Any Brits?

[Columbine]

Originally Posted by dirtyroboto

Tesco have started invading Japan, so you can get some home style tea at a fair price. They also have custard creams and borbons and real mayonase. Also spotted some brown sauce www.tesco-japan.com

Oh they finally managed to open?

Make gravy from scratch i'd say; it's dead easy and will always taste better than granules. Plus all then you really need is flour and stock to make it, which are universal.

Although I like a tsp of marmite in mine XD

[dirtyroboto]

Yea! It looks like Tesco took over a Japanese chain for the most, but they have some new stores that have a better selection of UK food.
As for the tea, they have a 40 bag for 289 yen line that is of really good quality. The wife now gives these out as gifts to her friends with very good feedback.
Hellmans mayo is about 149 for 400g although I have seen it go as high as 189.

The gravy is a problem, I do like to make it fresh but the granules are so convenient when you need a large amount. I had to gravy up for 8 people and the small amount I managed to make hardly covered 3 people, let alone when they got a taste of it and wanted more. I also like to use the granules to make a base for shepherds pie (as an English party dish), that serves about 6-8 people. So it is hard to make a fresh portion for these types of things.

Oh! and oven cooking has not caught on in Japan. You wil need to recalculate your oven skills to fit in with oven toasters or microwave combi's.

[DanRanger]

Originally Posted by dirtyroboto

Yea! It looks like Tesco took over a Japanese chain for the most, but they have some new stores that have a better selection of UK food.
As for the tea, they have a 40 bag for 289 yen line that is of really good quality. The wife now gives these out as gifts to her friends with very good feedback.
Hellmans mayo is about 149 for 400g although I have seen it go as high as 189.

The gravy is a problem, I do like to make it fresh but the granules are so convenient when you need a large amount. I had to gravy up for 8 people and the small amount I managed to make hardly covered 3 people, let alone when they got a taste of it and wanted more. I also like to use the granules to make a base for shepherds pie (as an English party dish), that serves about 6-8 people. So it is hard to make a fresh portion for these types of things.

Oh! and oven cooking has not caught on in Japan. You wil need to recalculate your oven skills to fit in with oven toasters or microwave combi's.

Cool, the stuff about Tesco sounds very promising! Good to know it's there if I need it. Oven cooking... I noticed my potential apartment doesn't have one, could be troublesome for dinner parties. It'll spur me on to find some new recipes I suppose.

Cheers

[Columbine]

Originally Posted by dirtyroboto

The gravy is a problem, I do like to make it fresh but the granules are so convenient when you need a large amount. I had to gravy up for 8 people and the small amount I managed to make hardly covered 3 people, let alone when they got a taste of it and wanted more.

Hmm, that's odd, we always make too much! I'd say conserve your cooking fat then, over time so when you need to do gravy for 8 you have more fat than just what's been produced in the cooking of the meat for that meal. When my mum does it for large parties, she actually just goes down to the butcher and gets the fat trimmings off of the kidneys, which is usually free as they discard it. Then use a denser stock to conserve the flavor; that should stretch your gravy. Also if you make it the day before and let it sit, it'll usually thicken again, and you can bulk it up a second time with another dose of stock.

Originally Posted by dirtyroboto

Oh! and oven cooking has not caught on in Japan. You wil need to recalculate your oven skills to fit in with oven toasters or microwave combi's.

This. Although I have discovered you can roast small chicken joints and potatoes in a fish grill!

[DanRanger]

Any more info on the bars/clubs and how they compare to the UK? Osaka in particular would be great to hear about.

[Columbine]

Originally Posted by DanRanger

Cool, the stuff about Tesco sounds very promising! Good to know it's there if I need it. Oven cooking... I noticed my potential apartment doesn't have one, could be troublesome for dinner parties. It'll spur me on to find some new recipes I suppose.

Cheers

Dinner parties aren't especially a Japanese thing. People tend to go out to eat as a group, so you might actually find not having an oven isn't a problem. You can easily cook a number of things on top of the stove though, and the oven-microwave things aren't too bad, although they don't make cakes that well.

Bars tend to fall into several categories; there are izukaya, which are sort of like pubs with a selection of bar snacks and then maybe a small selection of main dishes. There are what I call hidden bars, which tend to be exclusive and expensive and lurk in the city; the sort that come with a bartender in vest and bowtie. Then there are standard prop bars which might serve peanuts and things, and where you go to drink, and any number of mom-and-pop establishments in-between them and Izukaya. There's also chains of all-you-can eat, and bell-service bar/restaurant type things, but they're more about the food than the drinks.

The main difference between bars in the UK and Japan is that in Japan sometimes you get sa-bisu (service), which is basically an amuse-bouche or free dish/drink. Other places, you get a dish that you didn't order, but which you are still expected to pay for. If it so happens to be the latter, just swallow your pride, pay up (it's only about 200y usually) and make a mental note. The next time you go there, you'll know and can politely turn the dish back before they put it on the table. Making a scene over it will just cause embarrassment and aggravation, so it's not worth it.

Lots of places have picture menus, but some off the beaten track won't, and won't have hiragana either, so try and check a menu outside to ensure you can read it. Otherwise if you're feeling bold a key phrase is おすすめは何ですか or おすすめの〜〜料理はなんですか. I've gone into places where I haven't a hope in hell of reading the all-kanji menu and had some cracking dinners by just getting the waiting staff to choose for me. And of course, carry enough cash as cards still aren't accepted everywhere, and remember tipping isn't common in Japan, so if you leave a tip, they might just chase you down the street thinking you forgot your change!

Clubs, in Osaka the two most infamous are Pure and Sam n Dave's; they are seedy dives aimed at foreigners and most people have found them a miserable night out, especially Pure. There's any number of night clubs around Amemura and right across the city, especially on the South side but be aware entrance fees can be kind of steep. Also trains and buses don't run all night, of course, so bank on being out all night, or budget for a taxi home. Like most clubs, drinks vary from reasonable prices to extortionate, so consider tuning up before going out. I guess it depends on what your tastes are and what you're looking for in a night club.

[GoNative]

I think one of the obvious huge differences between Scotland and Kansai is the weather, especially the warmer months. To put it very mildly it is incredibly hot and humid in Osaka from around May to October. If you haven't spent much time in tropical like climates previously your first August will be a killer. This August just gone by the average temperature in Osaka was 30.4 degrees!! (close to 87 F for the metrically challenged). I personally couldn't live down there because of the long, hot and humid summers. That's one reason I'm up in Hokkaido instead!