Safe Travels in Japan - Artnia and CoCo Ichibanya

ArtniaCafe

Jason here. After getting lost for some time, and fierce wind storm beginning to pick up we finally found our destination, Artnia- the Square Enix Café.

This is café and store is right next to the Square Enix headquarters, located in Shinjuku. Everything about it pays homage to some Square Enix game or another. After perusing the store and checking out their really fantastic upscale room decorated to look like a crystal cavern, we decided to sit down and order some drinks.  

Of course the entire food and drink menu is themed. After looking over the ingredients and trying to decide if it would be safe, I ordered a Chocolate Ice Cream Parfait, complete with a solid chocolate buster sword sticking out of the top. 

While I seemed to feel fine the next day, I may have just gotten lucky. There was no allergen menu, and Kayleigh’s parfait contained corn flakes despite not being listed as one of the ingredients.

The parfait itself was delicious. Extremely chocolaty, which is exactly what I had been craving. There were multiple layers, each one revealing yet some other type of chocolate. After walking around all day, this really hit the spot.

Kayleigh here. While the food is a bit risky because of the frequently changed theme menu and unlisted components, the trip is still worth it for any nostalgic Square Enix fan. The drinks are equally creative and decorative, and should all be safe other than the beer cocktails. Not to sound nerdy, but Final Fantasy VII was what Jason used to ask me out on our first date, so it holds a special place in our hearts (even though the game has not stood the test of time!)


CoCo Ichibanya
(website is in Japanese only, but english menu is available online)

Jason here. As I mentioned in a previous post, Kayleigh spent some time before our Japan trip researching restaurants which would be gluten free. The second chain she discovered was Coco Ichibanya.
CoCo Ichibanya is a Japanese curry restaurant, and Kayleigh was eager to find out how Japanese curry tasted. I myself, was happy to eat at a restaurant that sported an English allergen menu, and takes extra special precautions.

The allergen menu unfortunately only has a single item, non-spiced curry. It comes with white rice, and you can add sausage and\or meatballs as a side for an additional charge. Of course I opted to get both sausage and meatballs.

To make sure the meal is completely allergen free, they actually bring you the curry freshly heated up still in its package. Be warned it is extremely hot, so be careful opening it. It was a bit chilly that evening, so the extra hot meal really rejuvenated me and helped me to enjoy the rest of the night. 

Kayleigh here. Unfortunately, as Jason said, the only gluten free curry available is the mild version, without the ability to select the spice level like the other curries. It is still a good representation of what sort of flavors and combinations that Japan considers a curry, so bring your own travel-sized hot sauce and heat things up to your liking.

Wild Ginger Review

Jason here. A couple weeks ago, I decided to meet Kayleigh for a nice lunch. We opted to go to The Wild Ginger in Bellevue. We had heard great things about both the food, and how gluten friendly it was.

The first thing you will notice in The Wild Ginger is the great service. Both times I have gone they have been incredibly friendly. Last time when I left, the hostess remembered my name and called me by name to have a great day. As someone who can barely remember the name of someone I talk to every day, I was impressed. The entire staff just had an air of professionalism, rarely found in most places.

The second thing you will notice is how gluten friendly they are. Everything on the menu is clearly labeled if it is gluten free, and\or vegan. Without me hinting at all, the wait staff asked if either of us had dietary restrictions. When I mentioned being gluten free, he asked if it was allergy or diet. After responding allergy, he informed me they take extra precautions and prepare the food separately. This has happened both times I have eaten there, and they were busy with lunch rush. This made me feel completely confident that my food would be free of any gluten.

For my meal I ordered the Panang Beef Curry. To quote there menu, “slices of flank steak in coconut milk spiced with cardamom, coriander, galangal, Thai basil and peanuts.” Usually I am not a fan of coconut. For some reason the taste just does not appeal to me. However, I have found coconut milk to barely taste of coconut at all. So if you are like me and don’t like coconut, don’t let that stop you from ordering a dish with coconut milk.

The meal was absolutely fantastic. The steak was perfectly cooked, completely submerged in the delicious sauce. The sauce itself had a creamy rich taste to it, with little bursts of flavor from the spices. Mixing in some of the white rice, and eating with a bite of steak was how I preferred it. I can’t overstate how good this was. The plate was fairly large, and I completely scraped every last bit off to eat.

Kayleigh here. The meal I chose was the special- a pineapple prawn curry. Absolutely beautiful combination of flavors, that really brought me back to my favorite curry dish from a little restaurant back in New Hampshire. Seriously, that restaurant is where I requested to go every time I was on home on break in college, and Wild Ginger did not disappoint on replicating that delightful dish. Besides the amazing food and conscientious staff, the seating and décor really gave that extra push in the ‘would go again’ direction, with every table giving you either a birds-eye view of the streets below, or a railing-side seat overlooking the floor below, lending an open, but intimate feeling throughout.

To wrap this up, the food was phenomenal, the price was fantastic, and the wait staff was amazing. Gluten free or not, I absolutely recommend you check out the The Wild Ginger.