They dined, they wrote and were voted the most helpful.  Congratulations to our top 3 winners for June’s Menuism Restaurant Reviewer Contest. Between the 3 of them, they garnered a total of 323 helpful votes.  Wow!  This trio definitely knows their stuff and apparently, many of you agreed.  Hat’s off to them and if you’d like to keep up with their reviews, check out their profiles below.

BananaWoo from Minnesota

menubuzz from Virginia

Megster11187 from Washington DC

As you can see, all three of our winners also received some prize money and if you’d like a chance to compete, than be sure to click this link to get more info on the July Menuism Restaurant Reviewer Contest. Good luck and maybe, in a month, we’ll be announcing you as winner as well.

Hey everyone! Just a quickie post to let you know that Menuism has a Facebook Page and is also on Twitter and we’d love to connect with as many of you as we can.  Please see links below.

Fan Menuism on Facebook

Follow Menuism on Twitter

Follow Menuism Co-Founder, Justin Chen, on Twitter

Follow Community Manager, Abby Abanes, on Twitter

By the way, if you decide to follow us on Twitter, please let us know that you’re a member of Menuism, so that we could follow you back as well!

Pizza, like so many other foods, did not originate in the country for which it is now famous and in fact, the idea for pizza is older than Italy itself. In its most basic form, pizza in ancient times was more similar to a seasoned flatbread and enjoyed by several cultures including the Greeks and the Phoenicians. Made from flour and water, the dough would be formed into round flat shapes, seasoned with herbs and then cooked by placing it on a hot stone. Referred to as plankuntos, the Greeks would use this flatbread as an edible plate that would be topped by anything from stews and a thick broth to meats and fruits.

Eventually, these plankuntos made its way to Italy and were renamed “pizzas.” The word pizza is thought to have come from the Latin word “pinsa”, which means flatbread. There’s still an ongoing debate as to whether this is true or not. Pizzas were sold on the streets and in the markets as street food to the poor all over Naples. The street vendors (typically young boys) would walk around the city with small tin stoves on their heads, calling out to attract customers. Cheap to make, these pizzas were only topped with olive oil and herbs and yet, they were tasty and filling. Before these pizzas would become more similar to modern day pizzas, two ingredients had to come into play: tomatoes and cheese.

Tomatoes were introduced to Italy in the 16th century by the Spaniards who brought them from Mexico and Peru, but they were thought to be poisonous and were originally grown only for decoration. It wasn’t until the 18th and early 19th centuries that fears were overcome and tomatoes started having more of a presence in Italian cuisine. When mozzarella cheese, which was made from the milk of Indian water buffalo, came to Italy also in the 18th century, pizza with tomato sauce and cheese was truly born.

Eventually, this peasant food started tantalizing the taste buds of the aristocracy which meant that the street vendors gave way to actual shops where people could order a custom pizza with a variety of toppings. By 1830 the “Antica Pizzeria Port’Alba” of Naples had become the first true pizzeria and is still in business today. In the 1800’s, the tools of the typical pizzerias included shelves lined with ingredients, a marble counter where the pizza crust was prepared and a large brick oven to cook the pizza in. Pizzaioli (makers of pizza) often assemble the entire pizza on a marble counter right before the customer’s eyes.

When it comes to the pizza known as the Margherita, it actually owes its name to Italy’s Queen Margherita. In the late 1800s, the Italian monarch King Umberto and his wife, Queen Margherita were touring the Naples area and decided to make a stop at Pizzeria Brandi. On duty for that visit was Rafaele Esposito and to show his patriotism created a pizza that best represented the colors of the Italian flag: red tomato, white mozzarella cheese and green basil. This pizza became such a favorite of the queen that it was named after her. Pizzeria Brandi, now more than 200 years old, still proudly displays a royal thank-you note signed by Galli Camillo, “head of the table of the royal household”, dated June 1889.

By the beginning of the 1900’s pizza made its way to the inner cities of the United States due to Italian immigrants, most notably New York and Chicago, which already had large Italian populations. Pizza was also sold as street food, similar to what was done in Naples and than small cafes began offering the Italian favorite. In 1905, Gennaro Lombardi, is thought to have opened the first US pizzeria in New York simply called Lombardi’s, which were followed by other pizzerias in other parts of New York, New Jersey and even Connecticut, but it wasn’t until after World War II ended that pizza really came into its own. Returning American soldiers having been exposed to pizza while serving on the Italian front were hooked and they were the ones who really drove up the popularity of this one time Italian only known and eaten food.

