Bokeh Test: iPhone, Ricoh GRD, Fuji X100S

I've been testing different cameras recently and I've been talking about depth of field and the importance of it in certain types of photography. The more the better if you're shooting food or products, especially if you're trying to keep everything in focus (which is usually the case). Let's begin by taking three different cameras with 3 different sensor sizes: iPhone 4 with a 1/3.2" sensor, Ricoh GR D IV with a 1/1.7" sensor, and the Fuji X100S with a APS-C size sensor.

I've taken the same image and tried to see how much of the food is in focus from front to back. I'm sure the waitress thought I was crazy, but hey, it's sushi. It's not like it's going to get cold! I focused all three images on the salmon skin rolls on the bottom left, and see how much depth of focus we can get by looking at the fruit in the middle, and the raw tuna and salmon on the top left. Alright, let's take a look at these pictures!

Double Wasabi Filet-O-Fish in Hong Kong

Growing up, I never liked the Big Mac. The Filet-O-Fish was small, but it was the tastiest for me. So when we were in Hong Kong and they had a special double patty, wasabi Filet-O-Fish, I thought I was dreaming. A Filet-O-Fish the same size as a Big Mac? And wasabi? Man oh man!!

I love how the picture is always better than reality in food pictures, but the contrast was pretty funny this time. Notice how far the top bun is over to the left, and where's the wasabi tartar sauce oozing out? Ha, ha!! I have to say though, it did taste really good!!

Wasabi: It's the Real Thing!

Most don't know this, but what you think is wasabi you're putting on your finely sliced piece of sashami, or your delicately combined piece of nigiri, is actually horseradish with food colouring and wasabi flavoring. Real wasabi, if pre-grated for you, should have some fiber left in it, like when you grate ginger. Here in Japan, many of the smaller, more traditional restaurants will have real wasabi!! The above picture was from a local udon shop near my brother's place that serves all their udon with a fresh wasabi root and a grater. The flavor is definitely different, and better. Not as hot, but more mellow flavor. I haven't been there in over a year, but Shiro Sushi on Cambie in Vancouver used to use real wasabi. But there's nothing like grating it yourself!

Recent Tokyo Food Pics

My buddy Ryo is cool because he's as crazy as me. He takes pictures of many of the meals he eats. He's kind of cruel because he knows how much I love ramen, so he tempts me by constantly sending me ramen pics and tells me I have to eat this and eat that, even though he knows I'm an ocean away. I know.... I'll go soon. I must eat more ramen. Notice the last two pics? Soupless ramen? They call it abura-ramen, or oily or greasy ramen. I'd love to try it. Soon enough Ryo. I'll be there, soon enough.......thanks for the pics buddy.

Haagen-Dazs in Japan

I think I've mentioned Haagen-Dazs in an older post, but they are really awesome in Japan. They actually have retail locations and make really good parfaits and other treats, just like Dairy Queen. My favorite is green tea with azuki beans and mochi!! You can't get that in Canada!! I noticed that even their standard flavours are different than the ones you can get over here. This one is my favorite: Milk Classic. How can I describe it? It's milky..... it's like those Japanese milk candies, you know that flavour? Well, they've managed to capture that flavour and put it into an icecream. My wife's favorite flavour in Canada is chocolate covered almonds in vanilla icecream (aka Vanilla Swiss Almond), but in Japan, they have the exact same thing, but with salty Macedamia nuts!! So good..... and do you notice they have the small individual sizes? In Canada, we only have the one size, 500 ml. It's too big for one person to finish in a single sitting, but not enough for 2. The single serving size is just perfect. In fact, big enough so you can try more than a single flavour!! Me likes!!

Japanese Love Waffles

A typical line-up at the Sugar-Fers counter at Seibu Department store food floor at Ikebukuro. The line-up continues to the far right, and out the other door and around the corner out into the train station...... this happens every single day!!


Typical waffle dessert at one of the many dessert cafes in Tokyo..........

I don't what it is about waffles, but it's pretty huge in Tokyo this time around. Every dessert cafe place sells some sort of waffle type dish. Even in the department store food floor (usually floor b1 or b2) there was a certain waffle dessert boutique Sugar-Fers that had line-ups all day, as you can see in the above picture.....I could barely get the above shot off because it was always a zoo surrounding the counter......

The second picture is of my favorite waffle dessert found at the UCC Cafe Mercado in Takashimaya at the Times Square building in South Shinjuku. Our favorite, not-too-busy and not-too-expensive coffee break place..... it's in the middle of the 8th floor, so check it out.......

P.S. both pics taken with my i-Phone 4...... not bad eh?

Chabuton Ramen

We took a chance and ate at Chabuton Ramen. They say they won on a famous tv show called TV Champion. It's a cool show where often common people compete the best of the best of whatever field. I've seen the best origami artist, or the best kite maker, and in the end of the show, the winner doesn't win money or anything. It's just the honour and recognition of being the best of the best in Japan. That's very Japanese. I like it.

