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Eating the famous Matsuzaka Beef at Steakhouse Satou

6 April 2015

After savouring the famous Kobe beef at a restaurant in Tokyo’s Ginza area, we planned to make a trip to a suburb in Tokyo where there is a famous steakhouse serving the equally good, if not better, Matsuzaka beef. Matsuzaka Beef comes from the Matsuzaka region, and is consider the top brand of beef in Japan, alongside Kobe beef.

The steakhouse, called Beef Satou, is located in Kichijoji. From Shinjuku Station, we took the westbound JR Chuo Line train heading towards Takao for about 30 minutes. Kichijoji is the 8th station from Shinjuku. There is a covered shopping area on the North exit of the station and the restaurant is located on the 2nd floor, on top of a butcher shop which seems popular too as there was a queue formed buying takeaway stuff from the shop. There was a separate queue for the restaurant.

We arrived at 12 noon and there was already a queue outside for the restaurant. The line of people included both locals and tourists, including a couple with a small child in front of us. We looked at the menu while queuing and made up our mind easily on what to eat later. Although there were cheaper lunch sets, we told ourselves that we must try the best beef in Japan. 

Menu at Steakhouse Satou in English.


Once we made it past the main door, we found ourselves queuing on the steep and narrow stairway leading up to the restaurant. The stairway is about 3 feet wide and we stood on one side while allowing barely enough space for those who had finished their meal to exit on the other side. When we reached the top of the stairway, we were asked for our orders. We ordered the 200g Sirloin Steak (Chef Recommendations) for 10,000 Yen each. After receiving our orders, the staff went below to fetch our steak.

The staff showed us the Matsuzaka beef that we ordered. The guy in front of us suddenly told the staff he wants to change his order. He changed his order from the lunch set to the Chef Recommendation once he saw the quality of the beef. Irresistible for him too!

The restaurant only has about 12 small tables and we were fortunate to get seats in front of the chef and hence we got to see and take photos of the cooking.

Salad as appetisers while the beef is being cooked.


Seasoning the beef with salt and pepper just before dicing them. 


Grilling on the metal plate (teppanyaki style). Note the queuing customers at the top of narrow stairway and taking photos while waiting for the next available table.


A couple of minutes each side for our medium rare beef.


 Covering the beef with the metal cover for a minute or so.


 Final product – Medium Rare A5 Grade Matsuzaka Beef steak with fried bean sprouts, mushrooms, sliced carrots and garlic.  So soft and tender that we could eat it with chop sticks and not a fork and knife.


 This picture shows the marbling on the diced beef. “Melts in your mouth” tenderness and juiciness.


I must confess that this was even better than the Kobe Beef I had a few days ago in Ginza. If I ever visit Tokyo again, I would try to eat this grade of beef again.


Address:

Steakhouse Satou
1-1-8 Kichijoji-Honcho,
Musashino-shi,
Tokyo.

Lunch: 11:00 am - 03:00 pm; Dinner: 05:00 pm - 09:00 pm. 

Try to arrive before opening time to avoid long queue.

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Inokashira Park in Kichijoji

6 April 2015

Inokashira Park? Kichijoji?

Most visitors to Tokyo would not have heard of the park or Kichikoji.

We came all the way to Kichijoji to eat the famous Matsuzaka Beef in the restaurant called Beef Satou. After lunch we spent some time exploring this little suburb of Tokyo and stumbled upon the Inokashira Park. Great place to be during the Sakura season as this park has loads of beautiful cherry trees by the lake.


The Beef Satou restaurant is located in a covered shopping area by the Kichijoji Station where there are shops catering mostly to locals. However, we spotted a kimono shop with western looking mannequins.


 Kimono shop with western looking mannequins


After we got tired of shopping (or rather window shopping), we wandered south of the train station and found ourselves in Inokashira Park where there were cherry trees with sakuras in bloom.  There were quite a lot of folks rowing boats on the lake and admiring the cherry blossoms from the boats. This is the place to be if you are the romantic type. The park also has a mini zoo.

For me, the best thing after an excellent meal was to sit on a park bench, under the slight shade of the cherry trees, enjoy the cool air, sunshine, relax and do some people watching.

 Guy with a guitar.


 This “swan” seems to be stuck.