In 1943, Ric Riccardo and Ike Sewell opened up Pizzeria Uno in Chicago and in 1948, the first commercial pizza-pie mix called “Roman Pizza Mix” was produced in Worcester, Massachusetts by Frank A. Fiorillo. Chain pizza restaurants were soon on the rise as well. Leading early pizza chains were Shakey’s Pizza, founded in 1954 in Sacramento, California and Pizza Hut founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas. Both are now national companies.

While the American pizza business is dominated by companies that specialize in pizza delivery, such as Domino’s, Papa John’s Pizza and Pizza Hut, don’t discount your local pizzerias. Whether take-out only, a Mom and Pop joint or even a gourmet restaurant, pizza is truly a food for the masses and is versatile enough for any palate. So be sure to enjoy a slice or two tonight and below are pizza joints you may want to check out.

Bollini’s Pizzeria Napolitana
2315 S Garfield Ave
Monterey Park, CA 91754
(323) 722-7600

Frank Pepe’s Pizzeria Napoletana
157 Wooster Street
New Haven, CT 06511
(203) 865-5762

Giordano’s
730 N Rush Street
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 951-0747

Lombardi’s Pizza
32 Spring Street
New York, NY 10012
(212) 941-7994

Pizzeria Mozza
641 N Highland Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 297-0101

4th of July is all about the fireworks, but let’s make the month of July all about flavor fireworks.  It’s time to check out that new restaurant you’ve always wanted to dine at or re-visit old favorites.  Hopefully, that meal will have flavors that trip the light fantastic across your palate, creating a dining experience that’s so good that it’s as if you’re celebrating 4th of July every single day.  Afterwards, put fingers to keyboard and tell us all about that restaurant, from meal to ambiance to service because it’s now time for the July Menuism Restaurant Review Contest.

Now there’s even more chances to win with both 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes that are available.   The criteria for winning entries will be on how helpful other Menuism’ers find your reviews to be.  So what makes a review helpful?  Check out a past Menuism article called 5 Tips Towards Writing a Great Review for some ideas or you can even  emulate some of our Featured Reviewers, who have done a fantastic job sharing their dining stories with all of us.

In the end, it’s all about quality, not quantity.  So how can you improve your chances? Things to do could include giving dish reviews and uploading pictures and when combined with your informative review, those will definitely get you those “helpful votes.”

Now it’s time to get out, dine out and than get your fingers a-typing.  With a total of $170.00 in prize money, think of what you can do with any part of those dollars  Enjoy a Sunday brunch.   Purchase a lovely bottle of wine.  Get that new kitchen gadget you’ve been eyeing. You won’t have a chance of winning, if you don’t even try, so let’s see what you got.

Menuism Restaurant Review Contest

How to Enter:

• Dine out and than post your restaurant review to the Menuism website.  There are no limits to the number of reviews per month. No need to manually submit your reviews to the contest

Restaurant Review Criteria:

• Winners will be decided based on the number of helpful votes for the reviews they’ve written in the given month with awards going to the top 3 users with the most helpful votes.  Click here to see if you’ve made it to the Leader Board and click here to get more info about how the Leader Board works!
• Reviews must have 50 words or more to qualify.

Announcement of Winner and Prize:

• After the contest due date, the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Place Winners will be  announced the first week of the following month.

• PRIZES:
  • 1st: $100
  • 2nd: $50
  • 3rd: $20
  • Profile Badge for Each Winner!

Rules:

• Reviews that are considered inappropriate, vulgar or lacking information will not be considered.
• Winners who do not claim their prize within 7 days of the announcement of the winner will forfeit prize money, but not the award.

Ready to get started? Sign up for your free Menuism account and start writing reviews!

July is now here, so we’d definitely love to see all of your great quality reviews. If you have any questions, please feel free to drop me a line at abby@menuism.com.

