Food Anomalies in Kashiwa

Kashiwa is full of surprises. Take for instance, The Ogori Cafe, as reported by Cabel.
Last weekend, we went to The Big Winner, an American diner caught in time. On the old Mitsukaido, just a 5 minute walk from the east exit of Kashiwa Station, you’ll see the front end of a Cadillac on the building [...]

Bike Rental in Kashiwa

I’ve seen these bikes around town, the ones emblazoned with the Kashiwa Reysol mascot.
So, where do you get one? Kashiwa Station east exit, behind the Sogo Department store, there is a little cycle rental depot. The bike man told me that if you show some ID – passport, gaijin card – and fork over 200 [...]

Kutsche at Otomachi

This year marks the fourth year for Otomachi, the music project in Kashiwa which features unsigned acts performing outdoors and at venues around Kashiwa. After their performance on the plaza in front of Kashiwa Station,  Kutsche, an indie trio that does all original music, came over to my neighbourhood for Sunday night dinner at White Gyoza.
The [...]

Antique Market at Fuse Benten

 On the first Saturday of the month, from 8am-4pm, the parking lot in front of 布施弁天 Fuse Benten is the site of an antiques market. There are vendors with bonsai, textiles, porcelain and curiousities.
The neighbouring Akebono Park is a sea of sunflowers now and a huge lawn to play on, and Fuse Benten has some seasonal [...]

Hiroshima Memorial in Kashiwa

On August 6th at 5am,　諏訪神社 Suwa Shrine in Kashiwa City will hold a memorial service for the 64th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.
Here is a video of this peaceful place which can be found on the little hill right in front of Kashiwa City Hall.

Spending green

Did you receive your cash from PM Aso yet? If you haven’t got your 定額給付金 teigaku kyufukin, or flash benefit, you should contact your city hall. Each municipality is responsible for the method of distribution. I got  letter in the mail from Kashiwa City Hall instructing me on what information to send in, and the [...]

Full Latin Music in Kashiwa

This is Ryuichi and Pri dancing bachata.  Ryuichi is from Dominica who teaches dance all over Tokyo.
Ben in Kashiwa turned lots of local people on to Latin dance. A few weeks ago, I got my first Salsa lesson with Ken, and got hooked. Don’t worry if you don’t have a dance partner. It is a really friendly atmosphere, [...]

Gideon and Light in Matsudo

Gideon, a British expat living in Kashiwa, has a remarkable eye for sights. He brings micro and macro views of Japanese culture, nature and technology. His next gallery exhibit with 写楽 Sharaku Photo Club is next weekend.
He writes -
I’d like to invite you to my latest gallery show in Matsudo, this time with some of [...]

Kashiwa World Spice

A Kashiwa resident friend I bumped into in the front street took me out to see World Spice, Kashiwa’s halal foods store. The shelves are stocked with dried beans of all descriptions, canned curry fixings that are otherwise hard to come by, and the prices are reasonable. To get there, walk five minutes south along [...]

ラーメン Ramen on the Joban Line

Kashiwa City has so many good ramen joints. Last night’s repast was a big bowl of 味噌オロチョン Miso Orochon at Himuro Ramen. Kashiwa Plus is a blog by a serious local foodie, and has some awesome photos of Himuro’s food and atmosphere here.
So, what’s ramen, you ask? It’s a bowl full of noodles in broth with any [...]