First, brunch at a café for music lovers Nogata is a town I have visited many times, but I thought it would be a town with many more facets. In terms of distance, Nakano, Koenji, and Asagaya are all close by, and the town has somewhat of a Chuo Line atmosphere. However, since it is along a private railway line, rent is reasonable, and perhaps because of that, I have the impression that there are many inexpensive and delicious restaurants. I had enjoyed drinking at a famous yakitori restaurant “Akimoto-ya” in Nogata before, so I was excited to find a variety of delicious and interesting restaurants there this time as well. This time, the drinking party was at night, but I wanted to explore the area by visiting cafes, so I arrived at Nogata by noon in my car. The first place I entered was “Cafe Auditorium,” with its retro look and entrance that tickled my music lover’s fancy. Once inside, I found a nice audio set and CDs all lined up. The music playing was classical Beethoven. This restaurant has a full menu of sweets, and this time I ordered the master’s signature “Belgian waffle (Liege style)” and a cheese toast for brunch because I wanted something a little salty. When I go to a new store, I usually order a blend to see what kind of coffee the store likes and what kind of coffee they want their customers to drink. This store’s blend is a little acidic and refreshing. It is not too light and has just the right balance for winter, and even though I am not a fan of acidity, I was able to enjoy it. The Belgian waffle was chunky, and since it was baked with coarse crumbs, the crunchy texture was a perfect contrast to the chunky dough. The cheese toast also has a slightly peculiar cheese, which goes perfectly with the crispy texture of the English bread. A cup of slightly sour coffee refreshes your palate. The restaurant, with its classical music playing, was a homey space where locals gathered and had a heartwarming time.
Cheers to a delicious seafood tavern from noon! Next, we went to a tavern called “Mitsuboshi,” which my husband had spotted. The atmosphere seemed to be that fish would be delicious, so we ordered mainly sashimi and other seafood. I was very happy to find that the stewed potatoes served as an appetizer were warm. Appetizers are often cold, but on a cold winter day, a warm appetizer like this is enough to make me a fan of the restaurant. Since it was only noon, I toasted with a non-alcoholic beer. We ordered yellowtail yukke, grilled tuna, oden, and green pepper cheese omelette. I was very impressed with the care with which each dish was prepared. The fish was fresh and extremely tasty. I would definitely go to this restaurant if it were in my neighborhood.
Shopping at Nogata Bunka Market with an Underground Feel When my stomach was full, I wandered around to explore the town a little and found a very suspicious sign that said “Nogata Bunka Market. In case you are wondering, is this supposed to be an arcade district? I entered, wondering if the somewhat abandoned atmosphere would be okay, but the sense of disrepair created a parallel world atmosphere. I found a store called “PALS” with many racks of nice old clothes. When I entered the shop, I found the atmosphere of a secondhand clothing store. I found a nice looking Sukajan that my husband and I could share, so I ended up buying it. PALS is a vintage clothing store that also holds regular music events, and they are planning to hold record discussions and live concerts in the future. For us, a married couple of musicians, it was a very enjoyable shopping time, talking not only about clothes but also about music. After all, even in this day and age of online shopping, it is important to actually see and try on the items before buying them. And the benefit of shopping in person is the opportunity to talk with and meet the people in the store, so I think clothing stores will never go away. Since Koenji and Nakano are also close by, I thought there would be vintage clothing stores in Nogata, but I never thought I would find such a don’t-miss store. I like vintage clothing very much, but I am also very particular about it, so there are only a few stores that hit the spot. This PALS was chosen by the owner, who is also a musician with a deep sculptural style, and it stuck with me exquisitely.
The drinking party finally starts! Excellent fried food and lots of snacks for drinkers! Then we met up with our friends and finally started our evening drinking session. This time, we went to “Zanki no Howler,” an izakaya with delicious fried food that my friend had been curious about. The fried chicken is the specialty of the restaurant, but it is not “zangi,” the fried chicken of Hokkaido, but “zanki,” the fried chicken of Aichi Prefecture. You can choose between momo (thigh) and mune (thigh), as well as soy sauce and salt flavors. This time, I ordered the momo for both soy sauce and salt flavors. The crunchy and crunchy fried chicken is very tasty! It goes well with a highball. Even as I write this, I am drooling remembering how delicious it was. We had been eating all day, but we took advantage of the fact that our friends had joined us and thoroughly ordered the snacks that we were interested in. The pickled firefly squid with salted malted rice was such a hit that we had to have more. This is the kind of choice that comes with a gathering of drinkers, isn’t it? I don’t often drink alcohol these days because I drive a lot, but this time my husband drove, so I was spoiled and allowed him to drink. I had a lot of food: potato salad with cream cheese, cold tofu with green pepper soy sauce, pickled cucumber, raw green bell pepper with meat miso, etc. I thought to myself, “I eat a lot. But I am impressed even as I write this that I eat so well. Every snack I ordered at this Zanki no Howler was delicious, and I hope to conquer the entire menu someday.
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