Monday, June 2, 2008

Genghis Khan in Japan!


So... am I successfully whetting your appetite
-- for more Japan photos, that is? ;b

Long before Japanese heart-throb Tadanobu Asano starred as Genghis Khan in Mongol, Genghis Khan was already very popular in one part of Japan. Genghis Khan -- the culinary dish, that is! For in Sapporo, when you talk about Genghis Khan, people tend to think you mean barbecue -- particularly lamb.

At the Sapporo Bier Garten (and yes, I detect a German influence/connection there!), my mother and I opted to feast on fresh lamb and lamb butt(ocks?) -- together with a side portion of vegetables -- barbecue. To go with what turned out to be a most delicious spread indeed, she opted for some Coca Cola (which came in a beer mug) and I for a supposedly medium-sized mug of Sapporo draft beer that turned out to be close to -- I kid you not! -- 1 litre in size!

The amazing thing is that for all of Japan being reputed to be a super expensive place to visit and live, the whole pretty substantial as well as delectable meal -- plus drinks -- for the two of us came to around 3,500 Yen.

On an additional interesting linguistic plus cultural note: For some reason, 'all you can eat'/buffet arrangements are called 'Viking' in Japan... And yes, at the Sapporo Bier Garten, one has the option of "going 'Viking'" -- either with just food alone or a food and drink combo! ;b

5 comments:

sarah bailey knight said...

ytsl

The food looks delicious. I would love to eat a meal like that. I know there are some all you can eat places in Osaka but we never did get to them. When you walk around snacking all day the idea of all you can eat pales by dinner time. Do you have more food pictures and pictures of Sapporo? I hope so.

Anonymous said...

Yeah I too would love to see more pictures, especially the food ones :)

WB and very glad to see that you have enjoyed your trip to Japan.

Glad you enjoyed lamb, it is my third fave meat and goes great with not only beer and/or coke but also a salty lassi ;)



Osaka is a great city (even though it is mostly concrete) one which I like A LOT better than Tokyo (to the dismay of my Kanto friends).

YTSL said...

Hi sbk --

Yes, indeedy, re my having more food pictures and pictures of Sapporo. At the same time, was too busy snarfling down the ramen in Sapporo's Ramen Alley to take photos there, I'm afraid. And all in all, took far more pictures in Osaka and Himeji -- which I hope you'll like seeing too.

Hi "eliza bennet" --

Are my food pictures that good or is it that Japanese food in general looks fantastic? More seriously though, it really is amazing how I've enjoyed every meal I've eaten in Japan... especially since I've as often eaten at wherever seems convenient as someplace that was recommended in a guidebook, etc.

And yeah, lamb is good. But have you had goat meat mutton as opposed to sheep lamb? If not, highly recommend that -- which is available in Malaysia, Tanzania, West Africa and Jamaica alike! ;b

eliza bennet said...

Oh we also gave goat meat here but it is not really much favored. Only when lamb is not available and if there isn't any other meat around. I like it though and don't complain when I'm served that (as opposed to almost everyone else)

With one exception, baby goat barbeque. This is a whole baby goat -skinned, cleaned etc.- put on a very large skewer and rolled above a fire for more than three hours. After it is cooked it is so tender, juicy and with other layer crispy, that it is yummy (this is done when people go to picnics as families).

YTSL said...

Hi again "eliza bennet" --

Re baby goat barbecue: It sounds both appalling and delicious at the same time. Kind of like with -- advance apologies since I do realize you're Muslim but... -- roast suckling pig (really piglet) which apparently is banned in Australia!