It was just a short walk from the train station, about 10min or so, but the sun was strong :(
The queue looks manageable from the front of the shop...
But it continues around the corner!!!! Omg.
You can almost guarantee that all good food will have a queue in Japan. The shop opens at 11.30am and it was about 12pm when we reached.
Side track abit, I was amused by this 'ash tray' on the floor, where all the cigarette butts were concentrated at, lol.
Finally at the front! The ticket machine is at the front of the shop, have to purchase the meal ticket before entering
Proudly holding my beef bowl ticket order after about an hour of queueing, at 12.50pm! The cold weather was nice, but the strong sun made the queuing abit less pleasant than it already was.
I ordered the Roast Beef don..
And Yk got the Sliced Steak Don.
The bowls were actually smaller than expected. Based on the numerous pictures we saw on the internet, you'd expect like a 15cm tall beef mountain. But it really wasn't that overwhelming.
But the quality is undeniable! The beef was perfectly done and the sauce super tasty! I wasnt a big fan of the yogurt so I preferred the sliced steak don #yumss
After brunch, the Tokyo National Museum at Ueno was next on the itinerary.
I suddenly felt the need to photo bomb Yk's photo attempts (see my forehead above); which kickstarted a series of engineered photobombs.
LOL.
I liked this one of YK haha.
The museum houses Japan's art and antiquities; lacquerware, swords, armour, ukiyo-e, ceramics, books etc.
Don't you wonder what these dishes used to be for? Deco? Or perhaps they placed sweet meats on them?
Imagine the person of the past observing the fishes and drawing these items using ink and a brush, driven by curiosity and pursuit of knowledge. Pretty good at drawing too!
After the museum, we went on to Ueno Park. It was Mar, the cherry blossoms were flowering and Ueno Park which has more than 1000 trees, is one of the best spot in Tokyo to admire cherry blossoms.
The blossoms look abit sparse in the pic below, but it was really quite pretty. I also realised how big cherry blossom viewing and hanami parties are in Japan. People apparently arrived super early to book their spot under the trees. Some of them look like they belong to companies and had been 'booking' a spot for a company gathering for the entire day; stoning in the middle of a mat or dozing away on the floor.
So of course we also have to eat under the cherry blossoms!
On and off we saw waste stations like these to encourage people to dispose responsibly.
Looks like some food stalls further up the park!
Yk and I got okonomiyaki. It was pretty good.
As it got darker, the row of little red lamps started getting brighter. I think it should be very festive when it turns dark. Reminds me of xxxholic where kitsune sold oden!
A romantic filter for Ueno Park's cherry blossoms ^^
We left Ueno Park at 6plus pm and made our way to dinner. I had read rave reviews on Fuunji's tsukemen and was looking forward to trying it.
Fuunji is located in Shinjuku, a short walk from Shinjuku Station.
Oo, saw Janice Wong (the shop) while walking to Fuunji from Shinjuku Station.
When we arrived at Fūunji 風雲児, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the queue was very short! Just 5 pax in front of me.
But when I entered the shop... I realised the queue continues right behind the diners in the super small n tight ramen shop!! Isn't it so stressful and oppressive to be eating with a bunch of people standing right behind you?!
I had to take a pic of the queue situation. Look at the tight little lane that everyone has to use to get to their seats, to the loo, if there is one, to the cashier and out. This is definitely not the place for luggage, oversized bags and multiple shopping bags.
When at Fūunji, eat tsukemen. And based on the voyeuring I did over the shoulders of the patrons before me, majority were eating tsukemen. I got a normal sized one and YK got a large sized one! The large sized portion was big, and YK struggled to finish it. I couldn't really help because I got this giant msg/something reaction from the soup. #imsorryyk
I'm not saying they used nasty Msg, I just haven't figured out what ingredient or stock type causes my nasty reaction. The soup was very very tasty and 'gao', actually it was the most flavourful and 'gao' tasting soup I've ever tasted.
BUT it was too heavy for me and the reaction didnt help at all. Yk walked out feeling ultra bloated and thirsty, a testament to the ultra high sodium level. We needed to take in more water but we were so bloated any intake felt bad. We could only walk, groan, walk, groan and complain about how bloated we were and wish that a giant burp would resolve our problems.
Well, no giant burp ever came so our problems were left to time, digestion and the sweet potato Haagen Dazs ice cream from Tobu Dept Store to resolve.
Over and out - - - - - - - - -
