Japanese Bouken-ya

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

The Return of bouken-ya

All operations on this blog have migrated and resumed at bouken-ya !

Thank you! :3

Sunday, March 29, 2009

The post I have long delayed is finally here! The fair featuring Shizuoka Prefecture (2nd February 2009 - 11th February 2009) held in MEIDI-YA had on-sale goods that Shizuoka is famous for; mainly green tea and wasabi (Japanese Horseradish). Besides the fair, also available was a Tea Seminar (seminar on how to prepare green tea drinks), Japanese Food Seminar using ingredients from Shizuoka Prefecture (seminar teaching 4 different dishes), and a Maguro Cutting Show (a show on how they cut tuna). To make it even better, there was a 25% discount all fair items for the first three days.

Fresh wasabi ( tomato in background)

The variety of green tea sold ranged from about $4.90 - $60, depending on the quality of the tea. They had not only green tea bags, powder, but also limited edition Green Tea Ramune (green tea lemonade) and Wasabi Ramune (I didn't dare buy this). Imagine carbonated green tea in the famous ramune glass bottle! As for the wasabi, a huge range of salad dressings (miso-wasabi, wasabi Japanese mayonnaise) and fresh wasabi and paste (not very cheap) were available, including a unique wasabi flavoured soft-cream (ice-cream) that is well-known in Shizuoka. From the samples, the miso-wasabi salad dressings was absolutely beautiful. And I would definitely recommend trying the ice-cream if you ever come across it.

Green Tea Ramune and Wasabi Ramune (and other drinks)

Wasabi mayonnaise and salad dressings

The events held with the fair were really interesting and worth going. The Tea Seminar was really insightful as they taught how to make cold and hot green tea (using the products sold at the fair), and green tea-banana milkshake (awesome taste). They even had a special green tea layer cake made which tasted heavenly for those who love green tea. As for the Japanese Food Seminar, dishes taught were green tea dorayaki, Fujinomiya yakisoba, Shizuoka ochazuke (rice in green tea served with horse mackerel), tuna and wasabizuke sandwich (tuna mixed with wasabi spread on bread), and fried hanpen (fish cake). The Maguro Cutting Show was one of the more unique and unforgettable images I have seen. The tuna they brought in from Japan apparent cost a bomb, and it was HUGE.

Tea and Japanese Food Seminar

All in all, I do not in the slightest bit regret having visited the fair (roughly 4 days of it), or the goods I bought. It was a wonderful experience, and my friends and I from my club in school (Temasek Polytechnic Japanese Cultural Group; TPJCG) even made friends with the promoter (Japanese from Shizuoka) and got to brush up our Japanese because we had to speak to him in Japanese! Pictures please!

Green tea and banana milkshake!

Green tea dorayaki

Maguro (tuna) Cutting Show! Huge tuna!

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Singapore MEIDI-YA @ Liang Court

MEIDI-YA

MEIDI-YA, the unique Japanese supermarket situated in Liang Court. This is one of the locations in Singapore to spot Japanese families out together either to shop for groceries, or simply just to have dinner. With occasional fairs from different prefectures and discounts off all sushi after approximately 7.30pm, what better place is there to satisfy your needs? There is even a huge collection of seafood imported directly from Japan by the sushi section to explore.

MEDI-YA supermarket is famous for many things, and one of them is that this Japanese supermarket sells goods that are mostly not available anywhere else in Singapore. This is because the supermarket imports directly from Japan and they are not very cheap due to this fact. They also have fruits that are at impossibly insane prices ($89.90 for a melon, anyone?), but other supermarkets do have these fruits as well.

One main reason as to why MEIDI-YA is children-friendly for the Japanese is because, in the middle of the supermarket, there is a TV section for children. They do not air just any cartoons, but Japanese-languaged DORAEMON! Well, actually not just children are there; adults occasionally stop and momentarily re-live their childhood.

Watching Doraemon with the children?

So far, fairs I have had the chance to visit are the recent Shizuoka Fair (will be covered in the next post), and a Hokkaido Fair last year. When fairs are held, MEIDI-YA would sell the unique food and drinks that are popular or originated from the particular prefecture.

Shizuoka Fair

Another highlight about MEIDI-YA is the sushi for sale. Of course they are really good, high quality sushi. But the best part is, after approximately 7.30pm everyday, they reduce the prices by a rather significant amount (imagine California Rolls being reduced from $6.00 to $4.20). This is something done to clear their stocks so their sushi is fresh everyday.

Sushi after Discounted

MEIDI-YA is one of my favourite locations to visit in Liang Court / Singapore. I find that this place has the air of Japan. Perhaps it is the food? Perhaps the other customers who shop there? No, I do not go there for DOREAMON.

Small restaurants located just after the entrance of MEIDI-YA

Liang Court - UNWRAPPED

Liang Court

Once an empty mall full of renovation, now a mall full of Japanese-cultured wonders.

