One night earlier, I had a very nice dinner at The Dining, the only restaurant at Shiba Park Hotel, sister property to Park Hotel Tokyo. But whereas The Dining was open for various meals throughout the day, Park Hotel Tokyo’s Hanasanshou is only open for dinner, from 17:30 to 22:30. Hanasanshou, which translates as “flower […]
Review
Restaurant Review: The Dining at Shiba Park Hotel
Late last year, I had the pleasure of staying at Tokyo’s Shiba Park Hotel. However, due to my always being busy in the Japanese capital, I rarely have the time to sit down for dinner. Fortunately, I had a rare few days of break on my most recent Tokyo visit, so I was able to […]
JR East-South Hokkaido Rail Pass
Ever since my first trip to Tohoku two years ago, I’ve been yearning to visit more of that northern Japanese region. What better better way to do so than with the JR East-South Hokkaido Rail Pass? Meanwhile, for a quick refresher on what constitutes the Tohoku region, here’s a map, with each prefecture’s most important […]
My Top Five Eats of 2024
As I review my top five foods lists of 2022 and 2023, there’s too much of a pattern. The same countries pop up. Guess I can’t get enough Georgian/Mexican/Turkish/Japanese food, hey? Think it’s status quo for my top five eats of 2024? Probably. Worse yet, I can’t recall much of what I ate between January […]
JR EAST PASS Nagano Niigata area
Late last month in Japan, I was able to test out the last of the major JR East rail passes, the JR EAST PASS Nagano Niigata area. Outside of the Tokyo metro area, this particular pass could be a hit for outdoorsy visitors, including hikers and skiers. However, there were a couple of bureaucratic hiccups […]
Hotel Review: Park Hotel Tokyo
Disclaimer: In exchange for a 2-night stay, I am writing this review of Park Hotel Tokyo. Before we jump into particulars, you might be interested to learn more about the concept behind the hotel. Art Much like its sister property the Shiba Park Hotel, there is a core theme at the Park Hotel Tokyo. Whereas […]
Restaurant Review: Daily Social at the Sheraton Kagoshima, Japan
Disclaimer: I was invited to have lunch at Daily Social at the Sheraton Kagoshima. As many of you know, Japan is one of my food paradises. One good reason for that is substantial pride in locally- and regionally-grown ingredients. For instance, if nihonshu (what most of the world calls “sake”) is your thing, visit Nada in […]
Restaurant Review: Uno Mas Bangkok at Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre
Disclaimer: In exchange for dinner, I am writing this review of Uno Mas Bangkok. When you want to give Thai food a break, why not give Spanish a try? Located on the 54th floor of the Centara Grand hotel right behind the CentralWorld shopping center, Uno Mas Bangkok not only offers patrons a quality blend […]
