Monday, July 26, 2010

San Francisco Japantown

I had SUCH a good time yesterday in San Francisco's Japantown. The last time I went was in April, when I started out on this bento obsession of mine. I used a wonderful guide prepared by Biggie of the Lunch In A Box blog. If you get a chance to go to SF Japantown, I really recommend taking Biggie's review along with you.

This time I was more prepared and focused. I knew what I was looking for, and I also knew what I didn't need. But I still bought a few things that were ridiculous, just because I could. :-)

Today's bento uses a few of the new things I picked up while in SF Japantown. I have this new blue bento box (magic round bento!) from Ichiban Kan that was on sale for 50 cents! The chopsticks are from Daiso, the tomato pick is from Ichiban Kan, and the cherry stem pick is from Sanko Cooking Supply (Sanko is WILDLY expensive, but it was the only place I found these picks and I was dying to get some after seeing them on Sheri's Happy Little Bento blog). Oh, and the quail egg is from Nijiya Market (my first time trying quail eggs!).

The top of the bento box has three little monkeys on it and it says, "Do you like living here? Yes, it's great!" In this bento lunch: a biscuit filled with ham and spices, caprese salad in a silicone cup, cucumber slices (from Ridgeview Farms), two cherry tomatoes on a cherry stem pick, steamed romano beans from Cresent Moon Farms, a hard boiled quail egg, and a bit of arugula from Ridgeview Farms.

I got the idea for the quail egg little guy from a book that I picked up at Kinokuniya Stationery. A little wedge cut makes his mouth, and his eyes are black sesame seeds. I'll post pictures of the bento book soon. It's all in Japanese, so I can't read it, but the photos and ideas are great!

Here are some of the picks I got at Ichiban Kan. I was so excited to see the tree picks after seeing them used in a bento made by Shannon of What's For Lunch At Our House. I think I will have to borrow that idea because those grapes looked so cute!

I didn't take as many pictures as I should have while in SF Japantown, but here are a few of the places I visited. Above is a selection of the bento supplies available at Daiso.

This is at the Sanrio store where I actually showed some restraint. I know! I was amazed at myself, too. :-)

I did pick up a bento box with Kuromi on the front. The sales clerk at Sanrio said that Kuromi is more popular with U.S. customers than Japanese customers, and that is why their selection is so large in the San Francisco store.

I have so much more to share from my trip to SF Japantown. I am sure you will see lots of new stuff in the weeks to come on Sonoma Bento. And... I got some fun stuff for a giveaway. Stay tuned!

How to Boil Quail Eggs

Rinse quail eggs in warm water to remove any dirt or feathers from the shells. Fill a small pot with water and about 2 or 3 tablespoons of vinegar. Add quail eggs and bring water to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes, then remove pan from heat and take it to the sink. Run cold water into the pan and gradually pour out the hot water. Allow eggs to cool then gently peel. The vinegar should make it easier to remove the shells.

14 comments:

  1. great sanrio-shop and so beautiful and fres bento! I love the adorabe quail egg and that stuffed bisquit <3 I love the magic round bento-box!!! :D

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  2. Thanks Token! I am so excited about how the quail egg turned out. My first try, too! Thanks for stopping by. Bis spaeter!

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  3. Love the round box! I bet you had so much fun at those cool stores that you want to go back again soon hehehe ... :D This bento is so pretty and cute as well! Little quail egg is so adorable <3

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  4. Lia, it's kind of dangerous for me to spend too much time (and money) in Japantown, so it's probably good that I don't have easier access to them! I was a little nervous about eating the quail egg, but it tasted great, just like a chicken egg only smaller! :-)

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  5. Oh I would have so much fun in there. Good for you showing restraint hah. I like the round box too!

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  6. Hi Kelly! I showed restraint at the Sanrio store, but I still ended up with about 4 shopping bags of stuff from my whole trip. So I guess the word "restraint" is relative. Ha ha!

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  7. Is it bad that I want to vacation in the Bay Area to go bento shopping? I'm not joking either (although I doubt my husband feels the same way).

    The fork picks are on my need-to-order list. Dallas has a few stores, but nothing like California. Thinking of checking out FIT in Houston when we go there in September.

    And cute bento too! I'm intrigued by quail eggs.

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  8. Shannon, are you kidding? I want to take a vacation to Daly City to visit the giant Daiso store there! Ha!

    You should give quail eggs a try. I was a little nervous about trying them, but they taste like chicken eggs only perhaps a bit blander.

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  9. So fun!! Loved this post Sonoma Bento, thanks for sharing these pictures and your experience with us (yay, you went!!). Love the MRB and its cute message :)

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  10. Thanks bentobird! As I suspected, my husband was not keen on going, so I had to go by myself. Oh poor me! :-) I saw this bento on a second lap around the Ichiban Kan store, and almost missed it because they didn't display the sale items very prominently. It's quite a steal for 50 cents!

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  11. That little egg man made my day. So adorable!

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  12. Thanks Melissa! I am the Eggman... :)

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  13. I wish we had a Japan town close to us! That is so cool that I can go in my mind seeing your blog (and others too) that share photos and take us along! I love your new magic round bento, and what adorable picks! How fun! Your bento turned out so cute!

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  14. Thanks Lyndsey! The grass is always greener, right? I envy you and other who live in more tropical areas like FL and HI. Those banyan trees in your last post are so amazing to me. Have a great day and thanks for coming on my trip to Japantown!

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