Liang Court, situated just nearby Clarke Quay, is a treasured location for us Japanese food lovers. With the unique Japanese Supermarket, MEIDI-YA (in next blog post), this shopping mall is well-known to Japanese living in Singapore as this supermarket offers goods imported directly from Japan and are mostly not available anywhere else in Singapore.

I personally enjoy going to Liang Court as this place offers so much and is currently one of my Japanese Club's favourite hang-out locations as we frequent here at least one in two weeks, sometimes probably even more.

Friday, January 2, 2009

EOY Cosplay Event

EOY 2007 : Trinity Blood team cosplay

First off, what is "cosplay"? In short, it means "costume play", where "cosplayers" (participants cosplaying) dress up in the costume and accessories of a particular character. The normal cosplays seen in Singapore are mostly Japanese-influenced (example: characters from Japanese animation, manga, J-rock, gothic, lolita, games, etc), and cosplay in Singapore is considered somewhat as a subculture that is growing increasingly popular as Japan continue to take over our media networks.

EOY, which stands for "End of Year", is one of the anually-held cosplay events (the biggest event being Cosfest, usually held in June/ July) and hosted at Singapore EXPO. As you can probably guess it, this event is always held in December every year (latest was 13th December 2008). Basically, this is an event where people of similar interests would gather, and cosplay, rent booths to sell Japanese-related art and merchandise, take picture of cosplayers, or simply just to enjoy everything as a whole.

The little set back about this event would probably be the entrance fee of $12 for non-members of the organizing association. So what I've been doing the past two year's EOY, is attend the event as an event helper. We don't get much time to view the event as we have working shifts, but we get free entrance.

Viewing another blog's post about EOY 2008 (http://nanasoutenshiki.com/2008/12/eoy-part-1/), I would have to agree and disagree on some of the author's thoughts on the event: "I feel that this event is quite a good place for cosplayer to showcase their skills and the hard work. Also, not sure whether the reason is me arriving late to the event or some of the early birds has already gone home, I found out that in this event, the cosplayers are able to give alot more focus to each cameras.".

In my opinion, yes, EOY is a good event for cosplayer to showcase their skills and hard work. However, for the "skills", mostly new and not-very experienced cosplayers dominate the population of cosplayers who attend the event (might be due to EOY being not as big as Cosfest; not noticed so much in case the cosplay is bad). So for those who have attended both Cosfest and EOY, might note a significant difference in the cosplaying grade. Of course, the popular cosplayers who attend EOY always stand out from the new cosplayers.

EOY 2008 : Jesuke, a very popular cosplayer (in my opinion she's the best in Singapore currently), cosplaying "Rai" from Lamento

Photographer: Shiro Ang, http://shiroms08th.deviantart.com/

For those interested to attend these cosplaying events, I'll post up notifications of upcoming cosplay events in this blog whenever there is any approaching and that I know of.

EOY 2007 : Famous Indonesian cosplayer from the Indonesian cosplay team, "Endless Illution" cosplaying "Cain Nightroad" from Trinity Blood (won the Best male cosplay category for EOY 2007)

EOY 2007 : Also from the Indonesian cosplay team, "Endless Illution", cosplaying characters from Trinity Blood

EOY 2008 : Some character cosplay which I don't know

Friday, December 5, 2008

Azabu Sabo - Japanese Sweets, Eats, and Tea

At Azabu Sabo

Azabu Sabo, as quoted from their website "follows an original teahouse philosophy and serves authentic Japanese desserts and unique cuisine". They are especially known for their Hokkaido Ice Cream (Hokkaido again!), being the first to introduce it to Singapore. Azabu Sabo has a wide menu, but I will only be focusing on their desserts today!

Azabu Sabo typically has two types of outlets: a dine-in restaurant, and a kiosk that sells only desserts on the go. Dining in provides the benefit of a comfortable atmosphere to indulge in heavenly Japanese cuisine. Here is a list of where you can find Azabu Sabo in Singapore: http://www.azabusabo.com.sg/howtoreachus.htm

This is one of the best places in Singapore to find Japanese desserts, in my opinion. The desserts sold here are not very cheap, but they are worth the price when you take your time to savour the authentic taste of the food.

Matcha Daigaku Imo (Caramelized Sweet Potato & Japanese Rice Cake with Green Tea Ice Cream) for $8.80

I was reading a review of Azabu Sabo on another food blog (http://eateatenate.blogspot.com/2008/08/azabu-sabo-hokkaido-ice-cream-aside.html), and decided I disagree with the rating they gave the Caramelized Sweet Potato and Japanese Rice Cake with Matcha Ice Cream. I personally had this (at the same venue, even), and it was a unique dish altogether, one with an addictive flavour, with a nice smooth blend in taste between the sweet potato (it was chewy instead of hard) and caramel. Combined with the green tea ice cream, it was heaven. Perhaps the dish served to them was not cooked thoroughly? I hope they might actually do give it another chance.

