Hopefully not Sayonara

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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby ttommy » Fri Jun 26, 2009 5:55 am

I finally got back my Shigefusa yanagi from Dave at JapaneseKnifeSharpening.com. Dave installed a handle made by Stefan Keller out of spalted Hawaiian signature and curly koa, then "prettified" the blade.

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Here's Dave describing the work-- ""I think it all came out pretty good and certainly transformed the knife into something special. I didn't score a personal best with the mist/haze look and actually had trouble doing it for some reason. It still looks good but I was trying to go somewhere else with it, but oh well like I said it's still good - I'm just hard to please.

I also did some hand work and sanded out the scratches on the flat kanji section. I then actually etched it but even though the damascus became very prominent this area turned dark gray and matte. I tried to put a polish on the matte but it just wouldn't take so rather than leave it ugly like this I polished this section by hand to be shiny but not mirror, if you know what I mean. I think it looks pretty good this way but I only wish I could have got the damascus to come out more like you wanted."


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The yanagiba mini-collection (so far ;) ), bottom to top: Masamoto Sohonten Hongasumi Hassouchi 270mm; Suisin/Doi Aoko Kengata 300mm; Shigefusa Kitaeji 300mm; Ittosai Kotetsu Shiroko Honyaki 330mm.

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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby dimfer » Fri Jun 26, 2009 6:21 am

I don't think I can go into this hobby even if I wanted to, maghahalo-halo ang pangalan, puro Hapon :D

Our knives are very easy to remember, Cutco. We've been living with this set for the last 8 years.
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby rtsyrtsy » Fri Jun 26, 2009 12:42 pm

dimfer wrote:I don't think I can go into this hobby even if I wanted to, maghahalo-halo ang pangalan, puro Hapon :D

Our knives are very easy to remember, Cutco. We've been living with this set for the last 8 years.


He-he, pareho tayo, Ding. Ako naman Ikea. :D

But on ttommy's and setup6's influence, I picked up a Global Gyuto. It's a life transforming experience. Itinago na namin yung food processor. :D

Detubo,

May Kyocera dito sa Dubai. A shade under AED500 yung santoku (that's about PhP6,500). Kaya lang, yung local dealer, hindi alam kung paano hasain. Sabi nung tinderong mabantot, hindi daw kailangan hasain ang ceramic. Kamuntik ko nang gawing saya nung santoku yung mata nung tindero. :D

ttommy, guwapo nung mga slicers...
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby ttommy » Fri Jun 26, 2009 1:33 pm

dimfer wrote:I don't think I can go into this hobby even if I wanted to, maghahalo-halo ang pangalan, puro Hapon :D

Patas lang, hirap din ang mga Hapon mag pronounce ng Von Schweikert :lol: Seriously, brands 'yung Shigefusa, Masamoto, Ittosai, Suisin. Then "grades" 'yung kasumi, hon-kasumi (or hongasumi), honyaki for single-steel, forged; then ornamental cladding (e.g. damascus) where manufacturers use different names-- suminagashi, hassouchi, kitaeji. Pero parang tubo din, sometimes magulo 'yung naming ;)

Our knives are very easy to remember, Cutco. We've been living with this set for the last 8 years.

Subukan mo'ng binili ni Russ-- Global, high WAF! (btw, Russ, esmi = misis.)

rtsyrtsy wrote:ttommy, guwapo nung mga slicers...

Thanks :D
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby dimfer » Sat Jun 27, 2009 11:58 am

Patas lang, hirap din ang mga Hapon mag pronounce ng Von Schweikert

:D :D you should hear Ban pronounce Von Schweikert.

I need a good knife for removing the fat on the beefheart that I buy for my arowanas, but the Cutco is doing a good enough job. One thing we like with Cutco is their hasslefree replacement policy.

I remember when I was in elementary school, my dad was buying and selling samurai's from the Japanese occupation era, ang dalahan nya is yung father ni Eva Reyes (beauty queen/actress) sa Lipa City. He would spend hours and hours looking at samurai catalogs.

