Japanese bar district to get bilingual wristbands to help start/avoid conversations while drinking
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cherishe
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There are more than 600 bars and pubs in Noge, and these wristbands seek to help you find one that’s just right for you.
There’s nothing quite like heading out for a drink, finding a bar with a great atmosphere, and meeting new people over a couple of cold ones…except maybe heading out for a drink, finding a bar with a great atmosphere, and just relaxing as you leisurely and quietly sip your drink and enjoy some mental me time.
Of course, it’s not always easy for other people to know which of those opposite ends of the reason-for-going-to-a-bar spectrum you’re on, which brings us to an idea being presented in Noge, a neighborhood in Yokohama said to have more than 600 bars and pubs.
Called Tonight’s Wristband, or Konya no Wristband in Japanese, they were developed by a woman with a love of sake and an American expat living in Yokohama. Each band has a declaration of what sort of mood you’re in, written in both English and Japanese, to help people looking to make new friends break the ice or people who aren’t in the mood for conversation politely turn down such overtures in advance.
There’s a total of six wristbands in the set, divided into three color-coded categories. The gregarious green bands are for those looking to actively mingle and chat about anything.
The yellow bands are a bit more focused in their conversational scope. They’re especially suited for those new in town/new in bar, who’re looking for recommendations from the staff or regular customers on what to see and drink in Yokohama.
Finally, the red bands are a non-verbal thanks-but-no-thanks.
Produced with coordination from H.K. Design and business planning consultants TransomKnot, the wristbands are being promoted under the See You in Noge project name. The plan is to start offering them for sale to individuals or bars this summer, priced at 500 yen (US$3.40) for the set, but between now and April 30 a limited number of sets are being given away as free samples, which can be requested by following the See You in Noge Twitter or Instagram accounts (here and here) and then sending a direct message.
Source, images: PR Times ● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
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Sukiya closes its beef bowl restaurants in Japan after rat and cockroach contamination
09:13
cherishe
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There are some surprises you don’t want in your gyudon…so we explore other options.
Beef bowl lovers around Japan were shaken to the core recently, following two high-profile cases of food contamination at popular gyudon restaurant chain Sukiya. One customer in Tokyo reportedly found a cockroach in their meal, just weeks after it was revealed that a customer in Tottori Prefecture found a rat in their miso soup.
After issuing a formal apology to the public, Sukiya announced it would be closing all its branches in Japan, save for a few mall locations, from the morning of 31 March to the morning of 4 April.
▼ Our local branch, closed until 9 a.m. on 4 April.
The note in the window reads:
To customers,
We would like to sincerely apologise to our customers for the inconvenience and discomfort caused by the recent incident of foreign objects being found in products at some Sukiya stores.
Sukiya takes this situation very seriously and will close all stores nationwide, with the exception of a few, from 9:00 am on Monday, 31 March to 9:00 am on Friday, 4 April. During this time, we will conduct thorough cleaning to ensure our stores are clean and sanitised.
All our staff will continue to work hard until the day you can visit us again with peace of mind.
We would like to express our sincere regret and ask for your continued patronage in the future.
With the incidents causing consternation amongst beef bowl lovers, everyone can agree that this is a sad state of affairs. It became such a hot topic for our team of beef bowl-loving Japanese-language reporters that they even held a meeting about it, and as they expressed their views, they all agreed there were some things nobody wants to see in their gyudon.
But then they got to thinking…might there be some other so-called “foreign objects” that they wouldn’t mind seeing?
Putting their creative minds to work, they grabbed a pack of Sukiya’s frozen gyudon from the nearby supermarket for 538 yen (US$3.66).
▼ The bag contains three servings of gyudon.
So what would our team think if they found these “foreign objects” in their beef bowls?
Starting with the olives, these turned out to be a good match. Sure, they were visually striking, standing out against the muted hues of the traditional ingredients in the bowl, but the salty flavours paired well with the soy sauce-based seasoning in the meat topping, making them the firmest of friends.
Moving on to another salty pairing, we have “bainiku“, which literally translates as “plum meat” but is actually umeboshi (pickled plum) flesh.
While we wouldn’t normally want to see any other type of “meat” interfering with our beef, we’ll make an exception for plum flesh, as it pairs well with the rice and adds a tart sweetness to the topping.
With the pickled plum adding some traditional flair to the bowl, we continued the Japanese theme with wasabi mayonnaise.