By Abby C. Abanes
Menuism Community Manager

Menuism reviewers are truly awesome! Whether they found an unexpected tasty gem of a restaurant or took it for the team after having a terrible meal, we truly applaud all their efforts in giving us the scoop on where we should be spending our hard-earned money on. On that note, I’d love to introduce you to those reviewers who we feel really contribute quality content to the site as well as quality information to fellow Menuism’ers. Our Featured Reviewer today is Alan, better known as schussat. So let’s learn more about Alan from Arizona.

I’m a PhD sociologist working in information technology. I really enjoy finding new restaurants, reading about food, and food photography, among all the rest of the pursuits that make up my day-to-day life.

1. How did you find out about Menuism?

When Menuism launched, one of the developers posted an announcement on the Textdrive/Joyent community forum where I hang out a bit, and so I came to see what it was all about.

2. What about Menuism first appealed to you?

I was just making plans to go off for an internship in Seattle, so I used Menuism to find good and interesting food near where I would be living. Fortunately, the Seattle area had lots of content on Menuism — I think that contributed to my using it more. I ended up using the site a ton those handful of months, really enjoying the overall experience of it, and continued to use it when I returned home.

3. What restaurant did you write your first review about?

It was Dara Thai here in FLG. This town has an inexplicably high Thai joint per capita ratio.

4. What is your food philosophy?

Find what you like and eat it a lot, especially if you can locally, organic, and/or sustainably.

5. What are your favorite restaurants?

What an impossible question. Among local places, I’ve become pretty fond of Sushi Fuji, and there’s this meatloaf sandwich at the Beaver Street Brewery that I keep going back for. Down south in Tucson, it had to be a place called Yoshimatsu, tied with the Little Cafe Poca Cosa. Favorite ever? I still go back to The Pie for pizza every time I’m close to home in Salt Lake City — that’s probably pretty high on the all-time favorites list, because the pizza is great and the place is packed with so many memories of growing up.

6. What are your favorite cuisines?

I’m physically incapable of not ordering fish and chips when I come across it. I think I’d have to go with sushi and Italian. Is cioppino a cuisine or just a dish? Whichever, man do I adore it.

7. What are your favorite comfort foods?

Katsu Curry from Yoshimatsu and the Scallop Dynamite roll from Sushi Fuji are honorable mention. But it’s awfully hard to beat homemade chicken and dumpling soup in the cool weather months.

8. What is the best meal you ever ate and why?

I was on a backpacking trip and we had an exhausting, very long day after missing a route marker and re-climbing two steep saddles. The whole group was just wiped out. At camp, we ran into a couple of folks who had come in from the other side of the range on horses. They had fresh salad, salsa, tortillas, and cold broiled chicken, and they gave us plate after plate. Wow. What wonderful people — and what great food to find, unexpectedly, at the end of a day like that.

9. Do you have any favorite cookbooks (if any)?

No favorite cookbooks, but I’m a big fan of the magazine “Eating Well.” We get at least a couple of go-to recipes out of each issue. The most recent memorable recipe was for a braised paprika chicken that’s just fantastic.

10. What words of encouragement would you give to first time Menuism reviewers?

Try it, you’ll like it!

If you’d like to be able to keep up with Alan’s reviews, click here to check out his profile!

If there is a Menuism reviewer who has rea’lly helped you make great dining choices and you’d like to see him or her be a Featured Reviewer, than be sure to message me or send me an email at abby@menuism.com.

By Abby C. Abanes
Menuism Community Manager

For me, hot dogs and summer go hand-in-hand.  Also called frankfurters, frank, weenie, wienie, wiener, dog, and red hot, the hot dog is basically a fully cooked sausage that consists of a combination of beef and pork or all beef, which is cured, smoked, and cooked and than placed in a bun. So now that the summer season is here, I present to you 10 Things to Know About Hot Dogs.

An Oldie But a Goodie: Sausage is one of the oldest forms of processed food and was actually mentioned in Homer’s Odyssey, which is an ancient Greek tale of adventure and heroism.

Would You Like Champagne With Your Hot Dog?: President Franklin Roosevelt served King George VI of England hot dogs & beer during a White House visit in 1939. Mrs. Jimmy Carter served hot dogs at a White House picnic in 1977. Queen Elizabeth II served hot dogs at a royal banquet held for the American Bar Association.