But I guess your knives and the samurai are entirely different crowd.
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby ttommy » Sat Jun 27, 2009 10:09 pm

dimfer wrote:I remember when I was in elementary school, my dad was buying and selling samurai's from the Japanese occupation era, ang dalahan nya is yung father ni Eva Reyes (beauty queen/actress) sa Lipa City. He would spend hours and hours looking at samurai catalogs.

Then he must've known a lot! The learning curve with swords is much steeper compared to knives because its history is longer. From the Korin catalog--
The shift from sword-crafting to knife-crafting began in the mid-nineteenth century in response to Commodore Perry's forced opening of Japan's borders to Western trade. After World War II, General Macarthur totally banned Japanese sword-making, which forced large numbers of highly skilled craftsmen to turn their skills and attention to the fashioning of kitchen knives. So, for inspiration, the dedicated sword craftsmen began to look to the ambitious creations of creative chefs.


Swords are also very expensive and if I'm not mistaken, their export from Japan is tightly controlled.

But I guess your knives and the samurai are entirely different crowd.

Different crowd but appreciation is the same :)
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby dimfer » Sat Jun 27, 2009 11:18 pm

Then he must've known a lot! The learning curve with swords is much steeper compared to knives because its history is longer

yes, he was deeply into this, and coin collecting. hindi ko mabuhat ang kanyang libro ng coin collection (the coin collection term I could remember - "may tangay na ahas") back then. I could recall that he would examine the sword end to end with a magnifying glass, and do the same with the scabbard kasi marami din yatang istorya ang scabbard.

Different crowd but appreciation is the same

now I know you're not into this para mas maporma ang pang-gayat mo ng sebuyas :D what is the Patek Philippe of knife collecting?
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby rtsyrtsy » Sun Jun 28, 2009 12:46 am

Ding,

"Patek Philippe" of knives...delikadong tanong yan. :clap:

Dun sa sword site na pinadala ni Tito, heto yung interesting:

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It reminds me of those kamay na pangkamot from Baguio! I can just imagine coming home one day tapos ginamit yung US$2k na ninja's kumade nung hardinero panghalukay ng tinatanim na kamatis. :fubar:
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby ttommy » Sun Jun 28, 2009 3:45 pm

rtsyrtsy wrote:... ginamit yung US$2k na ninja's kumade...

Eh papaano kung mabisto ni kumander na $2K pala 'yung kumade? :roll:

dimfer wrote:yes, he was deeply into this, and coin collecting. hindi ko mabuhat ang kanyang libro ng coin collection (the coin collection term I could remember - "may tangay na ahas") back then. I could recall that he would examine the sword end to end with a magnifying glass, and do the same with the scabbard kasi marami din yatang istorya ang scabbard.

I can imagine.

what is the Patek Philippe of knife collecting?

In terms of a specific type of knife, then without question, it's the yanagiba. In particular, a mizu-honyaki (mixu-honyaki = single material, not cladded, forged, water-tempered) yanagiba. As to which particular brand/make of yanagiba, then mahirap sagutin, it depends on who you're asking. For the knifenuts in KF and FF, their context for appreciating a knife is more often tied to its aesthetics and how it takes to sharpening. The sharpening geeks in those forums, imo, take the geekiness of sharpening to another level, even much better than the in-house guys of the manufacturer's in Japan! How can this be? Well, the target customer for most manufacturers is either the home cook or pro-chef, none of which sharpen their knives or obsess about sharpening (e.g. creating secondary, tertiary bevels, hamaguriba/clamshell technique, etc.) the same way knifenuts do. Chefs and home cooks are ultimately concerned with the food they put out not how the blade looks under 60x magnification :lol:

Because of this divergence in appreciation, a Shigefusa, for example is highly desireable to a knifenut. While not a honyaki, it sharpens very well (easy to form a burr), takes on a great mist on the blade road, the spine is also exceptionally thin and the smith (Tokifusa Iizuka) is perhaps the only one left who does everything by hand (no use of automated/belt hammers). On the other hand, if you ask a professional chef, who washed dishes for 3 years before he was even allowed to touch rice in a sushi restaurant in Japan, all throughout this time as an apprentice watching their head chef use (arguably the most popular brand) a Masamoto what the holy grail would be, chances are he'd answer Masamoto. Couch potato chef-wannabees, on the other hand, might go for Iron Chef Roksaburo Michiba's Ikkanshi Tadatsuna or Morimoto's Nenohi, just because that's what their idols use. In short, there is no single correct answer, instead, it depends on what one's objectives are in finding the "ultimate" knife.

