Kobe: Sweets Harbor

Usually I prefer nice little shops with a comfortable atmosphere to big food malls and usually I am not at all a fan of theme parks and things alike, BUT how can I resist a wonderland of sweets, pastries, icecreams, puddings, cremes, cakes, shakes... You are right: I can't! That's why nothing and no one was able to hold me back when I was standing in front of the Sweets Harbor in Kobe. Dream and nightmare in one place! Dream for all the lovers of sugar in its best forms, of delicate beauties, nearly too wonderful to be edible but yet they are! Perfect little works of art, created with all the good things in this world: sugar, cream, fruits, chocolate, matcha (we are in Japan, don't forget that), love and passion - you name it!
Nightmare for everyone on a diet or short of cash, cause the prices are just about as high as the amount of calories of the goodies we are talking about. But at least the entry is free of charge unlike in other food theme parks in Japan that I avoided so far, because I think it is kind of stupid to pay to enter shops or restaurants where you have to pay for the food again!
Most sweets sold in the Sweets Harbor are European style (with a Japanese touch of course), and there are also typical Chinese sweets with Tapioca, soymilk, sweet beans and the like, but when it comes to traditional Wagashi you might search there in vain. Kobe, being a harbor city trading with the rest of the world for quite a while, is one of the more "international" places in Japan with a lively and touristy Chinatown and some European influences to be seen in architecture and cuisine. Although internationaly more or less only known for the devastating earthquake back in 1995, (and the most expensive beef in the world, but we won't talk about that here..), within Japan it is also famous for good sweets. Especially pudding (Purin - that's the Japanese pronounciation) from Kobe is said to be the best far and wide and is a staple in the range of souvenirs available there.
After at least three laps all through Sweets Harbor and long and intensive staring on all those little wonders that might not only delight me but also dentists and cardiologists near and far, I decided to take the beautiful dessert you can admire on the photo above. It was a buttery, flaky pastry filled with lots of rich custard and topped with fresh strawberries.. I think I don't have to describe the taste. I am sure you can imagine the creamy, sweet goodness with the fruity touch of the juicy berries.

Sweets Harbor

Harborland [click for map
open everyday: 11:00-20:00
weekends and holidays: 11:00-21:00

Kuroke to go

Ever had a purple croquette? No? Me neither, before I visited Kamakura a few weeks ago. One of the souvenir and food shops close to the Kôtokuin (the temple with the enormous outdoor Amida Buddha statue) was specialized in all kind of sweet potato treats. They had wonderful sweet potato cakes, ice cream and those funny looking and delicious tasting kuroke (that is the Japanese pronunciation of croquette). Just right: crispy outside, creamy inside with a sweet and savory taste... and they were vegetarian of course. You'll find it on the lefthand side if you walk down the street coming from the Kôtokuin.

This kuroke was one of the very few snacks (icecream is ok too) I found here so far that can be eaten while walking here in Japan without feeling like doing something wrong and rude. Food to go is pretty unusual here. You are supposed to sit down and enjoy the food (nothing wrong about that), instead of walking, dribbling and bothering others with the smell of your food and your disturbing appearance while gulping down stuff. I guess I lived in Berlin for too long where it is the most normal thing in the world to grab a Falafel or something on the way to care about what others are thinking about seeing me eating. It is quite annoying to search for a appropiate place to sit down and eat store-bought snacks here in Japan when I don't want to go in a restaurant and am not around my appartment. Well, at least I got to know many parks and parkbenches like this...

Onigiri

The famous triangular- or wheel-shaped rice balls called Onigiri are something that can be found everywhere and anytime in Tokyo. People eat them for breakfast, kids take them to school in their Obento boxes, they are the salariman's favourite for lunch break and a good midnight snack available at the conbini around the corner. Although they look pretty small, they are quite filling due to the big amount of rice that is pressed into the ball shape.
And the good thing about it: many Onigiri are vegetarian! Basically they are made out of freshly cooked Japanese-style rice, a little salt and Nori seaweed plus a wide variety of fillings. The most traditional one would be a pickled plum called Umeboshi (look out for 梅干 or 梅ぼし und you will get this vegan snack) which is extraordinary popular not only with patriots who see the Japanese flag in the red round plum surrounded by white rice. Umeboshi are also said to be very healthy despite their extreme saltiness. Most people are irritated by the salty sour little fruit when they eat it for the first time, but it is indeed a delicassy worth a second try. I love it!
Other vegetarian options are for example Onigiri sprinkled with black sesame or Shiso (紫蘇 or しそ), in English often referred to as Perilla - a dark red herb with a very fresh and distinct flavour.
Another variation is an Onigiri that consists of rice that is mixed with black beans - these are usually not wrapped in seaweed. But with these you have to look out, sometimes they are flavoured with Dashi, that might not be vegetarian! A closer look on the list of ingrediences (if you buy it in a conbini and are able to read Japanese) has to be made if you want to be sure.
You can also buy Onigiri in one of the countless shops, commonly found at train stations. Here they are made freshly and most of the times are offered beside an array of other Obento specialities. These often taste better, but there is no list of ingrediences and you will have to ask whether it is vegetarian or not (unless you take the Umeboshi version that is vegan for sure). But even a positive answer is not at all an assurance of an animalfree rice ball.. The one you see on my photo above looked great: wrapped in spinach (?or something similar?) instead of seaweed, a variant I never saw before that woke my interest. So I asked at the counter in Japanese "is it vegetarian? without meat, without fish?", the vendor said "yes bejitarian", I took it, bit into it - the filling was Katsuobushi, fish flakes! When will it finally become known that fish is still fish even though it does not look like it anymore... and that it won't become more vegetarian by processing it to flakes!
Well, next time I will go on the safe side, have Umeboshi again or buy it at one of the organic food stores that spring up like mushrooms in some areas of the city. Here at least the shop assistants understand the meaning of the word "bejitarian".

Making Onigiri yourself is of course the safest way. You can find a recipe here.