 Hanami parties at the park.


 Fallen petals of the cherry blossoms. In a few more days and all the flowers would have fallen.


I could have sat there and chill till dinner time and then go eat more Matsuzaka Beef but the ‘'tourist” in me told me that I should to go back to Shinjuku as there are still places to see. We decided to head back to Tokyo to see the Meiji Shrine which is located in the Yoyogi Park before the sky gets dark.

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Visit to Meiji Shrine in Tokyo

6 April 2015

Meiji Shrine is located within Yoyogi Park. The Meiji Shrine is a shrine dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji (first emperor of modern Japan) and his consort, Empress Shoken. The entrance to the park is next to the Harajuku Station. As in most entrances to Japanese shrines, there is a huge wooden torii gate at the park entrance.

We had to walk quite a distance on a gravel pathway through a forested area to get to the shrine. Along the path, we passed huge barrels of sake on the right side of the path and wine barrels on the other.  The sake barrels are donated  by Meiji Jingu Nationwide Sake Brewers Association and the wine barrels seemed to have come all the way from France.

 Yoyogi ParkSake barrels on the right side of the path towards the shrine.


Wine barrels seemed to have come all the way from France, on the left side of the path.



Purification Fountain.



Another torii gate at entrance to the shrine complex.


Spacious courtyard area inside the complex.

 20150406_155333Looking out from one of the side gates.


Details of one the lamps in the corridor surrounding the complex.


Worshippers paying respect.


Worshippers writing their wishes on ema tablets (wooden wishing plaques) and then hanging it on the board round a divine tree.



Overall we spent slightly over an hour walking through Yoyogi Park and visiting the Meiji Shrine itself.

 

 




 



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Hakone and Kawaguchiko side trip from Tokyo – Day 1

7 April 2015

We would not be expecting to ride on a Western-style pirate ship in Japan, but we did.   That was when we made a side trip from Tokyo to Hakone and Kawaguchiko.

Many tourists visit Hakone with the aim of seeing Mount Fuji and doing it as a day trip from Tokyo. We felt that we had more time on our hands and decided to travel to Hakone by train, do the recommended Hakone sightseeing course, stay overnight in Hakone before travelling to Kawaguchiko by bus for an overnight stay in a ryokan and returning to Shinjuku by bus. Hopefully, we get to see a lot of Mount Fuji along the way. This is the itinerary that was suggested and covered by the Fuji Hakone Pass.

The Fuji Hakone Pass (cost 7,400 Yen) is a rail pass for exclusive use by non-Japanese passport holders.

It consists of:

1)   A round trip to the Mount Fuji Region by Odakyu Railways and Fujikyu/Keio highway bus. 

2)   Unlimited use of buses, trains, boats, cable-car and ropeway in the free area around Hakone and the Fuji Five Lakes on three consecutive days. 

3)   Discounted admission to selected tourist attractions. 

Our trip started and ended in Shinjuku Station and that’s the place to buy the Fuji Hakone pass. We booked ourselves into the Hotel Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku for the nights before and after our trip out of Shinjuku. Compared to the APA Hotel Ginza Kyobashi, the double room we had in Hotel Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku was much more spacious for the price paid and the hotel is a short walking distance to the Shinjuku Station (one of my main booking criteria).

The Fuji Hakone Pass does not cover seats on the Odakyu Limited Express "Romance Car" so I made online bookings before our trip. Weather-wise, the best time to visit Hakone and Kawaguchiko is when there is good clear weather. Unfortunately, the forecast was for rain during our planned excursion dates and we had no choice but to go ahead with our plan since we are tourists and our time in Japan is fixed.

We booked and collected our Fuji Hakone Pass from the Odakyu Sightseeing Service Center the day before. This place was not easy to find in the busy Shinjuku Station and the map we had was not detailed enough. 

On the morning of the travel, we checked into the gates and got to the train platform where there is a cafe selling breakfast. We had coffee and pastries there while waiting to board the 7.27 AM train from Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto Station. As I had made my bookings early, we were able to sit in the first car with good views.


 Inside the Odakyu Limited Express "Romance Car" with good views of the track.


Unfortunately, the weather forecast was accurate and it rained en-route as forecasted and Mount Fuji was covered in clouds. Otherwise, Fuji-san should be viewable from the train as it approaches Hakone. Signs of things to expect on this trip.

