Early November, 2009
Ginza, Tokyo
Sunny and Cool
(Friend told me my posts on Facebook does not have photos. Have no idea why. If reading in Facebook, click on "original post", then you'll get the photos)
One very early Saturday morning in early November, I decided to do a power walk around the Imperial Palace. As I was power walking one, two and then three times around the palace I started getting hungry. It was about 10am by the time I did completed the third round so decided to go to Citibank in Ginza, get some cash and take care of some banking stuff I've been procrastinating to do. After completing my banking chore I got hungry but as I was in sweats, I was in a dilemma on where to get a good meal in swanky Ginza. Then I thought of Kanoko.
I love Japanese sweets. I actually like them a lot more than American or European sweets. Typically for dessert, Asians, including the Japanese, eat fruit. But in Japan, they have fabulous sweets for an afternoon break with tea. I go to Japanese tea rooms about once every 2 months just to have some of the fabulous sweets. I grew up enjoying the sweets. When my mother took my sister and I to the depaato (department store) on weekends, we usually stopped at a tea cafe for a break. When I was a child, I always ordered Cream Mitsumame. Basically, agar, rice cakes with ice cream. My mother always ordered anmitsu – same thing but with creamed adzuki instead of ice cream. Now, like my mother, I enjoy anmitsu. So off I went to the famous tea shop Kanoko in Ginza.
Kanoko is nice in that it is casual and also has simple a simple lunch menu. The first floor is the confectionary store and the second floor is the tea room. I ordered the special of the day which was chikara udon and anmitsu. The udon had rice cakes in it which is a popular way of serving udon during the cold months. It came with pickles and hit the spot. The anmitsu was SOO GOOD! It is served with a syrup that is similar to maple syrup but less sweet. It even came with a chestnut as chestnuts were in season.
It is quite a different experience than going to an European style tea room. Japanese sweets are also quite different from European sweets in that it is rice and bean based. But very good and healthy!
Chikara Udon
Anmitsu
Kanoko