Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Japan: Culinary Adventures (4) : Yakiniku



The trip from Kanazawa to the higher elevation city of Matsumoto involved a circuitous railroad trip looping through Nagoya. Of course, there were issues: an odd interlude wherein all passengers were obliged to get up and rotate the seats, and then the by-now obligatory hectic transfer at Nagoya. Luckily we had been cued-in already by Shawna and Maz so an outside observer would have thought that we knew what we were doing.

So our arrival in Matsumoto was late in the afternoon. Fortunately Shawna and Maz had already done some exploring: for dinner we headed to a funky little yakiniku joint. Yakiniku, that is: grilled meat. So we were given plates full of meat to grill, as well as cabbage and onions. And dipping sauce. (Come to think of it, I don't know if we ever did find out the actual name of the restaurant.)

A do-it-yourself affair, bibs optional, with a gas hibachi placed in front of you (in our case, at the counter.) One of the meats was of uncertain origin, untranslatable by Maz. We’ve since come to believe that it was horse meat, as Matsumoto is known for this delicacy.


Photos: Yakiniku Exterior—Matsumoto, 2008; Yakiniku Interior—Matsumoto, 2008; Yakiniku Grill—Matsumoto, 2008

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