Let’s Be Frank: When shopping for hot dogs, you should know that franks contain 100% meat while frankfurters, hot dogs and weiners can be up to 15% filler.

Forget About Cheese: A little known fact about Mickey Mouse is that his first words were “Hot dogs!” He spoke them in the 1929 short flick titled “The Karnival Kid”.

Size Does Matter: As a 1996 stunt, Sara Lee made the world’s largest dog, specifically a 2,000-foot wiener.

Moon Food: Hot dogs were actually among the first foods that were eaten on the moon.  A meal for Neil Armstrong and “Buzz” Aldrin Jr when they went on their Apollo 11 space flight in 1969, consisted of hot dogs, bacon, canned peaches and sugar cookies.

A Hot Dog By Any Other Name: Hot Dogs got their name at The Polo Grounds in New York City in 1901. Vendors sold hot dogs from hot water tanks, shouting, “They’re red hot! Get your Dachshund sausages while they are red hot!” Cartoonist Tad Dorgan sketched the vendors but unsure of how to spell dachshund, he simply wrote “Hot Dog!” and that is how the name was given.

Mustard Cuts the Mustard: Mustard is the most popular topping with 87% of hot dog eaters using it, although children favor ketchup.

6 is the Magic Number: The average hot dog, including the bun, is consumed in 6 bites.

The City of Hot Dogs: Los Angeles is the hot-dog capital of the U.S. with Angelinos eating an average of 36.6 million pounds of hot dogs a year.

Menuism reviewers are truly awesome! Whether they found an unexpected tasty gem of a restaurant or took it for the team after having a terrible meal, we truly applaud all their efforts in giving us the scoop on where we should be spending our hard-earned money on. On that note, I’d love to introduce you to those reviewers who we feel really contribute quality content to the site as well as quality information to fellow Menuism’ers. Our Featured Reviewer today is Lynn, better known as BananaWoo. So let’s learn more about Lynn from Minnesota.

I was born in Seoul, but raised in Minneapolis. I consider myself a Midwesterner and Minnesotian. During college I lived in Ames, Iowa, but most recently moved back to a Minnesota suburb which I now call home. I am still attempting to travel the world. Food lover by nature; I love to eat, cook and create. I also enjoy writing and think the art of literature and food complement each other well.

Currently, I work as an admin for a commercial real estate company. Definitely not my true calling, so on top of my 9-5, I go to grad school full time just to keep things interesting. When I’m not wearing my monkey suit and I don’t have my nose in a psychology text book I like to write, read, garden, philosophize, cook, listen to music, watch reruns of No Reservations and The Office, play with my cats and eat (not necessarily in that order).

1. How did you find out about Menuism?

Totally by luck. I like to look for new websites that have anything to do with food. I think I just entered in Food Blog or something like that to a Google search.

2. What about Menuism first appealed to you?

I really liked the community feel of Menuism. It seemed like there was a lot more interaction between members versus lots of other food sites that just have a “liked it” or “didn’t like it” option. It’s nice to know a little about the people who are writing the reviews.

3. What restaurant did you write your first review about?

Broders’ Pasta Bar, a family owned Italian restaurant in Minneapolis. One of the best Italian places I have even been!

4. What is your food philosophy?

You are what you eat. Not literally, but I think if you are adventurous and have fun with the food eat those things will be reflected in other aspects of your life.

5. What are your favorite restaurants?

Hoban for Korean, Broders for Italian, Fuji Ya for Japanese and sushi, and Café Beaudelaire for burgers and Brazilian.

6. What are your favorite cuisines?

My top 2 are Korean and Italian, but I will eat almost anything. Every cuisine has something important to contribute to the food world.

7. What are your favorite comfort foods?

Mac & cheese, spaghetti with Italian sausage, and steamed rice with Kimchee.

8. What is the best meal you ever ate and why?

That is a tough one to decide. One of my top most memorable experiences was probably in Venice, Italy. Unfortunately I don’t remember the name, but it was a bistro right on the waterside. I had a noodle dish with fresh seafood. It’s hard to beat Italian wine and fresh pasta sautéed with the catch of the day. No other seafood pasta has ever come close.

