A Tartan Greeting!

Hello from the Scotland. Home of the Highlander and William Wallace. The whole family made it out here safely without really driving anyone around us too crazy. We had a 10 hour flight from San Francisco to London, a 5 hour layover and an hour flight to Glasgow. Abby was so well behaved and slept for more than 6 hours on her flight to London. We had a bassinet which she barely fit. There was even a belt above her head which prevented her from lifting up her head too much - poor girl. It still helped her sleep for a long time and we were really happy. Other than that, there was a guy behind us who snored so loudly - I've never heard a guy snore more loudly sleeping upright.



We got to Glasgow pretty late and settled into our hotel which is very close to the conference center. It stays very light until quite late at night (10PM or so). Still, we were quite tired and went to sleep pretty quickly. The next day, we went to the city center where we explored some of the shopping district. We found a Marks & Spencer where we bought some desserts for later in the day. We also got some basics for Abby including baby food. One comment on British baby food - they feed their babies things Americans would never dream of feeding their baby at 4-6 months... like "Grandpa's Sunday Lunch" - a combination of carrots, peas, potatoes and chicken or "Shephard's Pie" - veggies and lamb or chocolate pudding or egg custard for that matter. We're embracing the British baby food and letting Abby go crazy with the meats.

In other news, Abby has not only mastered sitting up pretty completely, she is now rolling both from front to back and from back to front (the latter took a while). She has also finally discovered a consonant. After months of "AAAAAAAAAA!!!!", we now have "bababababababababa". It's quite cute (purely objectively speaking of course).

Food:

1. Random hole in the wall British eatery

Here I had fish and chips and Albert had a beef casserole. It was good but too salty and greasy for our taste. I think we've had enough British food for a few days.

2. Wagamama's

We went twice to make sure our assessment was correct. I went to Wagamama's many times in London many years back and loved it... so much so that I asked Albert to get me a T-shirt when he was there. We eagerly anticipated touching down in Glasgow to get our first taste of Wagamama's in a few years and was very very disappointed. The ramen was too salty. The rice was too sticky. The curry sauce was lacking. The rice noodles were al dente. To top it off, the price was nearly $20 a head! I still bought a T-shirt but that's because I love the name - in Japanese it means "spoiled brat". My parents used to call me this all of the time when I was a kid.


3. Mrs. Majhu's

41 Byres Road, Glasgow, Lanarkshire, G11 5RG
T. 0141 339 1339
Lunch here was actually very good and fairly reasonable. For a prix fixe lunch, we were able to share 4 small plates plus some rice and naan all for 8 pounds per person. We had saag paneer, chicken curry and two lamb dishes. All were spiced very well without being too overwhelming. The restaurant was also clean and inviting. Abby slept through the entire meal so Albert and I were able to really relax.

Sights:
1. Kelvingrove Museum

This is one of the most eclectic museums I have ever been to! We loved the fact that over the stuffed elk and moose, you could view an old WWII Spitfire aircraft. In the same museum, there were Matisse paintings as well as a neon Elvis. There were some really pro-Scottish statements in some of the commentary on British history which we also enjoyed.



Beyond our general sightseeing, I am here for a more important purpose - the ICC 2007 conference where I am presenting a paper. I will be spending most of my time at this conference and am limited in my sightseeing for Glasgow. All in all, we thought Glasgow was a lot of fun but we're excited to be moving on!

I admit I am a Japanese food SNOB

This admission doesn't take any strength of character or long introspection. I've come to embrace this fact as if it were a trait of mine to be treasured and cultivated. I admit to calling Japanese restaurants to make sure that the people who work there are Japanese. I can tell from the handwriting on the help wanted signs hanging on the window if the proprietors are Japanese. I'll even turn my nose at an Asian owned Japanese restaurant if I sense that the ownership were not genuinely Japanese. In my own defense, I'd feel this way about most other restaurants. I wouldn't want to go to a Korean restaurant owned by the Japanese - it would probably be too expensive anyway (ahem, Yakiniku Juban). Nor would I want to go to a French restaurant owned by an Italian... or a Greek restaurant owned by a Turk, etc. etc. You get the picture. I like food that is authentic. That said, I have to say that there are "poser" Japanese restaurants and there are ones I could eat at every day. The point of this posting is to guide my friends in the right direction. That doesn't have to mean an expensive direction, mind you. There are Japanese restaurants that are reasonably priced. I've categorized them to make it even easier for my fellow audience:

Sushi Restaurants:

Kanpai Sushi


330 Lytton Ave
Palo Alto, CA 94301
(650) 325-2696

Sometimes I wish I had an even more enthusiastic thumbs up for restaurants I really really love. Kanpai would get one of those. My mother's influence has heavily colored how much I am capable of liking sushi restaurants that are not truly excellent. I can say that Kanpai really meets the bill. The only other restaurant that comes close for sushi is Kaygetsu in Sharon Heights but that is not just a sushi restaurant. You'll find that under Kaiseki. On the peninsula, I would say that this is the best I've found so far.

