Japanese food @ Nijiya

It was just too damn hot tonight to eat a full meal, so instead I dropped by my favorite Japanese market on the Westside for a light snack.

For me, shopping at Nijiya is like wandering through Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. With wide-eyed enthusiasm, I'll spend hours scanning each aisle for interesting snacks and drinks. These days, I've noticed packs of nerdy-looking white guys invading my territory. Using whatever Japanese they picked up from anime, they gather around and scrutinize the same items (like that thing on the right) to see whether it's worth trying or not. To the casual observer, that thing might look like apple juice but it's actually a diet jelly drink with konyaku and tapioca balls. It barely even contains juice (10%) which is typical for Japanese drinks. It still tasted good ... That was dinner.

My biggest reward for studying Japanese all these years is that I'm now able to decipher Japanese packaging. I know the kanji for "fat" and "carbs" and any other keywords that'll indicate whether the thing is gonna make me regret eating. While living in Japan I always had a habit of checking the nurtional facts label, so now that I'm back in LA I still do the same. Funny thing is, I noticed the labels they stick on here don't even correlate. On the Japanese label, some products might indicate 10 grams of fat, but on the U.S. label they'll put down a big fat "0". Can someone explain that to me?

I also bought tomorrow's breakfast, a pack of ochazuke seasoning. It's a mixture of shredded seaweed, crunchy rice cracker, salt and MSG. You put it in a bowl of hot water and rice and the idea is to eat it as fast as possible before the rice gets bloated. Yeah, it's not exactly ideal for hot weather but it's cheap and feels like a full meal. I looked up the website of one of the famous ochazuke brands and they have their commercials up for viewing.

Click on the picture second from the bottom on the right side for a video on how to eat ochazuke properly. The note he puts on the telephone roughly translates to "I am now ochazuke-ing. Do not disturb."

Yabu - WLA

When I want a tendon (tempura over rice) I expect to get something like what you see above. For me, a good tendon elicits the Pavlovian reaction and next thing I know I've got a pool of drool on the table. Good tempura is crispy, but not crunchy like potato chips. A super secret special house sauce (shoyu-base of course) should be dribbled over it, soaking just the top layer of rice. If it starts solidifying after a few minutes then it's poorly made.
This tendon is from Yabu in WLA. They're best known for their handmade soba, but they also make some great donburi (rice bowl dishes), too. My tendon included two pieces of shrimp, a shishito pepper, sweet potato, and a big fat piece of seaweed. I don't know if I'd say it's my absolute favorite place for tendon because I know I've had better in Japan, but I definitely recommend it.

Wakasan - West Los Angeles

Some friends treated me to an omakase dinner at Wakasan in West Los Angeles on Friday. It emerged a few months ago after its predecessor Mincha's short stint along Westwood Blvd. People have been calling it an izakaya (due to the floor-to-ceiling shelves of sake, no doubt) though I'd consider it katei ryouri (homestyle cooking) since there's a distinct "my mom used to make this at home" flavor, as opposed to "what the heck?! ... I can make this at home!"

For $30, you get 11 dishes starting from vegetable appetizers and ending with a hot cup of chawan mushi--slices of kamaboko, shrimp, chicken, mushroom and greens suspended in a boiled mixuture of dashi and egg. I'd say my favorites of the night were the yakitori and chawan mushi, though I give props to the chef for the pickled persimmon. Very creative.

Simpang Asia - WLA

Up 'til about a year ago, Simpang Asia market was one of those treasure-troves waiting to be exposed. It's two blocks away from home and if I was ever in need of an Asian snack—from generic Chinese shrimp chips to the lastest Pocky box from Japan—it was sure to be there. You could also get a basic Indonesian meal like nasi goreng, pictured above, or a simple plate of chicken and rice, each for under $5. The staff was always friendly and food was out in a jiffy.

So then Jonathan Gold writes up the place. Months later, the neighboring croissant shop goes under and Simpang Asia expands its lot. Now it's turned into one of those hip loitering spots where the cashiers throw around a lotta attitude, and food (see above) takes nearly 30 minutes to come out. (I started wondering if they were waiting for the rice to grow.) And even then, it was utterly bland. Most prices have increased by a dollar, too.

So sadly, Simpang Asia has dropped a few notches from my list of favorites. It's still fun to walk up and down the grocery aisle, though. They have a good selection of Asian condiments, not to mention fresh-squeezed mango juice. Just steer clear of the staff.