Tiny Urban Kitchen

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New Japan Series Part 1: Totoro, Fall Foliage, Tofu Kaiseki

August 16, 2018 by Jennifer Che 6 Comments

Tokyo Foliage
We begin a new series on Japan! In fact, this series will be divided into two parts, mostly because I visited Japan TWICE since moving to Hong Kong. Ha ha, Japan is quite close now, only a 4-5 hour flight away, so I’ve taken the opportunity to visit as often as I can (since I do love visiting Japan so much).

My first visit to Tokyo was in November 2017. I had only been living in Hong Kong for about two months by that point in time. However, it was the first time ever that I would be missing the beautiful fall foliage for which Boston is famous.

I vowed I would see foliage somewhere, even if I couldn’t fly back to the US. I was thrilled to find out that Tokyo’s fall foliage season is later than Boston’s, and would peak right around Thanksgiving holiday!
Shinjuku Gyoen Tokyo Shinjuku Gyoen Tokyo
When a friend told me she needed to go to Tokyo over Thanksgiving for work, I jumped at the opportunity to hop along for the ride.

Shinjuku Gyoen Tokyo Shinjuku Gyoen Tokyo
The foliage in Tokyo is stunning this time of year. I highly recommend visiting places like Shinjuku Gyoen, Hibiya-koen Park, the grounds around the Imperial Palace, or Inokashira Park (right next to Studio Ghibli).
Shinjuku Gyoen Tokyo
Though I didn’t get to see cherry blossoms this spring, I got to see this unique flower that only blooms for one month in the fall!
Studio Ghibli Tokyo Studio Ghibli Tokyo
I decided to visit Studio Ghibli again (my second time!) because I knew the studio was playing the 15-minute short movie sequel to My Neighbor Totoro, called Mei and the Kittenbus. This movie is super, super cute. If you’re a Totoro fan, especially if you love the catbus, you will absolutely love this movie.

You can’t see this movie anywhere else in the world. They only show it at Studio Ghibli periodically, rotating it among many other short films that they show.
Studio Ghibli Tokyo
You need to purchase tickets for Studio Ghibli in advance because they easily sell out. The easiest way is to get them at a travel agency outside Japan. I bought mine in Hong Kong and it was pretty easy.

After visiting the museum, you can eat at the cafe or wander around Inokashira Park, which had gorgeous foliage during the fall. I wandered through the park and walked all the way back to the subway station, where I took the train back to Shinjuku Station.

A post shared by Jennifer (@tinyurbankitchen) on Nov 28, 2017 at 7:50pm PST


I spent an afternoon hanging out with Marc Matsumoto from No Recipes exploring the depachika (underground food halls) at Isetan in Shinjuku. Marc recommended his favorite seasoning salts, dashi powders, and other things (like fresh yuzu kosho!!!!). It was great hearing about his life living in Japan as a TV host (!) and private chef.
Potsura Potsura Tokyo\Potsura Potsura Tokyo
One evening, we experienced a true farm-to-table Japanese izakaya called Potsura Potsura that has been getting a lot of recognition lately. I’ll share my whole meal here in a separate post. We sampled Maisen‘s famous tonkatsu deep fried pork cutlet sandwich for lunch one day, and enjoyed a traditional Japanese teppanyaki another night.

A post shared by Jennifer (@tinyurbankitchen) on Nov 27, 2017 at 6:42am PST

Another evening I visited Tokyo Shiba Tofuya Ukai, a lovely tofu house that makes its own tofu and serves it as part of a kaiseki meal.
Tofuya Ukai Hana
The restaurant is nestled in a Samurai house enclosed by Japanese gardens at the foot of the Tokyo Tower.
Tofuya Ukai Hana Tofuya Ukai Hana
The surrounding gardens are beautiful and the Tokyo Tower looks majestic at night.
Tofuya Ukai Hana Tofuya Ukai Hana
I had a multi-course kaiseki meal, which I’ll share more in detail in a future post. Highlights? The tofu in soy milk broth was out of this world.

A post shared by Jennifer (@tinyurbankitchen) on Nov 26, 2017 at 5:47pm PST

We ended the trip with a simple and *very* reasonably priced sushi lunch at Sushinigiri right next to our hotel in Ebisu. Our lovely 10-course lunch was the perfect amount of food and only cost USD $33 per person, all-in (we just drank green tea for beverage).

All in all, I HIGHLY recommend coming to Japan for fall foliage. The weather is crisp and cool, the colorful leaves are so pretty, especially in Japan’s many well-manicured gardens or alongside old, traditional buildings.

Up next, detailed posts from this first trip!

Filed Under: Asian, Cuisine, Japan, Japanese, Restaurant, Tokyo, World Travel

« Madrona Manor Sonoma
Potsura Potsura Tokyo – Bib Gourmande Izakaya ぽつらぽつら »

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Trackbacks

  1. Potsura Potsura Tokyo - Bib Gourmande Izakaya ぽつらぽつら - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    August 21, 2018 at 8:39 pm

    […] This is the second post in the extended Japan Series 2018. Other posts in this series include Totoro, Fall Foliage, and Tofu Kaiseki. […]

    Log in to Reply
  2. Sushi Ya すし家 with Takao Ishiyama plus new Sushi Ishiyama 鮨 いしやま - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    August 25, 2018 at 10:34 pm

    […] is the third post in the extended Japan Series 2018. Other posts in this series include Totoro, Fall Foliage, and Tofu Kaiseki and Potsura Potsura – Japanese modern […]

    Log in to Reply
  3. Tokyo Shiba Tofuya Ukai - Tofu Kaiseki at the foot of Tokyo Tower - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    September 5, 2018 at 10:08 am

    […] is the fourth post in the extended Japan Series 2018. Other posts in this series include Totoro, Fall Foliage, and Tofu Kaiseki , Potsura Potsura – Japanese modern izakaya, and Sushi Ya with Takao Ishiyama plus new Sushi […]

    Log in to Reply
  4. 50 Posts in 50 Days - Take 2! Exploring Hong Kong in 2018 - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    October 25, 2018 at 11:51 am

    […] blog took a “break” from Hong Kong and traveled to other parts of the world, such as Tokyo and Hakone (Japan), Sonoma (California),  Yunnan, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Xiamen (both in […]

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  5. Happy New Year! A look back at 2017 - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    January 3, 2020 at 9:20 pm

    […] November, I booked a 5-day trip to Tokyo to seek out the fall foliage that I desperately missed from Boston. The foliage was stunning and I […]

    Log in to Reply
  6. Easter in Japan - Trip Report - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    January 6, 2020 at 8:52 am

    […] up a few Totoro themed plates this trip. Unlike past trips, I didn’t have a chance to go to Studio Ghibli nor pick up any Totoro cream […]

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Welcome to Tiny Urban Kitchen!

JenChe

Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am a Boston to Hong Kong transplant, born and raised in Ohio with parents from Taiwan. Feel free to head on over to the About page if you want to learn more about me, or just explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!
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