Food Diary - Yokohama, Day 1

Note: This article was actually written on August 13, 2026. At the time of writing, Xiǎomī had just returned to his home in M Country and woken from sleep. He discovered that the refrigerator contained absolutely nothing he could use. Who could understand his despair?

Xiǎomī (小咪) had arrived in Japan. Since he had flown in economy class, he had not really managed to sleep properly. After enduring the enormous queue at customs, Xiǎomī took a train for about an hour and arrived in Yokohama. He would be lodging here for three nights.

The First Meal

He truly had no strength left. Xiǎomī decided to seek food at a convenience store. Confronted by the dazzling array of goods, Xiǎomī spent enough time making up his mind that he could already have gone downstairs and walked to the ramen shop next door; had he taken any longer, he might even have reached the nearby Sukiya. His final decision was a cup of instant noodles, some crunchy (korikori) pig ears, and a piece of famichiki.

The broth from the noodles was delicious, but apart from their lemon fragrance, the pig ears struck Xiǎomī as rather greasy. The best thing was still the famichiki. Xiǎomī went to sleep.

The Second Meal

The second meal in Xiǎomī’s record was, in fact, breakfast on the morning after his arrival in Yokohama. To make up for the regret of not visiting Sukiya the day before, Xiǎomī followed his jet lag awake at an early hour, went to Sukiya, and ordered his favourite okra beef rice bowl, with seaweed added on top.

Delicious. (After returning to his room, he ate the soufflé pudding bought from FamilyMart the previous evening. This, too, was delicious enough to send Xiǎomī to heaven.)

The Third Meal

It is truly impossible to remember what happened between the second and third meals. Perhaps Xiǎomī went for a soak; besides that, there was a telephone conference with his friend Miu-kun on Discord. All he remembers is that he intended to go shopping at the mall after the third meal.

The Discord conference was probably about choosing where to eat this meal. Prices in Miu-kun’s city were exceedingly high. Although it offered a considerable variety of food, if he, a fellow PhD student, wished to enjoy a meal like the one pictured below, it would cost him dearly indeed.

During the call, Xiǎomī had already resolved to visit this restaurant: Kannai Nouen, located between Bashamichi Station and Kannai Station in Yokohama. Miu-kun’s drool was about to come slipping down the telephone line.

The restaurant’s most famous offering was its vegetable tempura rice bowl (yasai tendon). On this basis, Xiǎomī ordered the set meal and added, separately, the fried eel laid crosswise in the photograph. Somehow, when ordering, he failed to notice the weekly tempura special. If he ever has the opportunity to visit again, he must see what that week’s special tempura might be.

Xiǎomī began with the vegetables. The most delicious were the courgette and sweet potato. Once made into tempura, the shiso leaf lost some of its original flavour through frying. Reaching the eel was, quite simply, a cleansing of the soul.

A generous portion, seasoning that was just right, and condiments provided on the table. Xiǎomī finished the meal in satisfaction.