Personally, I don't believe there's an ultimate knife. While one could certainly buy a $40K Nenohi and feel it's like a Patek Philippe, I believe for most Japanese chefs, they'd feel it undeserving unless they've reached such a high station in their craft. It's like in music, a conductor could buy the fanciest orchestra baton but probably would rather have a cheap chopstick once used and handed down from Bernstein ;)

And since I'm not a professional chef, nor do I care much about learning more about Japanese cutting techniques besides making sushi/sashimi, it's only the yanagiba for me... which I also use to slice meat. Yeah, the katsuramuki rolls with the Usuba, while fancy, doesn't excite me. Why? I don't think Japanese veggie dishes are as appealing as, say, Chinese. To be honest, for my cooking needs, I could live with my gyuto, cleaver and paring knife. The yanagibas are just an illness that's a little cheaper than collecting cartridges :$
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby rtsyrtsy » Sun Jun 28, 2009 5:16 pm

ttommy wrote:
rtsyrtsy wrote:... ginamit yung US$2k na ninja's kumade...

Eh papaano kung mabisto ni kumander na $2K pala 'yung kumade? :roll:


Tito,

Shhhhh...my wife just recommended a D700 to a newbie because she keeps hearing me say that it's very good and not very expensive. ;)

I don't have one. I'm just conditioning my circumstances.

Thanks for your commentary. I end up reading them twice or thrice to make sure I soak in every nugget of wisdom.

Ding,

One thing I learned from Tito when I bought a gyuto (which doesn't make me an expert!) is to buy a long one. 24 or 27cm if possible. I was intimidated by other knives of this length when I first saw them. The Japanese were prevented from manufacturing weapons (even katanas) after the war and I thought those 30cm were their way around the embargo!

Magaling ang mga Hapon sa palusot...look how they get away with whaling. :D

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Because of limited choice here in Dubai, I bought a Global G2. It's a 20cm chef's knife. I learned my lesson literally on the first slice of a not so large slab of liempo for making lechon kawali. With a 20cm, I had to make a "lagare" movement. if my knife were longer, I would've sliced the liempo in one smooth motion--more efficient, more secure, and the cut is neater. Of course, I'm blaming the 20cm knife when quite possibly, the problem lies with my knife skills. :(

Uunahan ko na si Tito by "sulsulting" myself. The good news about buying a 20cm is that I now have an excuse to get a 33cm yanagiba. :devil:

Re: knife sharpening, Global has an interesting solution for non-DIY people like me:

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Ang hirap kasi dito sa Dubai, I can only learn knife sharpening by watching knife geeks work on Youtube. The Minosharp alleviates the sharpening issue somewhat.

Here's what could be a more elegant solution. I've seen this brand (Edge Pro) mentioned in foodie forums.

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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby dimfer » Sun Jun 28, 2009 7:04 pm

interesting.. :geek:
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby JackD201 » Sun Jun 28, 2009 9:38 pm

Wala bang Honyummy at Sususuin diyan?

What's the best way to store knives when space is an issue bros?
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby ttommy » Sun Jun 28, 2009 10:46 pm

JackD201 wrote:Wala bang Honyummy at Sususuin diyan?
What's the best way to store knives when space is an issue bros?

A knife block would be the obvious choice but I prefer a mag-blok magnetic strip. With kids around, you might want to lock them in a drawer though.

rtsyrtsy wrote:Shhhhh...my wife just recommended a D700 to a newbie because she keeps hearing me say that it's very good and not very expensive. ;)
I don't have one. I'm just conditioning my circumstances.

