postcard: food tour, tokyo stopover

i've been to tokyo 4 times--4 stopovers on the way to and from the philippines. in terms of total hours, i don't think i've stayed a day. but at least during our trip this year there was enough time between flights to wander around the gate. my dad was keen on having "japanese noodle soup" and while i wasn't terribly hungry, i had a feeling the next leg of our flight would not come with a proper meal. and let's face it. it's just not like me to refuse a meal, especially on the road.

we stopped at the casual asian cafe�@bowl bowl.

this long lacquered hot dog struck me as unusual, but i suppose there is a lot of food fakery on display at eateries stateside. maybe it was the proportions that threw me?
onion rings
wrinkly and pink

this is the waiting box. rather like the square vibrating pager they give you at the outback steak house and the cheesecake factory. (and five napkin burger. and, if memory serves, the rosa mexicano on 18th street.) anyway, the kicker with this is that you have to "touch" the waiting box to the table. it's not enough to have it and hold it, or rest it on the table. the "waiting box" has to touch "home base" (the rectangular panel affixed to the table). if it's not on home base a server will walk by and place it there. and if you move it, they will put it back. it's a precision system. and then your food arrives.

miso, looking like a trippy underwater adventure.

and, one of my favorite comfort foods: a beef bowl.

this fairly straightforward beef bowl was made extraordinary by the brilliant yolk. the richest and best part of the meal.