Mt. Mitake, another approachable mountain from Tokyo

When it comes to a mountain near central Tokyo, many people would consider Mt. Takao. However, in 1.5 hours from Shinjuku station, you can access to a less crowded but attractive mountain Mt. Mitake. Let me introduce this favorite mountain of mine.

After you arrive at Mitake station, same name as the mountain, the beautiful stream of Tama river welcomes visitors. There are not only hikers but also many anglers enjoying fishing. I recommend you to walk along the river up to the trailhead while you can take a bus as well.

At the starting point of the trail, like Mt. Takao, there is the cable car service which lifts visitors up to the height of 830 meters in 6 minutes. The service has been operated since 1927.

Once you arrive at the summit station, you can see a lot of small hotels in the summit area. What differentiates Mt. Mitake from other mountains in the area is the fact that there are still many people who come to the mountain to worship gods of the mountain. These small hotels called Shukubo were originally built around 300 years ago for such people but if you have enough time you are welcomed to stay there.

In 30 minutes walk from the summit station along the hotels, you can easily reach the summit with Musashi-Mitake shrine with the height of 929 meters. In the past for the Japanese, the high mountain was the place where the gods lived. And in the medieval Japan, in several high mountains, Japanese indigenous animism synchronized with Shinto and Buddhism, and the original religion called Shugen-do was created. In Shugen-do monks lead the ascetic life in the mountains trying to get supernatural power of the mountains.

On the backside of the summit there are various trails which takes 1 to 3 hours. And I recommend to take a trail called “Rock Garden”, which you can see many rocks with strange shapes in green woods. For example, the rock in the photo below is called “Tengu-Iwa (rock in Japanese)”, since the shape of the rock looks like a long nose of Tengu, monster (sometimes regarded as god as well) in Japanese indigenous religion.

If you have enough courage to climb up to the top of the rock, a small statues of Tengu praise you for your courage.

I recommend Mt. Mitake as the mountain easily approachable from Tokyo, and where you can see many attractive sides of Japanese mountains.

Below is their official website (sorry English is under construction).

http://www.mt-mitake.gr.jp/

Sushi with heaping fish in Ueno Tokyo

In worldwide Japanese sushi is famous as a healthy food. But some people might feel that a portion of sushi is too small to enjoy the taste of particular fish. Don’t worry. In Ueno Tokyo there is a sushi restaurant which expands your image of sushi by serving you sushi with heaping fish.

In 5 minutes walk from Ueno station, the sushi restaurant Miura Misaki-Ko is located.

This sushi restaurant serves sushi on conveyor belt. Normally conveyor belt sushi is popular among the ordinary Japanese since we can enjoy sushi quickly with reasonable prices. However, in case of this restaurant the people always make a long line to eat sushi on conveyor belt.

Now let’s see how different their sushi is. Even though sushi goes around on the conveyor belt, we can also order to sushi chefs to eat sushi more fresh.

The first one is Zuke-Maguro, tuna marinated with soy sauce.

Gunkan-Maki is a kind of sushi with seaweed surrounding rice in order to prevent fish on the top from collapsing. However, in case of Zuke Maguro at this restaurant, seaweed is not helping so much and tuna is sitting on the top with a delicate balance.

The second one is Engawa, flounder edge.

In this case some parts of fish have actually fallen on the plate. But don’t you think it would show the chef’s generosity?

Finally, the chef’s specialty is Maguro-Nakaochi, left-over flesh on the spine of tuna. It costs only 105 JPY!!! Considering its volume, it’s a incredible price.

Meanwhile this sushi restaurant also serves a normal type of sushi, which is also delicious. Below is Oh-Toro, fatty tuna, which is the most expensive menu in this restarant.

The above fatty tuna costs 630JPY. Even though it’s fatty and tasty, since Maguro-Nakaochi, another kind of tuna at this restaurant costs only 105JPY, I prefer to order more Maguro-Nakaochi to enjoy sushi reasonably.

If you want to expand the concept of sushi, go to Miura Misaki-Ko. They have 4 restaurants in Tokyo and Yokohama.

Below is their website (sorry only in Japanese.)

http://www.neo-emotion.jp/post_kaitensushi/miuramisakikou-ueno/

Sugiura, Japanese French restaurant in Yanaka

In Nippori Tokyo, where we live, there are a lot of cheap restaurants for the ordinary people living here. However, in Yanaka, located in five minute walk from Nippori, there is a French restaurant, Sugiura, named from the family name of the owner chef. Even though it’s a real French restaurant, they serve French menus arranged for the ordinary people in Japan.

The restaurant is located in the quiet residential area in Yanaka.

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It’s a small restaurant. The first floor is the chef’s kitchen, and there are a few tables for customers on the 2nd floor where they have simple interior furnishings.

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Even though it’s a French restaurant, they prepare not only folks and knives but also chopsticks as a part of tableware. In this area there are not few people who are not familiar with French table manner and thus reluctant to dining at French restaurant, but their approach makes French more approachable for them.

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Not only chopsticks but they cook foods familiar for Japanese in French way of cooking. Now let me introduce the full course of chef’s selection!

First of all, amuse-bouche including mini tomatoes covered with candy.

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Soup with Jerusalem artichokes and lentil.

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As a cold appetizer, sea urchin with crab, carrot mousse, consomme jelly and tomato puree. For the ordinary Japanese people, sea urchin is one of typical fancy foods.

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As a hot appetizer, sauteed abalone. Abalone is another typical fancy food for the ordinary Japanese food.

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As a main fish menu, grilled flounder.

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As a main meat menu, steak of Hitachi beef. Hitachi beef is high graded beef produced in Ibaragi prefecture, north of Tokyo.

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Lastly as a dessert, fromage bran with kiwi ice cream.

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How did you feel? Did it expand your image of French?

Furthermore, the price of the full course is only 9,000 JPY. In Tokyo there are a lot of fancy French restaurants which even got 3 stars by Michelin guide. However, Sugiura is the special French restaurant which serve very approachable French for the ordinary Japanese people.

Below is their website(sorry in Japanese only).

http://www.yanaka-sugiura.jp/