Some observations about food in Japan

1. First and foremost, the Jewish Community of Japan has put together a list of everything that I do not eat in Japan (pork, beef, chicken, shellfish), and everything that I do (salmon, tuna, mackerel, yellow tail). It is in English, transliterated Japanese, and actual Japanese, including instructions. Amazing.
2. Some guy named Jon has great a Google map of hundreds of restaurants and bars in Tokyo, color coded by cuisine type, and with his recommendations noted. Plus, each entry has a short summary, and links to a longer blog post that he wrote about the restaurant when he ate there.
3. I made myself an omelet last night (with peppers, onions, and tomatoes). The eggs in Japan (and I bought the cheapest ones they had in the store) are gorgeous. They have the most golden orange yokes that I have ever seen.
4. At summer camp, when I was growing up, the Australian counselors used to rave about some cookie called Tim Tams. Eventually, one of their friends sent them a box, but they refused to share them with any campers. I finally got to try them a few years ago when I was in Australia, but haven't had them since. Well, they sell them in Japan. They're kind of like an Orea with thicker, softer chocolate filling, and then frosted with chocolate all the way around. Yum.
   
5. The Japanese smoke a lot. Especially in restaurants. It's like being back in 1995 in the United States, when you'd have to get a table far away from a smoker. I actually had to switch tables tonight between courses. (Though, it provided me an opportunity to strike up a conversation with the American seated next to me, who said that the offender had gone through a whole pack already, and that he was going to warn me when I sat down.)
6. Every restaurant seems to have fake displays of its food for patrons to see. This is even the case when the signs are in English and Japanese, and when the food is already prepared for you to see before you order it. Still, some of this fake food looks real: