Thoroughly enjoyed the Nike Flagship Tokyo opening last night…  Needless to say, the store is ridiculous as expected.  Here are a few highlights…

Mr. Jey Perie (who I seem to run into everywhere as of late).  Apparently they ended up at Harlem at 5am.  On a Thursday.  Technically Friday.  Intense…

Takami Japan and Takashi Japan hard at work disobeying the dress code.

What’s this?

Why it’s mojito flavored jelly in a pouch, of course.  Or was it caipirinha.  Couldn’t really distinguish the difference.

Shin-san getting the red carpet treatment.

久保さん、理奈さん、and I were, of course, given the same treatment…  With my camera.

For 二次会 we headed over to #A, the new cafe/lounge that the guys who re-did the store just opened in Aoyama.  Where else can you get pancakes, bacon, and eggs with a glass of red at 11pm in this country.  Amazing.

合流’d with the rest of the crew at 北海道 in Shibuya.  なんで北海道だったんだろうと・・・でもラーメンサラダは確かに美味しかったです。

And 一蘭 for the finish.  Right as I assume Jey was arriving at Harlem.

Definitely a 高見ナイト to remember.

Somebody finally figured it out and knocked off Chipotle for the Japanese market…  Thank you Frijoles.

Even comes wrapped up like a Chipotle burrito.

Grilled chicken breast, lettuce, pinto beans, cilantro lime rice, salsa verde, pico de gallo, and guacamole all wrapped up in a really big tortilla.  May sound normal to all of you living on the other side of the Pacific but I have been deprived of these items on a regular basis for 5 years now.  My only question is when do they open one in Harajuku?

The answer should be immediately.

Had lunch with the Converse Japan guys yesterday after seeing the new 2010 SS kicks…  They treated me to an oh so good 親子丼 (Oyako-don) at 鳥元 near their office.  I find this the more sadistic selections amidst the vast empire of Japanese cuisine as the meaning is literally “Parent and Child Bowl” in reference to fact that the chicken is cooked together with the egg.  Unsurprisingly, this is also available in a salmon variety where the fish is topped with ikura.

In any case, as I’ve said before, everything tastes better in donburi form.

T-san was kind enough to get a bunch of us entered as “influencers” into the Nike Human Race last weekend. I therefore decided to put the usual Friday night Tokyo mayhem on hold to ensure that I was fresh and rested for the big day on Saturday.

Substituted the usual atomic cocktail blitz of G&T and Strong Zero for some intense carb and veggie loading at 香・食・楽カレー in Nakameguro the night before to bring out the genki best.

A little Mt. Fuji action from the convenience store parking lot along the way where we loaded up on Red Bull and Balance Up Creamy Bran Cracker Sandwiches for energy, posterity, and regularity.  Think Oreos gone maple or blueberry yogurt flavor with a bran twist.

Lake Motosu where the whole shindig went down…  The course was along the perimeter of the lake all the way and was a welcome change from my usual trash-laden smog-filled morning Okubo/Takadanobaba route.

Being the marketing machine that they are Nike filled out the event with a bunch of live music acts.  We, however, missed out on most of this as much of our post-race time was spent queuing for delicious Hawaiian style shrimp in the guest tent…

Here we have the obligatory famous yet random Japanese food from Yamanashi: ほうとう (houtou).  Kind of like udon but in miso-esque broth with assorted mountain vegetables (as we were in the mountains).  Also had those little sweet クコの実 (apparently a “wolfberry“) previously only seen perched atop delicious 杏仁豆腐。I have started to think that much of this regional Japanese cuisine is nothing more than a Taco Bell-like mashup where a pre-set variety of ingredients are mixed together with varying results.  Like the Crunchwrap Supreme.  Or the natural evolution of the Gordita into the Chalupa. まぁ、とにかく田舎の味がして旨かったですね。

Shin-san discovered Yoga Girl’s mask and proceeded to impress us with his interpretation of assorted tai-chi and yoga inspired poses.  Yoga Girl’s entourage was nearby and seemed less than amused.

全員完走！

As I was deprived of my Friday and there are no open container laws here, I took it upon myself to have a congratulatory cocktail on the ride home…  And look what I found: Cola Shock ZERO!!  Kirin just knows how to take a good thing and make it better.  Now all they need is a STRONG Cola Shock Zero and we will be ready to rumble.  Time to write a letter.