Advanced programming skills you have :D

Uunahan ko na si Tito by "sulsulting" myself. The good news about buying a 20cm is that I now have an excuse to get a 33cm yanagiba. :devil:

Usage wise, I'm finding my sweet spot to be around 30cm. Besides, manufacturers don't charge you for just the additional length but rather the difficulty in making one that's 30cm longer. In short, the incremental cost is not proportional to the amount of steel.

Here's what could be a more elegant solution. I've seen this brand (Edge Pro) mentioned in foodie forums.
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That'll probably do with a Global but if you're dealing with a good yanagiba, then you'll need a proper "sharpening station" and a progression of waterstones :) Below on top, I have two stone fixers, then below that, left to right-- a Beston 500x (numbers correspond to grit), Bester 1200x, Mizuyama 1K/6K, Arashiyama 6K. The reason for having the gradually increasing progression is that depending on your sharpening needs, you might want to cut more metal (lower grit) or polish (higher grit).

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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby rtsyrtsy » Mon Jun 29, 2009 1:30 am

JackD201 wrote:Wala bang Honyummy at Sususuin diyan?


Bwahahaha...My officemates asked me again what I was laughing at and this time, I just cannot explain this in English. :D

JackD201 wrote:What's the best way to store knives when space is an issue bros?


My favorite is the voodoo knifeblock by Iannello. :D

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I will get these "sayas" if storing in a drawer:

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If I were in Manila, I would beg joe3rp to make something like this:

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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby detubo » Mon Jun 29, 2009 9:09 am

rtsyrtsy wrote:If I were in Manila, I would beg joe3rp to make something like this:

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are those ceramic knives?
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby rtsyrtsy » Mon Jun 29, 2009 9:51 am

detubo wrote:
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are those ceramic knives?


Nope, they are wooden sayas that you slide your precious blades into...
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby ttommy » Mon Jun 29, 2009 10:23 pm

Rereading what I said--
That'll probably do with a Global but if you're dealing with a good yanagiba, then you'll need a proper "sharpening station" ...

I realize that could be misinterpreted to mean the Edge Pro won't suffice as a yanagiba sharpener, which is a bit silly, of course it's more than capable of sharpening yanagis. What I meant is that, amongst all bocho/kitchen knives, the hand forged yanagi is closest to a katana in spirit and to most "traditionalists" (myself included) it'll seem somehow blasphemous to use a "mechanically-assisted" sharpening device.
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby rtsyrtsy » Tue Jun 30, 2009 1:23 am

ttommy wrote:...to most "traditionalists" (myself included) it'll seem somehow blasphemous to use a "mechanically-assisted" sharpening device.


I quickly realized after immersing myself in the knife forums you suggested that I'm not a knife purist. When it comes to kitchen tools, I'm a slice-cook-eat type, emphasis on the latter. :D

I'm likely to be happy with a Global knife and the Minosharp device for life. That is, life till I get to try ttommy's and Miss Y's toys in NYC. Just like the jump from Ikea to Global, slicing with a traditional Japanese knife may be another life-changing experience.

It's better like this so that Calatrava can soon be reality. :D
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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby ttommy » Wed Dec 02, 2009 1:38 am

Just added a walnut saya (sheath) to go with my 300mm Shigefusa yanagi--

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Problem with a knife like this is that it breaks my heart to use it :$

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Like audio however, I haven't added any knives or upgraded the stereo. Nowadays, it's mostly cooking and buying used CDs, then ripping them to iTunes.

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Re: Hopefully not Sayonara

Postby ttommy » Sun Dec 20, 2009 3:17 pm

Professional Cooking Class

by Chef Eiji Ichimura

The Japanese Culinary Center invites the great Chef Eiji Ichimura to conduct educational Japanese cooking classes. The cooking classes welcome both professionals and consumers who are excited to learn about the proper ways to cook authentic Japanese food.

We hope to conduct several more classes in the future featuring different products with Chef Eiji Ichimura. For this first class we are going to be featuring “NIGIRI". Nigiri sushi appears as a very simple food but there are many intricacies to be learned and perfected, such as sushi rice or “shari”. At this special event, we will pick six different ingredients (neta) all from Japan.

Please do not lose this opportunity to have a truly great and memorable experience.


