Fukuoka, Kyushu (Japan)
While Japan is known for having kept countrywide its age-old tradition of having good time with colleagues in bars after work, some cities like Osaka and Fukuoka bring with them an even richer food culture, given they were the entry port for foreign tastes and ways. Not that all foreign input were welcome : Hakata (an
other name for Fukuoka) was the
site of several attempts by Mongols at invading the country in the 13th century, these almost succeeded with the unpreparedness of the Japanse soldiers unused to face experienced and ruthless foreign armies. But two well-timed natural phenomena (a storm with changing winds and a typhoon named kamikaze) turned the tables, allowing the defenders to go from an anticipated defeat to a divine victory....
This story is mostly a picture journey through the eating/drinking mores of this charming city. Fukuoka which is located on the Island of Kyushu, is large enough to offer all the pleasures like other large cities in this country but it is small enough that you can criss-cross the city by foot without having to rely on the subway or buses (which are nonetheless very reliable like elsewhere). Even commuting from the airport to downtown is incredibly easy : 5 minutes and two stops, and it costs only 210 ¥ or 1,4 €. The city also has this interesting culinary particularity of the yatai : These are food carts which are wheeled to their spot every evening and that go away in the middle of the night. Even if tourists (which are here mostly Korean, Taiwanese, singaporeans and Chinese) love the yatai, patrons are also locals, company employees or salarymen who spice up their afterwork with choosing one of these carts instead of an indoor bar. This one here was located on Showa dori on the other side of the boulevard from Mitsukoshi. There's also one of these yatai which is famously managed by a Frenchman (chez Remy), it's very appreciated for it's French cooking input, I didn't try it though. the yatai gets all the plus of the tachinomi (standing bars), you're tightly packed next to people you don't know and end up striking a conversation, the only difference is that you're sitting and it's almost outdoors with the excitement of enjoying good time in a yurt, reassuringly warmed by the sight of the cooking stove...
This story is a first part, more to come about a couple of natural-wine bars here.
It is very easy to find toilets in Japan, they're clean and free of charge, they can be found in subway stations, department stores or like here in a street. You don't have here any of these horrible gender-neutral/disability-neutral automated toilets that have become the norm in Paris. Any Parisian will tell you they're often out of work and take an eternity to clean up between visitors, rendering them useless.
I stopped there once, beware, as this yatai is there only fridays and saturdays, it seemed to me, my advice is take a seat when you see available ones, the
place is very authentic,
it is operated by a young guy, and because it's away from the beaten path you'll likely only see only locals and salarymen there, having a welcome pause before heading home.
While some yatai are more expensive than others, it's often pretty affordable or even cheap, you can see the prices here on the sides, they had menus in English for potential foreign passerbys. 100 Yen making 0.68 € at the time of writing this story, you can easily check that whatever you eat or drink there will be at your reach. That's the hidden gem of Japan : bars and eateries are cheap enough that even lower middle class can afford a daily treat with booze...
You wonder where all those yatai carts go when they pack up at midnight ? I found one of the places where they're parked, it's on the side of Canal City along the canal. They're parked in such a Japanse way ! Each one close to eath other but respectfully. These fragile, age-old carts are intact although parking them so tightly might have damaged them if made without attention and care....
This is taking place on may 27 and june 27 in Tenjin, the World Natural Wine Fes which is organized by Mottox wine imports gives the visitors the opportunity to taste 30 wines from different countries in a 30-minute time slot reserved between 3pm and 8 pm. DJ live music during the event, the fee was 3000 Yen (about 20 €). Here is the web page to reserve your slot for this even.
There is even a Yaki-Imo truck in Fukuoka (maybe more than one), I filmed this one waiting at a red light as it was cruising through the city along the canal, probably on the way to its next planned stop. Yaki-Imo trucks which sell baked sweet potatoes are a fixture of old-time Japan surviving through modernity, although it's harder to find them in Japanese cities nowadays. Here at one point along the video you can recognize the lovely (if somehow melancholic) song associated with Yaki-Imo trucks.
I was looking for a whisky bar (where at the end I never went to, I'll go there next time, looks like a good whisky bar, it's on the 5th level of a building), Leichardt whisky bar, when I stumbled upon this wonderful
little covered arcade lined
with bars. It's total shitamashi style, like in early 20th century japan, some kind of this piss alley like the one I visited in Tokyo, or also the Golden Gai street maze in Shinjuku, just that here it's smaller and covered. There are even urinals at the end of the alley (watch the glmpse on the video) so that you can spend your whole evening and not worry about finding toilets (the venues are too small to have some)....
To find the place (on Jonan Sen Avenue, east of Yakuin station), follow this map link to Bell Dining, the first venue of the alley (a wine bar, by the way). Don't miss this alley and try any bar if you find room, excitement guaranteed ! (But don't go there as a group of Westerners for discretion, 2 foreigners will fit more easily). In my first stop there I just had nihonshu.
Fast food with style : If you're still hungry after your drink and side dish in one of these places, just grab a bento in 24-hour-open downtown supermarkets like Sunny or MaxValu. Here a generous bento with salmon, rice & vegetables costs a mere 500 Yen or 3.40 €, where could you eat for that little in France ???
This was on the plaza in front of Hakata station (by the way the busiest train/subway station of Kyushu). This plaza holds many events, there's always something going on here. Asahi was launching 3 fruit-aromated alcoholic drinks that day, with respectively 3%, 5 % and 7 % content, everyone except minors (under 20) and people who were to drive afterwards (you were asked before getting in) could take part, you just had to pay 100 Yen (0.7 €, pretty symbolic) and you were given a can and a small appetizer to eat with. When you left the place you could give a written apprectiation of the drink you just sampled and were offered a small bag with one of the drinks of your choice (to open later).
You have also plenty of restaurants in basements, like under Hakata station or under major department stores like Mitsukoshi or Marui (like here), also in the last, upper floors of these department stores.
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