I end this post with well wishes for you to have a pleasant dining experience at Azabu Sabo, and picture to get your stomach rumbling.

Green Tea Kakigori / Soft Ice Cream with Green Tea Sauce & Red Bean Paste (we added dumplings) for $9.80

Chocolate Kakigori / Soft Ice Cream with Chocolate & Milk (we added bananas)

Hokkaido Hot Balls (4 pcs) only available at the kiosks for $2.00

Kakigori - shaved ice

Matcha - green tea

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Hokkaido Fair @ Tampines Mall

Hokkaido is Japan's largest prefecture, and second largest island. Home to good food, and even the beer brand "Sapporo", which is named after Hokkaido's capital, Sapporo, this prefecture is known for its cool summers and icy winters.

... No, this is not a beer advertisement. Neither am I giving a history talk on Japan's largest prefecture.

Hokkaido Fair @ Tampines Mall

An event organised by Isetan, the Hokkaido Fair comes to town yearly around June - July, bringing a taste of Hokkaido to this small country of Singapore with a range of exotic authentic Japanese cuisine. As it is nearer to school, I would always attend the one held at Tampines Mall (how to get to Tampines Mall: http://www.tampinesmall.com.sg/find.htm).

The size of the crowd at the fair is suffocating, queues are unimaginably long, and movement from stall to stall is limited and slow. But when you take your first bite into the wonders sold at the fair, nearly everything is worth it.

The staff selling the food and goods are easy to communicate with as they are mostly Singaporean. What is fascinating to watch are the chefs preparing and cooking the food you eat. That's right, they are Japanese. So they cook and fluff with traditional Japanese skills.

Variety of fresh food found are mostly what Hokkaido is famous for: seafood. From fresh fish to huge king crabs, the prices you see would probably frighten you if it is your first time seeing them (imagine a king crab costing about a few hundred Singapore dollars?).

Interesting goods available (some):

Products made from peppermint oil (candy, skin rubs)
Sushi and bentos
Pastry (puffs, cheese cakes)
Hokkaido Ice Cream
Takoyaki
Japanese desserts
Ramen
Korokke (curry, pumpkin, etc)
Snacks (chocolates, candy, crackers)

This is a definite must see for those avid explorers of good Japanese food. I like that the food tastes better than what you may find in Singapore. The prices are not too outrageous (outrageous is an understatement in terms of the crabs), and the quality of the food is certainly there.

After reading an article written about this Hokkaido Fair (http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/printfriendly/0,4139,135584,00.html), I'm amazed to say I really did miss out by not having tried the ramen there yet. I was trying to avoid filling my hunger tank with just one type of food. Oh well, looks like I will have to try again in 7 months...

Have you seen or heard of any other Japanese food fairs around Singapore?

Enjoy your visit to the next Hokkaido Fair if you have the chance to do so!

Atmosphere at Hokkaido Fair (Tampines Mall)

Rice cakes (rice filling with different coatings) sold at $2 each

More traditional Japanese desserts

From left to right (top to bottom): Ohagi rice cake with Kinako (soybean) powder, potato manju, Sakura Mochi (the leaf was edible!), Ohagi rice cake with Anko (red bean), and Miso Mochi (yes, it was salty...)

Peppermint Candy (the candy is the shape of a leaf)

Curry Korokke (filling is potato and curry)

Saturday, November 22, 2008

DAISO Japan -- Always $2

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I am an adventurer on a journey. A journey to expose hidden Japan in Singapore. To begin, I set off from a place rather well-known to quite a number of people.

Daiso @ Plaza Singapura

Daiso, also known as a 100 yen or one-coin shop, offers a wide range of about 90,000 products; from kitchen utensils and tableware, to daily necessities and stationery. There are currently three stores located in Singapore; the biggest with the widest range of products - IMM (Jurong East), second largest - VivoCity (Harbourfront), and Plaza Singapura (Dhoby Ghaut), with an upcoming store at Sembawang.

In my opinion, this is a must-visit location for everyone interested in Japanese goods or culture. What better place is there to get items like Japanese tea cups, bowls and chopsticks, Japanese paper fan, Japanese drinks and snacks, and various other Japanese-related products? Everything for just $2?

Affordable and wide-ranged, Daiso caters to the needs of customers not just Singaporeans, but Japanese as well. That would be evidence enough if one doubts the quality of the goods sold. They may not be perfect or the best, but some items are definitely worth more than $2 in my opinion.

Commenting on someone's suggestion to get Japanese tableware from Daiso (http://www.expatsingapore.com/forum/index.php?topic=4717.0), I agree that the Japanese tableware is a good buy. However, I would strongly recommend against buying the metal tableware sold. From my personal experience, a metal plate I bought produced rust just after one wash. Yes, $2. But buy what you think sounds right.