9. Do you have any favorite cookbooks (if any)?

In my kitchen I have some hand-me-down Betty Crocker cook books and Korean Cooking for You. They are good references, but I like to do a lot of experimenting in the kitchen. When I cook I usually glance at a recipe, but wing the rest of it. That is why I’m a horrible baker; everything has to be too precise.

10. What words of encouragement would you give to first time Menuism reviewers?

Tell it like it is and take a gamble with your writing. Feel free to be yourself. You can tell people who enjoy writing their reviews because they are entertaining and interesting to read. Also, be informative and encourage your friends to join!

If you’d like to be able to keep up with Lynn’s reviews, click here to check out her profile!

If there is a Menuism reviewer who has rea’lly helped you make great dining choices and you’d like to see him or her be a Featured Reviewer, than be sure to message me or send me an email at abby@menuism.com.

By Abby C. Abanes
Menuism Community Manager

In No, Shabu Shabu Isn’t a Type of Dance, Part 1, we delved into a few types of Japanese dining options.  What I find fascinating about Japanese restaurants is how they really make an effort to branch out into dining establishments that specialize in a certain type of food or cooking style. Previously, what was covered included restaurants that featured bento, curry dishes, pasta, ramen, shabu shabu and soba and udon noodles.  Here are six more types of restaurants to add to the mix.

Sushi: By now, most people have either heard of or eaten at sushi restaurant.  If you haven’t, what you’ll see on the menu of a sushi restaurant is raw preparations of fish and other seafood.  The word sushi literally means “it’s sour”, which harkens back to the day when sushi used to be fermented fish and rice that was preserved through a salt process.  There are four basic types of sushi that you’ll always see on the menu. First, there’s nigiri sushi which is basically an oblong mound of sushi rice with a topping draped over it like shrimp or fish.  Second, there are two types of rolled sushi.  There’s the maki sushi, which is a rolled sushi with the rice inside while the uramaki sushi is a sushi roll with the rice on the outside.  Third, there’s the temaki sushi which are hand rolled and look like seaweed cones filled with fish, rice and vegetables.  Finally, there’s the inari sushi which is deep fried tofu filled with sushi rice.  Sashimi, on the other hand, is not considered sushi, since it’s raw fish eaten on its own and not with rice.

Teppanyaki: A teppanyaki restaurant may also be familiar to most people.  In this type of restaurant, meat, seafood and vegetables are expertly prepared by a chef using an iron griddle in front of the customers.  The word teppanyaki is derived from the Japanese words, teppan and yaki.  Teppan means iron plate and yaki means fried or boiled.  The preparation of the food is literally performance art with chefs who might juggle utensils, catch an egg in their hat or arrange onion rings into fire-shooting volcanos.  Dinner and a show in one full swoop.

Teriyaki: Like sushi, teriyaki is a well-known Japanese food. Even with such a familiar food, there are restaurants that take pride in the way their teriyaki sauce is made and will build their menu around teriyaki dishes.  Teriyaki sauce, referred to as tare,  is made from soy sauce, mirin (sweet rice wine) and sugar or honey.  Meats are marinated or basted with tare and then grilled until the meat’s surface has a glaze.  In fact, the word teriyaki is derived from the noun teri, which refers to a shine or luster given by the sugar content of the tare and yaki which refers to the cooking method of grilling or broiling.  The teriyaki sauce is also sometimes added to the meat after it’s cooked or offered as a dipping sauce.

Yakitori: In Japan, a yakitori is a restaurant or even just a stand that traditionally serves only chicken meat, including its organs.  In fact, the word yakitori means grilled chicken.  This chicken is usually seasoned with salt, tare sauce (see above) and/or lemon juice, put on skewers and then promptly grilled over charcoal.  These days, the term Yakitori is now referring to skewered food in general which means that vegetable, seafood and other meat skewers will also be reflected on the menu.  All the non-chicken skewers are called kushiyaki.

Yakiniku: Yakiniku is a Japanese term which means grilled meat and is a style of cooking thought to be influenced by Korean immigration to Japan after World War II.  Basically, a yakiniku is a type of restaurant where customers can order several types of bite-size raw ingredients, both meat and vegetables, that they cook themselves at tableside grills.  Like Korean BBQ, different types of sauces are provided for dipping the cooked meats in before eating.

