World Food Thursdays

Country No. 37: Japan

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8th Feb 2018

Flesh and Buns, Covent Garden

Attendees: Ben, Ellen, Maor, Poppy, Kim, Lee, Eoghan (venue chosen by Poppy)

£45 a head

 

Excited foodies.

Assemble on first Thursday.

Delicious cooking.

 

Arriving in dribs and drabs, as is our want, it slowly dawned on us (slow like the climb of the Rising Sun over Borneo) that one of the World Food Commandments was going to be well and truly broken. For the first time in World Food history the number of revisits comfortably outweighed the first timers. Fear not, this was a good thing as it meant that over 50% of all attendees were really looking forward to this chapter of our quest and we all know what excitement leads to…over-ordering!

 

Starting with a selection of skinny prawn crackers and a sizable helping of edamame beans we familiarised (or re-acquainted) ourselves with the menu. The attractive looking set-menus were swiftly dismissed, with several attendees preferring to stick to the tried and tested method of just shouting stuff at the waiting staff and seeing which demands made it onto the notebook.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

First though, a second helping of edamame to go with some chilled beers (a half for Lee, he did make up for it by dipping into some top shelf Japanese whisky later on so set aside your disproval on this occasion). While we were still fighting over the last of the edamame the starters arrived. A sizable sushi selection was shared between the unpregnant members of the group, followed by some delicious tuna tataki, some miso broccoli that was so sticky and orangey that Ben drank the dregs of the sauce, some corn, some more corn after we discovered just how good the corn was, and some chicken wings.

 

Normally this would be the point where people would take stock, decide they’d eaten enough, order the bill and leave with their dignity however we are no normal diners. It was essential that we sampled the Bao selection (Flesh and Buns claim to one of the first of the new wave of Bao pioneers, hence the eponymous title). To ensure we got the full spread we ordered miso aubergine, ox cheek, duck, an endless supply of pillowy soft steamed buns to enwrap the fillings, and finally, out of sheer gluttony, a rice bowl.

 

Each and every item was delicious, even the ox cheek, an offaly cut that can put some people off, was considered a winner, and Ben was more than happy to act as group dustbin and ensure that there were no leftovers.

 

In one final display of excess we rounded of the meal with some doughnuts, made with roasted soya bean flour and filled with oozy black sugar custard.

 

Japanese Facts:

• Sao Paolo has the largest Japanese population outside of Japan

Only the one this time. In our defence it was difficult to fit in more facts between all the eating, and the cooing over rapidly expanding bellies (both pregnancy related and non) and the new addition to Calum and Eoghan’s family. Jimmy the miniature Dachshund.