come to embrace this fact as if it were a trait of mine to be treasured and cultivated. I admit to calling Japanese restaurants to make sure that the people who work there are Japanese. I can tell from the handwriting on the help wanted signs hanging on the window if the proprietors are Japanese. I'll even turn my nose at an Asian owned Japanese restaurant if I sense that the ownership were not genuinely Japanese. In my own defense, I'd feel this way about most other restaurants. I wouldn't want to go to a Korean restaurant owned by the Japanese - it would probably be too expensive anyway (ahem, Yakiniku Juban). Nor would I want to go to a French restaurant owned by an Italian... or a Greek restaurant owned by a Turk, etc. etc. You get the picture. I like food that is authentic. That said, I have to say that there are "poser" Japanese restaurants and there are ones I could eat at every day. The point of this posting is to guide my friends in the right direction. That doesn't have to mean an expensive direction, mind you. There are Japanese restaurants that are reasonably priced. I've categorized them to make it even easier for my fellow audience:


Sushi House


Town and Country Shopping Center
855 El Camino Real Ste 158
Palo Alto, CA 94301
(650) 321-3453

I've been coming here since I was in high school. It's right across the street from Paly High. That said, this is not the place to go if what you are looking for is fine sushi. That said, this place has the best california rolls I've ever had. Their other sushi is adequate but not excellent. Their other kinds of food - chicken salad, fried oysters, etc. are actually quite good. For sushi I would give it two stars and for other foods, three.


Naomi Sushi


1328 El Camino Real
Menlo Park, CA 94025
(650) 321-6902

I actually heard a lot of really good things about Naomi Sushi that I just had to try it. I was fairly optimistic but the sushi was quite a disappointment. I think it was a bit more expensive than Sushi House but the quality was about the same. I hear that Naomi Sushi is, in fact, owned by the same people who own Kanpai. Surprising, because Kanpai is so much more of a superior restaurant. I went once to Naomi and perhaps it was an off night but I'm not planning on ever going back. I'd much rather spend my money at Kanpai.


Teishoku Restaurants: This kind of restaurant serves the type of food my mom makes for dinner. Surprise! Japanese people don't eat sushi everyday and no, the only other option is not chicken, beef or salmon teriyaki. These restaurants will give you a feel for what kinds of other foods we eat!


Gombei


1438 El Camino Real
Menlo Park, CA 94025
(650) 329-1799

If a large, cheap Japanese meal is what you're in search of, this is the place to find it! Gombei isn't fancy nor is this the place to take your girl on a first date, but if your girl appreciates value as this girl does, you're in luck! I highly recommend the croquettes which are flavored with just a little bit of curry. Their tonkatsu is also quite tasty.

Hattoriya


799 San Antonio Rd
Palo Alto, CA 94303
(650) 857-0273

I'm not sure how old this place is but my parents live quite literally a couple of blocks away and didn't know this place existed. I recently took them there and you should have seen the way my dad's eyes lit up. This man hates to eat out and when my mother goes to Japan for a few weeks at a time, he would rather sit at home and eat fermented beans with rice than eat at a restaurant. This will be his new option for good food should my mom not be around to feed him. I highly recommend the hamburg curry as well as the cream crab croquette. The food here is so close to mom's home cooking that my mother declared that she wouldn't cook for a full week and they would eat there instead. It was also good enough that my dad didn't protest. Now in comparison to Gombei, I would say that this place is tastier but maybe a few dollars more expensive. It's about $15 a head with tip.


Kaiseki Restaurants: This type of food is supposed to be the opposite of Teishoku. It is fancy. There are lots of little plates that are delicately put together. Typically, it is also quite expensive.

Yoshida


10700 S De Anza Boulevard
Cupertino, CA 95014
(408) 252-9907

This place really was a let down. If sheer quantity is what you seek, Yoshida is the place for you. Otherwise, it's a huge let down. The sashimi is about as good at Sushi House (listed above). For kaiseki, there is no finesse in the menu items and it feels like the huge trays are trying to cover up the fact that the cook just doesn't have the skillz (yes, that's skillz with a z). If you want authentic kaiseki, you might as well pay up the wazoo and get the real thing. Otherwise, go for one of the Teishoku restaurants or some of the Izakaya restaurants I list later.

Kaygetsu


325 Sharon Park Drive, Ste. A2
Menlo Park, CA 94025
(650) 234-1084

Situated in a strip mall in Sharon Heights - Menlo Park, one would never expect the oasis of Japanese zen you find when you walk into Kaygetsu. The mere mention of Kaygetsu makes my mouth water. At the same time, I also fall into a cold sweat because it is so incredibly expensive. Just to set the tone, my husband and I went to Kaygetsu a while ago. We didn't order any alcohol and it was still over a hundred a head. Don't get me wrong, I think it's worth it. This is quite literally the best Japanese restaurant I've ever been to in the Bay Area... by a wide margin. It's excellent. The food here is competitive with food I've had in Japan.

Other types of Japanese restaurants:

Tanto


1063 E. El Camino Real
Sunnyvale, CA 94087
(408) 244-7311

Tanto is what is known as an izakaya restaurant. This is the equivalent of Japanese tapas. It is really supposed to be a place where you drink lots of sake and eat some food but I go for the food. Their squid dish with rice is very good as is the burnt rice balls. Many of their fish dishes are also done quite well. I also enjoyed their shabu shabu salad and copied it later at home. It has a great loud atmosphere which I really enjoy when I go there. It's fun to go with a bunch of friends and share a bunch of plates.

Himawari-Tei


202 2nd St
San Mateo, CA, 94401
(650) 375-1005

If I had more than just thumbs up and thumbs down, I would give this place thumbs sideways. Himawari-Tei is a ramen restaurant. I love ramen and they do their tonkotsu ramen pretty well but it's not to die for. It's also pretty pricey at $15 a bowl.