Izakaya: When it comes to describing what an izakaya is, three words come to mind – Japanese Pub Food.  The concept of  izakayas originated from sake shops where sake shop owners would serve food to encourage customers to stay and continue drinking and of course, purchase more sake.  In fact, the term izakaya reflects this history.  The i means to stay while zakaya came from the word sakaya means sake shop.  Izakayas soon evolved to become restaurants that are more drinking establishments than anything else that just happen to serve food.  As for the food itself, they’re generally small plates or tapas sized.  Food-wise, the great thing about izakayas is that you’ll be able to sample a wide range of Japanese cuisine all at one time, which could include grilled skewers, sushi, soba noodles and so much more.

Hopefully, this Japanese restaurant journey has left you eager to do some culinary explorations of your own.  It’s so much easier to make choices when you can understand what the choices are.   Whether it’s checking out the Japanese pub food of an izakaya or having the Japanese version of fondue by dining at a Shabu Shabu restaurant, go out and explore and take your taste buds on the ride of their life.

When it comes to types of Japanese restaurants, it can get a bit confusing.  Between an izakaya, a teppanyaki and yakitori,  it could be hard to keep straight.  Throw in a yakiniku, shabu shabu and a bento and you could get absolutely dizzy with confusion.  The real difference between all these restaurants is that they tend to specialize in a specific type of Japanese cooking or type of dining.  One example that many of you may be familiar with is a sushi restaurant.   Having said that, it’s also true that there are Japanese restaurants that feature more than one kind of Japanese cooking.  So a few blocks down, there may be another sushi restaurant that also serves teriyaki dishes or a Japanese restaurant that offers a little bit of everything from the Japanese food spectrum.  To get a better understanding of your Japanese dining options, take a look at the breakdown below.

Bento: Bentos are versatile in that they can be sold specifically through a bento shop, but can also be purchased at Japanese supermarkets and convenience stores as well as being a part of a menu at a sit down restaurant.  So what is a bento? Simply put, a boxed lunch is referred to as a “bento” in Japan and is usually a single portion take-out or a home packed meal.   Traditionally, a bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables as a side dish, but other items could include croquettes, an egg, sushi, etc.  Bento containers can range from mass-produced covered plastic containers to beautifully detailed lidded lacquerware. In a Japanese restaurant, when we order a bento, the food usually comes in an uncovered tray separated into various compartments.

Curry: Curry seems an unlikely ingredient for Japanese cooking, but it was actually introduced to Japan in the late 1800’s when Japan started to build an alliance with England.  At the time, India was under the administration of the British, so that’s where the Japanese curry connection came from.  Like its Indian equivalent, basic vegetables include potatoes, carrots and onions while meats can be beef, pork or chicken, but the Japanese curry itself tends to be thicker and even a bit sweeter.  Japanese curry is generally served over rice, thick noodles or wrapped inside dough and deep fried.  While you will sometimes see 2 or 3 curry dishes at a regular Japanese restaurant, the best way to experience a true variety is to find a Curry House, a restaurant that specializes just in Japanese curry dishes.

Pasta: Usually, when one thinks of Japanese noodles, ramen usually comes to mind, but how about wrapping your head around spaghetti instead?  Yes, there are Japanese-Italian restaurants where the main focus is actually on different types of spaghetti.  While you will see traditional Italian-style spaghetti on the menu, you might also see spaghetti dishes that you’d never expect to see coming out of any Italian Mama’s kitchen.  Mama Mia! With ingredients like tuna, daikon, sea urchin, seaweed and even natto and shiso leaf, these Japanese spaghetti dishes will be ones you’ll definitely remember.

Ramen: Speaking of ramen, for those of you who think ramen comes only in a styrofoam container or in a plastic bag, you may be surprised to know that there are Japanese restaurants that feature primarily ramen soup on their menu.  In fact, some ramen restaurants go as far to specialize in one type of ramen. While actual ramen ingredients can vary, the ramen can be differentiated by the type of broth that is used.  First, there’s Shio Ramen which is made with a simple chicken broth.  Tonkotsu Ramen has a broth made from boiled pork bones while Shoyu Ramen is made by adding a soy-based sauce to a  chicken and vegetable stock.  Last, Miso Ramen features a broth that combines chicken stock with a fermented soybean paste.  Here’s a tidbit for you.  Ramen actually originated from China.