Mixing the two together allowed us to control the spice levels, and adding them to the gyudon enhanced its deliciousness tremendously.
Moving on to something a little more unorthodox, we have…
▼ …butter.
Anything with butter is a win in our eyes, and this was no exception. In fact, it was so good that we began to question why Sukiya had never thought to release a Butter Gyudon, and if we had some cheese to add, it would’ve made things even better.
With the olives and seasonings being a hit, it was time to beef things up, literally and figuritively, with a dollop of yakisoba.
Fried noodles bring extra carbs and extra depth of flavour to the mix, making it feel like some sort of guilty pleasure a student might mash together at a university cafeteria.
In the spirit of mashing things together, the team decided to put everything into the bowl, creating something that no longer even looked like gyudon.
This really throws the rule book out the window, but after tasting it, the team realised rules were meant to be broken.
It was sinfully good, with all the flavours melding seamlessly together for a decadent feast. However, all the added toppings made this a pretty expensive beef bowl, so if our reporters had to choose just one foreign object in their gyudon, it would have to be olives for their unusual, salty accent.
While our reporters may have tried to see the silver lining in the Sukiya incident, they all agree the incident itself is no laughing matter. It’s one thing for Mr Sato to throw caution to the wind when it comes to food hygiene, but another thing entirely when it’s your favourite gyudon chain. Sukiya still has a lot of work to do to win back their customers’ trust, so perhaps they should extend an olive branch by adding free olives to their beef bowls, as an initial peace offering.
Japan’s unofficial but approved Ghibli anime cafe is opening a new branch and looking for staff
19:13
cherishe
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Kodama is expanding with a new location closer to the Ghibli theme park.
Kodama, or Osu no Mori Cafe Kodama, occupies a unique spot in the dining scene. On the one hand, even a quick glance at the Nagoya eatery will tell you that it’s a Studio Ghibli anime-themedcafe. Everywhere you look you’ll see characters, settings, and other artwork from the films of the esteemed animation studio co-founded by director Hayao Miyazaki.
It’s not just the interior decorations that are Ghibli-style either, as a number of menu items are clear references to scenes or design points from the anime, and then there’s the cafe’s name, “Kodama,” which is not so coincidentally the name of the rattle-headed forest spirits in Princess Mononoke
But while Kodama is clearly a Ghibli-themed cafe, it’s also very much not a Ghibli cafe, in the sense that the restaurant is not owned by, operated by, or otherwise officially associated with the studio. It’s just a cafe whose owners really like Ghibli anime, and decided to put that affection for the studio’s works into the design of their restaurant and menu.
Having gotten this indirect stamp of approval, Kodama has carried on with business as Ghibli-usual, and has been so successful that it’s now opening a second branch!
As announced through the cafe’s Twitter and Instagram accounts on Monday, the new branch will be located in Fujigaoka, a Nagoya neighborhood east of the city center, making it possible to add a Kodama side-trip to your itinerary on your way to or from Ghibli Park in the town of Nagakute.
▼ Route from Fujigaoka Station to Ghibli Park
In addition, the announcement says that Kodama is looking for part-time staff for their new location, with minimum requirements of at least two days a week with four-hour shifts (more specifics can be found in the second slide of the cafe’s Instagram post embedded below).
An exact opening date for Kodama’s Fujigaoka branch has yet to be announced, but the posts also say that the new cafe will be getting its own social media accounts in May, so a late-spring opening date seems the most likely scenario. Meanwhile, if you’re looking for an opportunity to work with Ghibli itself, the studio is currently hiring too, seeking artists for its upcoming new short anime project.
Why did the crazy-expensive version of Japan’s super-cheap corn snack sell out? We ask the artist
11:13
cherishe
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For the price of the 100,000-yen modern art Umaibo you could get over 6,600 of the regular puffed corn snacks, and whether its buyers will display or eat their new snacks remains to be seen.
We all have those beloved snacks from our childhood, and in Japan Umaibo is just as popular as Lunchables, Wagon Wheels, or Tim Tams are in their corners of the world. A simple puffed corn snack, it comes in an easy-to-hold tube shape and more than 15 different flavors. There have been countless variations over the years, from the fan-favorite corn potage to teriyaki burger.
For most of its life, Umaibo remained at the bargain price of just 10 yen (US$0.07), making it a go-to choice for school kids with little pocket money. Although its price has increased twice in recent years, the current cost of 15 yen is still very reasonable. Not long ago, though, we reported on an artist who shook up the status quo by collaborating with Yaokin Corporation (the makers of Umaibo) to create an Umaibo priced at a whopping 100,000 yen (US$668.90), or 110,000 yen after tax.
