrance. 310 378-9595

It's behind the Chinese buffet and hard to see from the street. They also have a place in Toyama, Japan.

If you want some very fresh and delicious sushi, give this place a go. You won't see many gaijin here, as most of the customers are Japanese.

New ramen noodle house

Went to a great new ramen shop not to far from here. It's called Mottai Nai Ramen. When you walk in, you are greeted by much yelling of "welcome" in Japanese. It reminds me on Shin Sen Gumi noodle house, were you are greeted in the same fashion. The service is very quick and the food is outstanding! Totemo oiishi desu!

They only have a few choices of ramen. The Tokyo noodles are thin, like most ramen noodles, the Yokohama noodles are much thicker, as is the soup base.

The Sapporo Lover set looks interesting and I'll have to try it the next time I go. The above shows the entire menu. The back side is the drink menu, the usual soft drinks and Japanese beer.

As you can see it is a bright and clean place. There are more tables to the left. If you sit at the counter at the back, you can watch the chef making soup. Below is the Yokohama set, you will notice the noodles are thicker the usual. Ok, maybe not from this picture, but they are. A cold Sapporo beer helped wash it all down.

They also serve Japanese style fried chicken and gyoza of course.

"The chicken is ready now !" another benefit from sitting at the counter is you can watch the chef catch your lunch on fire !!

I highly recommend this place. It is in Pacific Square in Gardena, in the West corner

Baked donuts

There is a great place in Redondo Beach for baked donuts, Beach Cities Baked donuts. It's owned by a very nice Japanese couple. I love going there on the weekends for a cup of coffee and one (or two) of their oiishi donuts. my favorites are the lemon and the one with green tea powder. These are made right on the spot

They have a nice selection on donuts on display They are served on a nice wooden tray (just like in Japan!) They open at 8:30 am and are closed on Tuesday. Drop by for a healthy,guilt free treat!

They are located on PCH and the corner of Beryl in Redondo Beach. Enjoy!!

Welcome to my page

After many trips to Japan I've decided to document my various adventures tramping around the countryside. I'll be posting pictures and writing about the onsen's and my adventures travaling in Japan. I will also ramble on about different Japanese resturants I've been to, here in Southern California and in Japan

Enjoy !
      Onsen John