Shabu Shabu: In Japanese, Shabu Shabu means “splash splash” which is a perfect description of what Shabu Shabu is all about.  At a Shabu Shabu restaurant, customers will receive thin slices of raw meat and vegetables, which they can cook in a pot of boiling water.  The cooked items can be dipped in a sesame sauce or a ponzu sauce before being eaten.  Afterwards, the leftover broth is used as a soup for noodles or rice.  Basically, Shabu Shabu is similar to eating fondue style.

Soba/Udon: Yes, we’re back to noodles and in the case of Soba and Udon, both are noodles that can be served hot  in a soup or cold on its own with side dishes.  Soba noodles are made  from buckwheat flour and water and kneaded into a dough and than rolled out and finely cut.  Udon is made from flour and salt, also kneaded into a dough, but cut into thicker noodles.  The characteristics of the Udon noodles are that they are white and have a smooth texture.  Both Soba and Udon noodles are offerings you will see on regular Japanese restaurant menus, but if you can find a Soba or an Udon shop, hit those first because that’s where you’ll usually get the best rendition of either noodle.

Hopefully, you’ve learned a little more about Japanese dining.  Stay tuned for No, an Izakaya isn’t a Type of Motorcyle, Part 2.

The last several years, a new type of cuisine has started to gain momentum and you may ask what kind of food is the focus of this new cuisine? Simply, it’s all about raw food. So what’s the deal with raw food? Well, a raw food diet consists fully of foods which have not been heated above a certain temperature.

The maximum temperature varies among the different forms of the diet, from 92 degrees F to 118 degrees F. In fact, it’s felt that heating food even above 116 degrees F is believed to destroy enzymes in food that can assist in the digestion and absorption of food. Cooking is seen as something that truly decreases, if not nullifies the true potential of what food can offer, nutrient-wise. To follow the raw lifestyle, at least 75% of your diet must be living or raw.

Specific cooking techniques for the raw food diet include everything from dehydrating food, soaking nuts and fried fruit, sprouting seeds, grains and beans as well as juicing and blending. The equipment that’s used can consist of any or all of the following: a dehydrator, juice extractor, blender, food processor and chopper.

Raw foodists believe that the benefits of following the raw food diet include increased energy, better digestion, weight loss and even a reduced risk of heart disease. Those who follow a raw food diet typically believe that the greater the percentage of raw food in the diet, the greater the health benefits. These benefits come about because unlike the typical Western diet, a raw food diet contains fewer trans fats and saturated fats and is low in sodium and high in potassium, fiber, magnesium and and health-promoting plant chemicals called phytochemicals.

While there may be benefits, one should also be aware that there are also nutritional deficiencies that result in following the raw food diet including a decrease in calcium, iron, B12 and protein intake. There are also those who criticize the raw food diet stating that it’s the cooking of the foods that actually makes certain phytochemicals easier to absorb, such as beta-carotene in carrots.

Deciding to follow a raw food diet will also mean considerable time, energy, and a strong commitment since many of the foods are made from scratch. Depending on what part of the country you’re in, you may also find it difficult to find certain ingredients needed to prepare your meals.

Suffice to say, following the raw diet is not for everyone and I’ve only give you just some general information about what the raw diet is, what it entails and its pros and cons. If you’re thinking of making a lifestyle change, be sure to do your research so that you can make the best decision for you.

However, there is one thing I can do to help, at least some of you. Currently, more raw restaurants are starting to establish themselves in the dining scene all over the US, so to get an idea if the raw food diet is for you, check out some of the restaurants listed below.

Leaf Cuisine
11938 W Washington Blvd
Los Angeles, California 90066
(310) 390-6005

Alive! Restaurant
1972 Lombard St
San Francisco, CA 94123
(415) 923-1052

Thrive
1026 NE 65th Street, #A-102
Seattle, WA 98115
(206) 525-0300

Borrowed Earth Cafe
970 Warren Ave
Downers Grove, IL 60515
(630) 795-1729

Go Raw Cafe
2910 Lake East Drive
Las Vegas, Nevada 89117
702-254-5382