A total of 50 were made and, while one is still on exhibition (details can be found below), the others were sold out the day they went on sale. Demand was so high that they had to be sold via a lottery system.
▼ A notice at the exhibition gallery stating the Umaibo as one of the sold-out products
We at SoraNews24 were fortunate enough to get an opportunity to interview Tomokazu Matsuyama, the artist behind the plan, to learn more about the thought processes that went into his Umaibo creation, and sent out our Japanese-language reporter, Masanuki Sunakoma, to meet up with him.
Masanuki: This has received an amazing response.
Tomokazu: Thank you. It’s often said that art can be lofty and noble, and while I didn’t want to popularize that notion, I wondered if there was something I could do to bridge the gap.
Masanuki: So you chose Umaibo?
Tomokazu: “robably everyone has experienced saying something like “I like the spicy cod roe flavor,” or “You’re definitely a salami-flavor fan.” People seem to project their own identities onto Umaibo.
Being something so universal, I wondered if there was a way I could equate the ‘universality of mass pop culture’ with the ‘universality of art.’ Of course, if you think about it simply as a snack, the price is about 10,000 times what Umaibo usually costs, and that’s where society reacted.
Masanuki: I can understand why people would be surprised at a 100,000 yen Umaibo.
Tomokazu: Exactly. I wanted to explore how the attribution of value changes as we become adults. The Umaibo hasn’t been altered in any way. It’s still the same Umaibo you could buy for just 15 yen. There’s not even a signature. In truth, if the printing was done in a solid silver color it would have cost less than 10 yen. The only thing I did was include a minimalist line drawing inspired by 1,000 origami paper cranes to symbolize the sentiment people attach to it.
▼ Folding 1,000 cranes is seen as a symbol of an earnest wish or desire in Japanese culture, and they’re often placed at peace memorials.
Tomokazu: In other words, the [100,000-yen Umaibo] itself has no inherent value. Nevertheless, it became a popular topic due to online and television coverage. When it sold out, people who managed to buy one felt relieved that they managed to purchase it.
Masanuki: Because the packaging is silver, you would think that it’s more expensive, but in fact it’s the opposite. Even I wanted to buy one.
Tomokazu: That’s how value is created. If there are many people that want to buy something, the value will increase. I saw an interesting segment on the television. When they were displaying my artwork, none of the hosts or guests wanted to touch it. A simple Umaibo, costing only 10 yen, transformed into a legitimate piece of art.
Masanuki: So, value is determined by the story behind the object.
Tomokazu: There are many different standards for values surrounding artworks. Something being amazing or not is just the result of whether people believe in the created story of the piece. Wouldn’t it instead be more interesting if we created that story together?
▼ Another of Tomokazu’s artworks on display at his exhibition
Masanuki: That’s fascinating. By the way, what is your favorite flavor of Umaibo?
Tomokazu: From a young age, I grew up in the United States, so I never got to be part of the Umaibo culture. I can’t really say which one I like best. I’m actually quite envious because I didn’t get to experience it myself. I just watched others eat it and copied them.
Masanuki: I like the spicy cod roe flavor.
Tomokazu: I see. When I visited Yaokin I asked to try a variety of flavors, but still couldn’t decide. That said, I also tried the Premium Umaibo, and it was delicious. You should definitely try it.
Masanuki: I’ll be sure to. Thank you very much for your time today. I’m looking forward to your future activities.
While it’s not possible to buy any more, you can still go and see the 100,000-yeb Umaibo for yourself at Tomokazu’s First Last exhibition, which is running until May 11 at the Azabudai Hills Gallery in Tokyo.
If you’re intrigued by how value is shaped by the stories we create, or if you just really love Umaibo and want to see the world’s most expensive one, this exhibition is definitely worth checking out.
Exhibition information
First Last
Address: Tokyo-to, Minato-ku, Toranomon 5-8-1 Azabudai Hills Gallery
東京都港区虎ノ門5-8-1 麻布台ヒルズ ギャラリー
Open: 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. (7:00 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays and days before national holidays)
Exhibition runs until May 11, 2025
Ticket prices: 2,200 yen (advance, online or from Lawson convenience stores); 2,400 yen at the gallery Website
Our Japanese writers share times they were the fool in honor of April Fools Day
09:13
cherishe
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It may be factual, may be cruel. Everybody plays the fool.