Odakyu Limited Express Cherry blossoms at their peak as seen from the speeding train. See the low clouds.


We arrived at the Hakone Yumoto Station and dropped off our overnight bag at the luggage forwarding service counter. It costs 700 yen (discounted price with our Fuji Hakone Pass) to send one piece of our overnight luggage to our hotel (Hakone Yumoto Onsen Pax Yoshino) in the Hakone area.  We had left our main luggage at the Shinjuku Hotel, to be collected after our Hakone/Kawaguchiko trip.


Odakyu Limited Express Arrival at the Hakone Yumoto Station.


Hakone Yumoto Station Tile showing the Lake Ashi Boat on the station floor.


Free of our hand luggage, we were ready to embark on the sightseeing course round Hakone when we saw a sign informing us that the Hakone Ropeway to the Owakudani site was not operating due to weather. This was supposed to be one of the main highlights of the Hakone sightseeing course. Nevertheless, we decided to follow the course all the way to the start of the ropeway and backtrack down to Hakone and go to our hotel early in the worst case.

From the Hakone-Yumoto Station, we took the Hakone Tozan Railway as per the sightseeing course. The train went through a narrow, densely wooded valley, gaining more than 300 meters in altitude and took us to Gora and the pouring rain. There were supposedly nice shops around Gora. No more walking around Gora. Instead, we sat and had something to eat in the Gora Station, deciding our next moves.

Hakone Sightseeing CourseHeavy rain in Gora.


We were deciding whether to the Gora to Sounzan cablecar which will bring us to the Sounzan station to take the ropeway which is not operating or to turn back and go to our hotel early since the weather is bad.

We decided to go for the ride on the cablecar (actually a furnicular) to Sounzan and back since we already paid for it (included in the Fuji Hakone Pass). To our nice surprise, buses have been arranged to take us to the Owakudani site as a workaround for the ropeway closure. Hurrah! We could get to Owakudani after all.

There was a queue for the buses but soon enough, we boarded the bus and got to the Owakudani site. Ōwakudani (大涌谷) is the area around a crater created during the last eruption of Mount Hakone some 3000 years ago.  Today, this is a place to go see the sulfurous fumes, hot springs and geological activities. 

It was still raining when we came down from the bus. Armed with an umbrella and our rain jackets, we braved the weather like many others before us and took the short walking trail (about ten minutes one way) that led from the ropeway station into the volcanic zone, to a number of steam vents and bubbling pools.

Hakone Sightseeing CourseOutside the Ōwakudani (大涌谷)Visitor center.


Hakone Sightseeing Course

Armed with an umbrella and our rain jackets, we braved the weather like many others before us and took the short walking trail.



We crossed over a steaming hot stream on the way to the the volcanic zone where there were more steam vents and bubbling pools.

Hopefully no eruptions during our visit!

 Steam vents and hot pools at the Owakudani volcanic area.


Just as we arrived at the end of the trail, the rain lightened to a drizzle and stopped. This helped to make it easier for me to get some photos of the unique landscape.

  Thanking the heavens for stopping the rain while we were at the slopes.


Here we could purchase eggs, cooked in the naturally hot water of 80 to 90 degree C, whose shells are blackened by the sulphur and which are said to prolong one's life by seven years.


 Eggs cooking in the hot spring water.


 Five eggs per bag were selling for 500 yen.


 Tasted like normal hard-boiled eggs but in the cold weather, the warm eggs were delicious to eat and good to warm the cold hands.


After extending our lives by at least seven years, we headed back to the visitor center and found that the ropeway from Owakudani to Togendai where we were to take the Lake Ashi cruise were operating.

Hurrah!

But no sight of Mount Fuji in this weather.

Sigh!

 Owakudani to Togendai Ropeway - Our view from the ropeway cabin.


What we saw at the end of the ropeway journey was a couple of  boats that would take us from Togendai to Hakone-machi, located across Lake Ashi.  The boats were dressed up to looked like Western-style pirate ships, with masts, sails and all.


 Our pirate ships waiting for us as we left the Togendai Ropeway Station.


 There were even cannons on the boat.


