After Christmas last year, I spent a couple of days in the small town of Jiaoxie (角斜), close to Nantong (南通), three hours west of Shanghai. Read more
Peaches of Immortality
From Food
Local street delicacies and cuisines from around the world
Kosoan Cafe in Jiyugaoka
Tokyo’s many neighbourhoods are full of hidden restaurants, cafes & bars, often hidden from view at street level, for which discovery is as much a part of the experience as anything else. Read more
Sushiology
If you love sushi then there’s no better place to enjoy it than in its birthplace – Japan. Ordering is pretty straight forward, especially if you go to a sushi train (回転寿司 kaiten-zushi), but if you’re a real fan and want to know some of the terminology used by professional sushi chefs then checkout the guide below. Read more
A Week in Tokyo Part 5 – Marushizu in Tsukiji
Not far from Tokyo’s frenetic Tsukiji Fish Market can be found Marushizu (丸静) – one of the best places to eat fresh grilled eel, known as unagi (うなぎ). One of my colleagues took me there for lunch and it was quite a treat! Read more
A Week in Tokyo Part 3 – Plastic Food
One of the interesting things you’ll notice when feeling hungry in Japan is that many restaurants display plastic samples of their dishes in their windows in order to lure you in – especially helpful if you don’t speak Japanese. The fake food is incredibly realistic and has become an art form as well as a massive industry in Japan. Read more
From Japan with Food
Online food documentary series The Perennial Plate spent two weeks travelling around Japan to create a stomach rumbling short film – From Japan with Love (and Dashi) – looking at the country and its tantalising food. If that leaves you feeling hungry for more you’ll also want to check out Jiro Dreams of Sushi which tells the story of a 85-year-old Japanese sushi chef who has been on a relentless quest his whole life to perfect his craft. I’ve already seen it twice and love seeing how the notions of developing good taste and keeping things simple can be applied in all areas of life.
Shanghai vs Taipei Xiaolongbao
A recent article published by CNNGo on ‘40 Taiwanese foods we can’t live without‘ garnered over 90,000 Facebook likes and many passionate comments within a few days of being published, proving that if there’s one thing you can count on throughout Asia, it’s that people really like their food. I’d go as far as to say they’re even territorial about who makes what best so it can be a touchy topic of conversation! Read more
Ningxia Night Market
As any visitor to Taipei discovers, one of the cities main attractions are its many night markets. On my previous trip I covered some of the big ones – Shida, Shilin, and Ximending, but on a recent trip to Taiwan I paid a visit to one of the smaller and more traditional ones, namely Ningxia Night Market (寧夏夜市). Read more
Exploring Chengdu
A few weeks ago my younger brother visited me in Hong Kong and given it was his first time to China I decided to take him into the mainland and visit somewhere a little off the usual tourist trail. Our destination was Chengdu (成都), the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China, for no other reason than it was somewhere I hadn’t been before! Read more
Return to Busan