It is once again time to celebrate April Fool’s Day, which back in the day meant 65 percent of everything you read on the Internet was fake, but recently seems to have died down to a more tolerable 10 to 20 percent. That’s why we thought we would do something completely different this year and share 11 stories of when our Japanese writers made fools of themselves.
So why not take a moment and embrace the schadenfreude in these tales of awkwardness and bodily fluids?
Episode No. 1: Mr. Sato’s “Illusion”
Everyone must have been tricked by an illusion at least once in their life. We’ve all had the experience of being confused by seeing something that shouldn’t exist, or at least exist in a particular place. I know I have, and looking back I’m sure it was just an illusion…
When I was in my early 20s, I worked as a track maintenance guy for a railway. Large-scale railway work is usually done overnight when the trains aren’t running. One time, I was working up in the mountains when I took a break to relieve myself in some nearby bushes.
Just then, I saw something white moving at my feet. “Could this be a white snake?!” I thought to myself excitedly. Knowing that white snakes are said to bring good luck, I rushed back to get a flashlight to see it for myself.
When I returned to the bushes I shone the light where I saw the white thing move… only to reveal it was the foam from my own urine. I must have been quite the sight standing there in the bushes and shining a light on my own pee.
Ever since I was a child, I always hated getting injections. I especially loathed the mass vaccinations they had in elementary school to the point that it made me nauseous. Not only was the pain unbearable for me, but the time I had to spend in the hallway outside the nurse’s office dreading the shots was also hell.
About 30 years ago I was in the later grades of elementary school and despairing about the upcoming vaccination I was going to get in school. It was my first shot in a few years and I had thought those days were behind me. I really wanted to get out of it, so after some thinking… I had an idea! Perhaps, if I developed a slight fever, I wouldn’t have to get the vaccination.
My first idea was to catch a cold by taking a cold bath, but I didn’t go through with it because it was too risky. Then, I considered just playing sick and skipping school, but I gave up on that idea too, because people would know I was avoiding school because I was scared.
In the end, I came up with the following plan: When it got to be my turn to get the shot, I’d just fake a stomachache and go to the bathroom. There I could raise my body temperature by doing squats and shadow boxing. I believed that through vigorous exercise I could trick the thermometer. It seemed foolproof…
And it was! Kind of… My plan went off without a hitch and I ended up being the only one who didn’t have to get the vaccine, which meant I didn’t have to freak out in front of everyone else. However, my teacher told me afterward that I had to go to the hospital another day to get the vaccine. It was my first real taste of defeat and I vowed from then on to never do anything stupid again.
Episode No. 3: Masanuki Sunakoma’s “Innocence”
When I was in sixth grade, I kicked a snowman with all my might, but it was frozen and I injured my foot so badly it took six weeks to recover.
Episode No. 4: P.K. Sanjun’s “Fainting”
This happened over 25 years ago. Back then I was always avoiding going to the dentist. It got to the point that I could feel a frighteningly large hole open up in my tooth when I touched it with my tongue, but I still stayed away from the dentist for about two years. My cavity was hurting so badly that I started taking over-the-counter painkillers every day and somehow just put up with it.
Then, one day when I was watching a baseball game with my best friend at what was then called Chiba Marine Stadium, something happened. After taking too much Loxonin and alcohol, I passed out in the restroom and by the time I woke up, the game had ended. No one was left in the stadium and it looked like something out of pop duo Yuzu’s music video for “Eiko no Kakehashi.”
▼ For reference
Outside, my best friend was sitting on the hood of my car, looking at me furiously. We got into a big fight with him shouting, “Where have you been?!”
It was clearly my fault. I should have gone to the dentist long before, but I just put up with the pain until it got the better of me. It was bound to happen at some point, so this is the tale of a fool who didn’t know the meaning of patience.
I was at Summer Sonic in 2004, and after the festival, I was still pumped up, so I went to a bar where I heard foreign performers often go.
Sure enough, there were a lot of foreigners inside and it got me even more pumped. At that time, all the people standing around the bar were buzzing that the guitarist for Sum 41 was in the bar. That was amazing! I loved Sum 41 and if I could meet them there, it would have been a memory that I could cherish my whole life!
That being said, I had no idea what the guitarist for Sum 41 looked like. I was too shy to ask the others, but just then I saw a foreigner that looked like someone in Sum 41 sitting right in front of me.