Anyway, since he won best ramen a few years back, I thought I'd give it a try. I tried their tsukemen, which is basically ramen, but the soup and noodles are served seperately. No particular advantage or disadvantage I guess, it's just a different way to eat it. But the soup is usually more concentrated because there is a bit of water still saturated in the noodles, which would further dilute the soup. Anyway, it was pretty good. Where can you find this place? I'm sure they have multiple locations (even outside of Japan), but we ate at the location in Akihabara (electric town) at the Yodobashi Camera store, upstairs on the food court level.......

$10 Coffee in Ebisu

Sitting at Miyakoshiya Coffee in Ebisu Gardens and relaxing with my wife. We came to look at the beautiful light display here at night. I would never spend $10 on coffee back at home, but for the ambience, the made in Italy cup and saucer and made in Japan cutlery, the million dollar view, and a chance to rest my tired feet (we came straight from the madness of Akihabara to the calm tranquility of Ebisu), it was totally worth it!! In fact, the best cafe mocha I've ever had, and I don't even drink coffee!! The Japanese always have the coffee at the exact perfect temperature. I don't know how they do it all the time, but they do!!

Chabuya Ramen

I've been on the hunt for the best ramen in Tokyo, and although I know I'll never find it (as much of it is a matter of personal taste) this place has come at the top of my list:
Chabuya Ramen.
They use classy and modern cutlery, Peugeot pepper mills on the table (I should have checked if it was actually pepper in it, or perhaps it was sesame?) and a cute drawer to store chopsticks at each spot. They even had monogrammed napkins! A bit of a modern flare, even in the presentation, but the food held up on its own. I had the shoyu, and my wife had miso. Even the egg was perfect, with the yolk half creamy, have solid....... I must go back again!! Even the gyoza was done a bit different!!

An Mitsu Mihashi

This place is suppose to be pretty famous for their desserts, and at times has line-ups to get in during the afternoon tea rush hour (mostly women.... I always feel out of place at dessert and coffee shops during the mid afternoon). Very good dessert. Call me cliche, but I always have to have some sort of green tea in my dessert..... have you ever had the Haagen Dazs green tea icecream sandwich? I think it was a limited time special, because I can't seem to find it..... I'm going off track. We went to an Mitsu Mihashi dessert shop near the Ueno JR station, but they have multiple locations. They also have a really good hot dessert, the zenzai (red bean soup?) with mochi. I'll try that next time. It looked good......

Sushi in Vancouver

I grew up eating sushi, but I was conflicted about this. When I was a kid, I was beat up and teased for being Japanese. It wasn't easy growing up Japanese in the 1970's and 80's, as most of the visible minorities in Vancouver were either Chinese, East Indian or Vietnamese. Yes, us Japanese kids were the minorities within the minorities. One of the biggest things I was teased about was that I ate raw fish.... first of all, sushi isn't raw fish as many of you already know. That's sashimi. Sushi is about the vinegar and sugar rice. In fact, you can have vegetarian sushi if you want, like kappa maki (cucumber and seaweed and the rice). Sometimes I'd take the sashimi off and just eat the rice with a bit of wasabi and dip it in the Yamasa soy sauce.

Anyway, none of my friends ever came over to eat sushi with the family, as they all assumed eating raw fish would be disgusting. Even my best buddy in high-school tried it once (1989), but couldn't finish it, even though it was ebi and taco.....both cooked!! So I grew up, always knowing we had something amazing to share, but I had no takers. In fact, in the 70's in Vancouver, I bet there was only 3 or 4 sushi restaurants, all owned and operated by Japanese. Now, I'm guessing there's hundreds of Japanese restaurants, most of them neither owned nor operated by Japanese. Ironic eh?

But I do feel vindicated now since sushi is no longer considered exotic. Sushi is no longer really Japanese, but an international food, like pizza or butter chicken is no longer Italian or East Indian. Here are some pictures of some sushi and sashimi I've had in the past year. I think Vancouver has really good sushi. An awesome food scene, easy access to good fish, and lots of good chefs.... man oh man do I feel like sushi (and sashimi) now......

Trafalgar's Bistro

If you've ever been to Sweet Obsessions on W.16th, just a few blocks West of Arbutus, then you have to have brunch and dessert at Trafalgar's Bistro. It's 3 stores East of Sweet Obsessions, and in fact, the original Sweet Obsession cafe was actually part of Trafalgar's Bistro. If you look at Trafalgar's big green awning, you will actually read "Trafalgar's at Sweet Obsessions". Every dessert served at Sweet Obsessions is also served at Trafalgar's. You pay a bit more at Trafalgar's, but as you can see in the picture, you get more (as well as better ambiance and service!!). Enjoy the pics!!

Tokyo Trip 2009.... Subject? Food!!

These pictures are from a single 10 day trip to Tokyo in the spring of 2009. I have more pictures, but these give you the overall, general idea of how awesome the food was...... I'll post pics from my most recent Tokyo trip as well...... food pics I mean...... I'm also thinking of starting up another 30 day project concerning food.... I just don't know when to start it...... maybe I'll do it when I'm in Tokyo again in the fall.....