20150407_125432View from our boat – no Mount Fuji to be seen.


The rain started again while we were on the “pirate ship”. We alighted at Hakone-machi where we planned to have lunch and then walk to Moto-Hakone. The Checkpoint Museum, Detached Palace Garden and the Ancient Cedar Avenue are located along this attractive walk from Hakone-machi to Moto-Hakone but we were planning to do the Ancient Cedar Avenue walk only.

Walking in the rain along the main road towards Moto-Hakone, we stopped at a restaurant (箱根明か蔵) for lunch. 


 Good service and great tasting food from this restaurant on a wet day.


After lunch, we walked in the light rain along the ancient Cedar Avenue as planned. This was supposed to be a nice walk under the shade of the 400 years old trees. But not so nice with wet shoes and feet. We spotted another couple ahead of us. So we were not the only crazy tourists who went walking in the rain.

 Another couple ahead of us along the ancient Cedar Avenue.


We aborted the idea of more walking along the old Tokaido trail to the Amazake Chaya. Instead, we made a beeline for the Hakone-Jinja shrine, just to see and photograph the red torii gate by the waters of Lake Ashi.


 Nice view of boats on Lake Ashi on the way from Hakone Machi to Moto Hakone.


 Fisherman and Lake Ashi. The red torii gate of Hakone-Jinja shrine can be seen in the distance.


About 15 minutes later, we were at the entrance leading to the Hakone Jinja shrine. To get to the shrine itself, we had to tackle some stairs uphill.

20150407_144909Torii gate at the path towards the Hakone Jinja shrine.


 Hakone Jinja shrine.


Despite the intermittent rain, the shrine had a fair amount of visitors and worshippers.

 Could tell that this shrine has been around for a long long time.



We made our way down to edge of the lake to view the red torii gate on the shore. We learnt that this gate is also called the Peace Torii of Hakone Shrine.

 Peace Torii of Hakone Shrine by the shore of Lake Ashi.


Although the rain has stopped by the time we finished seeing Hakone Shrine, we were tired and longing for the comfort of the ryokan. To get to our ryokan (Hakone Yumoto Onsen Pax Yoshino), we took an express bus from Moto Hakone to the Yumoto Station.

Upon arrival, we checked out the location of the bus stop for the next morning‘s travel to Kawaguchi-ko, We also browse through the shops along the main street near the station as we knew that we would not have time to do this the next day. 

The ryokan was a short walk away from the station, through some rustic looking houses.


 Nice walk to our ryokan from the bus and train station.


 Our room at the Hakone Yumoto Onsen Pax Yoshino.


We had not stayed in a ryokan before, so plenty for us to learn about ryokan etiquette. Upon check in, a guide showed us the process of taking off our shoes at the entrance, slipping on slippers and not walking on the tatami mats with shoes on. Then she showed us the yukatas we could wear to dinner later and then confirmed the time for our dinner.

Our room came with an attached semi-open bath and a shower area with views of the river.

20150408_064836Views of the river from the room. The building across the river looked like another hotel/ryokan.


Unlike typical ryokans with dinner served in the room, our multi-course dinner was served in a communal dining room with standard western style tables. The food was amazingly well presented and tasty.

 Appetisers.


 Grilled fish seasoned with miso.


 Horse mackeral dumpling soup, tofu, japanese radish, carrot, bran and warehousie boiled on table top stove.


 Tuna, sea bream, scallop sashimi (top) and simmered steamed red snapper (bottom).


 Grilled wagyu with pumpkin, baby corn, sweet pea, paprika and mushroom.


After dinner, we went back to our room and found that our futons were already laid out on the tatami mats while we were at dinner. But it was too early for bed and one of the highlights of visiting Hakone is to experience the onsens.

During check-in, we had booked a private hot spring bath/onsen to have a soak after our dinner.

The onsen was located on the highest floor of the hotel. We had one hour to ourselves. The constantly flowing natural spring water was hot!

 Private onsen room for two persons at the Hakone Yumoto Onsen Pax Yoshino.


Although the bath was semi-open, with views of the river that flows next to the hotel in the day, we could only hear the gushing of the water as it was dark outside.

Overall, it was quite a good experience soaking in the hot water and then cooling down in the cold night air before getting another soak. A good way to end the day.

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