I sheepishly asked him to take a photo with me and he kindly agreed. He really did look and act like a guy from Sum 41, so much so that I got a picture of us together. I was so happy, but when I showed the photo to my friend…
He was just a normal foreigner having a drink in the bar. My friend asked why I wanted a photo of that guy. Sure, I didn’t know what they looked like, but I was so obsessed with that group I had to take a chance. It’s just too bad it didn’t pan out, and I went home much less excitedly.
Episode No. 6: Takashi Harada’s “Assumption”
I’ve talked about this before, but a while ago I once accumulated a lot of debt without even realizing it. To tell the truth, it was actually over one million yen (US$6,700) and the reason was that my credit card was the kind that only took out high-interest loans.
I only have myself to blame for just assuming I could just pay off the original amount and not checking my statements properly. Anyway I look at it, I was just a complete fool and even now when I think back to that time, I shudder and wonder what if I didn’t notice it when I did…
A lot of people probably get new credit cards in the spring, so be careful because they can be surprisingly dangerous.
Episode No. 7: Ahiruneko’s “Because of Youth”
Over 15 years ago, during the first Golden Week holidays after I started working, my long-distance girlfriend came to visit. At that time, I was living with my parents so we often went to love hotels for an hour or two and ended up spending 50,000 yen ($333) on bills during that week.
I didn’t think anything of it at the time, but all my older co-workers sure did. Again and again, I would have the following exchange with one of them:
Co-worker:“Hey, Ahiruneko, how much did you spend on love hotels during Golden Week again?” Me:“50,000 yen.” Co-worker:“Hahaha!”
Looking back on it, 50,000 at love hotels in Sapporo was too much money for many different reasons. I’ll just blame it on my youth.
Episode No. 8: Mariko Ohanabatake’s “I meant to say thanks…”
About 10 years ago, I took a trip to Korea with some friends. It was my first time there and I was really excited about it, but whenever I thanked the staff in stores, everyone looked embarrassed or made strange faces for some reason. Actually, it was more like they were giggling at me.
In Korean, the word for “thank you” is “gamsahabnida” but I had been mistakenly saying “salanghaeyo” which means “I love you” to everyone, and enthusiastically too. It dawned on me that I was some crazy lady repeatedly telling every clerk I met in a foreign country that I loved them.
Still, I lucked out when my taxi driver gave me a little extra change back and I got to see a hot guy at one of the cafes blush. Maybe it was the salanghaeyo effect.
Episode No. 9: Yuichiro Wasai’s “Opposite Effect”
This is really stupid but no laughing matter. The other day, I did a stretch that I saw on social media that was supposed to be good for lower back pain but the next morning I was stiffer than ever. I couldn’t sleep for about a week after because of the pain and it still hurts now.
When I asked my chiropractor about it he told me it was a stretch that no one should ever do. I can’t stop kicking myself for taking some random health advice from the Internet and putting it into practice, so hopefully by sharing this, I can save someone else from the same fate. Be careful, everyone!
Episode No. 10: Go Hatori’s “Habitual Phrases”
Whenever I get done watching a dirty video, I end up feeling empty. That’s why I have this habit where I say out loud to myself, “You dumbass!” Then, I say to myself “Enough, enough… I’ve had enough of this…” and turn off the video. I should probably just keep quiet, but I can’t help calling myself an idiot at that point. So, whether in Japan or abroad, if you hear someone shout “You dumbass!” from the next hotel room, it’s probably me.
Episode No. 11: Yoshio’s “Slips of the Tongue”
I’ve been making a lot of slips of the tongue recently. I just can’t seem to find or remember certain words, names, or dates. So, I would like to share some of my more horrible slips of the tongue that my wife keeps track of on her phone.
1) I once called a burrito a “Gabriel.”
2) I once described a place as a “two-story single-story house.”
3) I once remarked that Son Heung-min “doesn’t even seem Japanese anymore.”
4) I once accidentally called the musical group YOASOBI “Yotsubai” (down on all fours).
5) I once called the Asagaya Sisters comedy team the “Setagaya Couple” mistaking both their hometown and relation to each other.
6) When talking about the comedy duo Ogiyahagi, I can never remember which one is Ogi and which one is Yahagi.
But I refuse to let this get me down. I’ll keep living the way I want to.
And that wraps up our foolish behavior showcase ranging from the mild to the life-threatening. If you would like to vote on which writer was the biggest fool, then just click your choice on the poll below.
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