AMERICURRY » Japan

WTF: Japan Invents Curry in a Can

Chris — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 20:59:01 +0000

Daniel Feit, who lives out in Osaka, recently found this in a vending machine there: "Curry Rice Can." So of course, I sent him out to cover it for Wired.com:

"Popping open the can releases a distinct curry aroma, even if the insides don’t really look like it. Or taste like it: The liquid inside the can is very thin and the faux rice is completely bland. The miscellaneous bits of curry don’t have any distinguishing flavors. The ingredients include chicken, carrots, mushrooms and garlic but each spoonful tasted the same to me: tomato, tomato and tomato."

I don't know if I approve. Is it possible for Japan to create a curry so weird that even I would not eat it? Maybe.

Osaka's Nerd District Offers Curry Rice in Cans [Wired.com]

Feeling Exotic? Try Japan’s ‘European Curry’

Chris — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 05:48:01 +0000

There's a lot more to Japanese curry than CoCo Ichibanya. I'm not suggesting that you go visit every single run-down Mom-and-Pop curry shop on a wild goose chase for culinary perfection. But if you want to find some higher-quality goods, look for signs that read 欧風カレー: oufuu karee or "European curry."

Is there anything particularly European about it -- more so than regular Japanese curry, I mean, which entered the country through English cuisine? Not that I can see. My experiences with "European curry" have simply been that the ingredients are top-quality and the flavors much more robust. You'll pay a little more -- more like $15-18 for one person versus less than $10 at a typical curry lunch counter -- but for the serious curry aficionado on a trip to Japan, it's more than worth it.

I covered a small lunch place called Mitsuboshi, which bills itself as "French curry," on Wired.com last month.

I'd also recommend Bondy, with locations all around Tokyo.

Tokyo Curry Mania: Mitsuboshi's "French Curry" in Nakano [Wired.com]

Japanese language version: 日本滞在レポート：『ミツボシ』の欧風カレー [Wired Vision]

The Sweet Brown Curry of Kanazawa, Japan

Chris — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 05:34:31 +0000

The style of Japanese curry known as "Kanazawa Curry" was the first I'd ever tasted, although I didn't know it at the time. Sure, I knew I was living in Kanazawa, Japan as an exchange student, but I didn't know that the curry rice I was eating every day in the school's dining hall was a particular regional type of curry.

These days, Kanazawa curry -- known for a sweet brown sauce made with caramel among other unique ingredients -- has been making a name for itself in Akihabara, Tokyo's electronics/otaku district, where three different restaurants are now open within about 100 meters of each other serving different takes on K-curry.

One of them is Go Go Curry, naturally.

I wrote about this development for Wired.com on a recent trip to Japan. Check it out!

Tokyo Curry Mania: Kanazawa Curry Takes Over Akihabara [Wired.com]

Japanese language version: 日本滞在レポート:「金沢カレー」の探究　[Wired Vision]

Dine on curry with bunnies at Usagi to Cafe

Karen — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 18:12:54 +0000

Japan is full of oddly themed eateries but Usagi to Cafe really is a bizarre, albeit adorable, venture. Almost everything in Usagi to Cafe is rabbit themed- from the wall decor to the rabbit-shaped curry...but the main attraction is live rabbits. Eighteen "staff rabbits" are available for petting and cuddling before or after meals. Guests are even allowed to bring their own bunnies to "mingle" with the staff. BYOB, guys! An ITN news feature video clip:

Usagi to Cafe's website also features a squeal-worthy photo and stats gallery of their staff bunnies. Check out this little guy here (his name is Melon!):

Next time you're in Japan, hop on over to Usagi to Cafe to enjoy a nice steaming plate of Japanese curry along with cuddly rabbit pals.

The Picture Says It All: CoCoIchi Handbook

Chris — Wed, 27 May 2009 05:01:56 +0000

Today, while cleaning and organizing all of my books (generally referred to as the Chris Kohler Presidential Library), I came across this pamphlet passed out at CoCoIchi in 2006.

I saved it entirely because of this picture, which I think pretty much encapsulates our feelings about curry.

(The photo, by the way, is advertising CoCoIchi's "low allergy curry," which has only spices that don't affect people with food allergies. Hence the tiny child's rapturous expression: Now she, too, can eat curry. わーい。)