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* * *
I arrived just in time for my 1:30PM class only to be told I had signed up for the earlier 11:30AM session. While JCC staff were mistaken, I didn't think so at the time and truly felt I had screwed up. Good thing there was one more seat available, perhaps a last minute cancellation due to the impending blizzard.

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Our class started with Chef Eiji Ichimura showing us how to tie our apron and, sure enough, the aprons were sized for the less portly Japanese physique. I came in barely sufficient, getting the kimono loop with a little left over to spare. As it turned out, this was the professional class and everyone here, myself excluded, works in a restaurant/kitchen.

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Chef Ichimura spoke little English but sake sommelier, Yasuyuki Suzuki, proved an excellent translator. There were seven students in this class and there was a good deal of excitement as Chef Ichimura outlined what we'd be learning. Certain aspects of the art of sushi making apparently takes 5 years to learn but, as I understand it, these all had to do with cooking and preparing shari/rice.

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Secrets of washing rice were revealed, but we've signed non-disclosure agreements ;) Just kidding. Actually, most of these are pretty straightforward, information is readily available online, but I figure what I'm paying for is getting to see the physical aspects of preparation-- how the rice looks like after its washed, the clarity of the water during that final washing, the texture of the rice after its cooked.

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Then we're off to practicing the basics-- making rice balls. Apparently mastery of the technique calls for being able to pluck, with one deft stroke, using just the right hand, exactly one hundred seventy three grains :D

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Throughout this session, Ichimura-san would go around and help us with our technique. The only things we didn't get to do were cook the rice and cut it ourselves.

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There was some good knife action too, here we see Chef Ichimura working a garasuki to fillet an ahi/mackerel. Needless to say, execution was perfect and he made it look so easy.

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Then we were taught how to peel the skin by hand--

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All the rice we've worked with so far was for those "practice" balls. Here, chef Ichimura "cuts" newly cooked rice which we'll be working on for the sushi plate we get to eat.

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All my other classmates except one Japanese chef brought western knives. I used my 270mm Masamoto Sohonten Suminagashi but also brought two others to (what else) show off! Haha ;)

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Demonstration of proper Edomae nigiri technique--

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Then we had to do our own plates. To brag a little (ahem), Ichimura-san went around reviewing each student's plate, giving advice or doing a little one-on-one demo, but when he saw my plate below, he stopped for a second then just said "beautiful!" then moved on. That made me happy, before today I've made sushi that I thought was okay... but not like this.

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Then it was time for the battleship-shaped gunkan sushi. Again, the same basic technique of making rice balls, shaping them, and applying a good spoonful of caviar or sea urchin.

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My final plate for inspection, finished with the ahi/mackerel and scallops on the side.

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Bestowing our "graduation token," Chef Ichimura came by and planted a dash of ginger on top of each ahi nigiri.

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Here's a shot of our sensei's plate, he's using what appears to be a Kikuichi yanagi, the chrysanthemum plainly visible.

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Speaking of knives, I got to chat with Mr Yamamoto (below), President of the New York Mutual Trading Company (which owns the Japanese Culinary Center). Unfortunately, I don't own the brands they carry-- Tsukiji Masamoto and Nenohi. Yamamoto-san and a the other staff got to examine my "La Encantada" Shigefusa, which they admired, but they appeared much more impressed with my 330mm Ittosai Honyaki. And, for the record, my favorite brand of knife is Nenohi.

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After our session had ended, Chef Ichimura hosted an impromptu class for the staff and friends of JCC who were hanging around and observing. Honestly, this was so much fun, the two hours felt like a few minutes. Totally worth the price of admission, imo. Finally, JCC also gave us a small take-home bag of goodies containing some sushi-making ingredients and one cute Tsukiji Masamoto deba.

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After this picture, on my way out, I didn't expect Chef Ichimura to see me out the door. Bow to sensei, domo arigato!

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Parting shots: samurai armor

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The sake shelf at JCC

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And the plate I took home--

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Thanks for reading! (Oh and I was just lying about the deba above, just wanted your heart to skip a beat, lol.)
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