For Thump!

[Hombre]

Had a great trip to Tokyo, but more importantly, ate some amazing Sushi. I spent most of the time working, but when I wasn't my local guide (friend) was amazing. The best part about having someone local to the area is you don't spend time in the tourist hot-spots but time in places authentic to the culture.

I had told my friend that I was a fan of Sushi so he set us up a couple of his favorites! One thing that was unique was these "restaurants" had a maximum of 6-7 seats with one Sushi chef.

The first pic really just shows the size of the place.

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Pic of the UNI (sea urchin)

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Pic of Toro (Fatty Tuna)

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Pic of Tako (Octopus)

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During the trip I bought some traditional handmade Japanese sushi plates. We went down to the Asian market in Seattle and bought some of our own to try, I'm far from a Sushi expert when it comes to making my own....but fun nonetheless

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[Trav]

What you made would feed Jimbo but nobody else.

[Chicken Dinner]

I'm down with everything there but the sea urchin. I'm just not fond of the texture on that one.

[Captain]

What you made would feed Jimbo but nobody else.

Nah, you'd have to throw a bucket of KFC in there to finish him off... ;)

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[Thumper]

Wow! I'm jealous! Sounds like a great sidebar to a business trip. I'm with CD though ... I can't do the sea urchin. That's one of the few things on earth I just can't get down very well ... although I've tried. I'm not sure if it varies or not ... I tried it once and never had the balls to try it again. Too many other options. Tako is one of my all-time favorites though. Reminds me of a funny "Thump Story" ... but we JUST walked in the door after returning from Pensacola and I have a couple eBay sales I have to get packaged and to the Post Office by 5:00.

[Thumper]

It was the summer of 1985 and Lynn took me home with her to meet her folks for the first time. The family got together for a big dinner at her grandparents house every Sunday and her grandmother would do the cooking. When dinner was served, there was a big bowl of her grandmother's Tako on the table and I couldn't help but stare at it. I mean, all those tentacles and suckers on the dinner table was something I couldn't help staring at. Finally, Lynn said, "That's Tako" ... and put a small sample on my plate. Now mind you, Lynn's grandmother was one hell of a cook and one of her specialties was actually Prime Rib! That's what everyone was chowing down on and NOBODY had touched the Tako, which made me a bit apprehensive to say the least. BUT .. Lynn had already slipped a piece onto my plate and since this was my time to make a good first impression on the family, I slipped it into my mouth and started chewing. WOW! I LOVED it and couldn't wait to try another piece, so I nudged Lynn, nodded toward the Tako and she put another piece on my plate. I scarfed it down in a nano-second and kept eye-balling the stuff. Unfortunately, it was across the table and just out of my reach, so EVERY time I reached for another piece, it was a bit obvious. Screw that Prime Rib ... I wanted more Tako! After nonchalantly reaching all the way across the table a couple more times (when I thought nobody was really paying attention) ... Lynn's grandmother silently stood from her chair at the head of the table, walked around to the area where the Taco was, picked up the bowl, walked all the way around to my side of the table, set the whole bowl right in front of me, then returned to her chair. She never said a word, but just looked at me and winked. :D

Let's just say, there was NO leftover Tako and I believe I was the ONLY one at the table who even ate it! After that day, needless to say, Bachan (Japanese for grandmother) made a TON of Tako for me over the years. ;)

http://s3-media3.fl.yelpcdn.com/bphoto/0x4hUkrUGfPkKNfznuZ91w/l.jpg

For a variation, Lynn and I sometimes go over to the coast (Tarpon Springs) to the Greek sponge docks and stop at our favorite restaurant over there. I ALWAYS start with the octopus. Here's a pic I snapped during our last visit. I was so excited, I'd already eaten a portion of it before I thought to take the pic. It ain't Tako by any stretch of the imagination, but I'll take octopus just about any way it's served! Here's my Greek octopus along with the rest of the meal!

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Don't even get me started on Calamari! Yum!

[jb]

The second picture would show you what that crap looks like the second time you saw it.
Shit like that is ment for bait, not eating.:fish

[Captain]

The second picture would show you what that crap looks like the second time you saw it. Shit like that is ment for bait, not eating.:fish

100% agree with Bubba!

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[Big Skyz]

What JB said!!!

[Thumper]

Wimps! :booty

Here ya' go Hombre. (it's 10 mins long, so ya' may want to watch it at home)

http://www.chonday.com/Videos/cojeyjapa2#.U9En2dxeLaI.email

[Hombre]

Thump I'll have to take a look tonight. Thanks. - and the Tako pics look great, one of my favorites too. As far as Uni goes I agree not my favorite. I will say that in JP I found it better.

[Thumper]

I don't have a pic of Bachan's Tako ... that pic was pulled off the net and looks quite a bit different than hers ... but the Tarpon Springs pic was my last meal there.

For the unwashed masses here ... JFYI, the Tako is raw (marinated) and the Greek octopus is grilled. Big difference, but all good.

[BarryBobPosthole]

About the only raw seafood I've been able to really say I like is poke' and ceviche. Both of those are marinated in citrus so you really can't call them raw.

The divemasters on the boat I dived off of in St Lucia were big time lion fish hunters. They regularly killed a dozen or so (used a Hawaiian sling) on every dive and I got pretty good at spotting for them. In a effort to get more people killing them, they've gotten a lot of the local people to start eating them and they're now fished for a lot. One day, they cut one up and sliced thin like sashimi and were passing it around the boat. I passed. The folks that tried it said it was good though. The divemaster told me she'd been stung by one and it hurt like hell for a couple of weeks. I couldn't get past that idea to eat the meat of the damned thing.

BKB

[Thumper]

Lynn and I order ceviche quite often as an appetizer. I've been to Hawaii quite a few times and will also have the poke there. It's usually made with ahi, but can be about anything really, including octopus. You're correct, many times stuff like that is referred to as "raw" ... but actually if it's marinated in citrus, the acid "cooks" the meat. I think it's mainly the texture that's different ... fish generally gets flaky when cooked with heat, but the TEXTURE is more like raw fish when "cooked" with citrus. Much like a pickle doesn't taste or have the texture of a raw cucumber.