43:41.

Tried out the new French place Le Pre Verre in Gyre on the other day…  A little pricey for what you get but not bad.  This cabbage soup thing was good and well pureed.

The sausage and mash main event left something to be desired…  Tasted alright but the portion was very Japanese in size.  Not to mention sausage and mash is something I tend to associate more with Germany.

Sorry to say though, the 肉まん I got from the Lawson on the way back to the office was probably the most satisfying part of the meal.

Tuesday, September 15th saw a new chapter in the saga of weekly weeknight inebriation.  I think it best to let the pictures speak for themselves.  This is the edited version, however…  Unfortunately I was barred from putting up the really good stuff.  Including the 10 minutes of video footage that included a SMAP medley.  Anyways…

Ryota giving it his all.

T-san really belting.  I forget if this was before or after she danced a little diddy.

Boo with tambourine and shochu…  That was bottle number three for the evening.  Usually wouldn’t be a problem, but bottle number two was an 一升瓶 (1.8l) of deadly Okinawan awamori.

仲良いですね・・・

And who was the suit who also tagged along?  We’re still not really sure…

Apparently we all ate this at the end of the night.  The traditional T-san 水分。

I assume it was good.

Thanks to the other Kazu Matsushita-san from VICE I made my way with T-san, Minai-san, and assorted other members of the usual crew to the Franklin Marshall opening.  It was a little more 上品 than our usual digs leaving us feeling a bit like the 原宿の嵐, but after a couple of glasses of what was on the table and a musical tour of the 90s everything started to fall into place.

Minai-san with the ever palatable small cake and beer combo.

Team Carnival.

A new classic.

And I am looking forward to this.

Had the privilege of attending the Opening Ceremony reception last night to celebrate their new store opening up in Shibuya…  It’s killer, to say the least.

In traditional nippon style they had the big barrel of sake complete with logoed 枡 (Masu).

Crazy running horse display thing.

Made a quick 王将 run to refuel before hitting the after party at Liquid Room.  Mmm… Tasty.

Live performance by Julian from The Strokes…

And now for the obligatory grainy paparazzi shot of the evening…  Amidst the seemingly endless sea of celebrities gathered from East and West, two stars shone brighter than the rest complete with lace Mickey and Bunny ears.  Don’t know who they are?  Here’s a hint.

My only question is where was Uncle Jesse to chaperone?

Went to 龍の子 (Ryu no Ko) for lunch today…  Apparently Szechuan in Japanese is 四川, so I got a vocab lesson together with a heavy dose of spicy food.

Kazu-san really likes these pickles…  So much that he says he wants to take a bag home with him.

The main attraction here, however, is the 麻婆豆腐 (Mabo-dofu)…  This stuff is killer.  Spicy with a strong dose of 山椒 (sansho).  Almost tastes like the real thing that I had in China.

Minus the morning after stomach pain.

Hit up the Transit 海の家「CURRENT」a couple weeks back with Shin, Hico, Suja and Kobayashi-san.

Good times.

Maru went home to 新潟 (Niigata) during the remodel and brought back the obligatory 名物 known as 笹団子 (Sasadango).  I had definitely had one of these before, but the second experience was equally as puzzling…  Steamed mochi with plant filaments mixed in giving it a vaguely herbal taste filled will the usual red bean paste.  The best thing I can think to compare it to is a tamale.

On to the new store…  Remodel was a screaming success.  This is my favorite new build-out…  The donut.

Had a great turn out for the reception…  Thanks to Vitamin Water and Red Bull for the non-alcoholic beverages, and Baird Beer for the awesome beer on tap!

On to the アフター・・・

KB flew 10 hours in ECONOMY for this…

Yaguchi-san took the whole maid thing a little too seriously… 掃除のおばさんみたいだな。

Not my idea.

など。

とにかく大盛況でしたよね。ご来場の皆様、ありがとうございました！

Saturday night spelled obligatory karaoke panic in 六本木。

The resident pro wasn’t too sure of KB’s singing/rapping voice…

At least the beer glasses didn’t shatter.