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May 24 2022 10 Comments

Old Tokyo restaurant colours and cooking grime

Some old restaurants are spotless despite the countless meals that have been made in them, whereas others are more than happy to display all the stains and grime produced by decades of almost daily cooking.

old Tokyo restaurant colours and grime

old Tokyo restaurant colours and grime

Categorized: Food and Drink, Photography

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Denise says

    5/24/2022 at 10:01 am

    Thank you this makes me feel so much better about my own kitchen! 🙂

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/24/2022 at 8:43 pm

      Haha, yes, very reassuring!

      Reply
  2. Günter says

    5/24/2022 at 1:15 pm

    For me living in Europe this would be a very big shock. I think you are braver than I am.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/24/2022 at 8:44 pm

      Probably in a lot of countries I suspect, but the food is fresh (and tasty) so all good.

      Reply
  3. cdilla says

    5/24/2022 at 5:32 pm

    What a great pair of photographs. I wonder if the charring is a gradual accumulation over the decades or a single ferocious flambéing accident. The couple’s intact eyebrows suggest the former.
    Is that a karaoke mic and a hammer on counter. If so it would seem risky to take a turn unless you had skills. Crossed they would make a good establishment sign, The Hammer and Mic.
    And I’ll leave you with a quote that enamours me of anywhere that sells reasonably priced meals, regardless of the establishment’s interior patina.
    “Roughly speaking, the more one pays for food, the more sweat and spittle one is obliged to eat with it.”
    ― George Orwell, Down and Out in Paris and London

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/24/2022 at 8:49 pm

      Cheers. I’ve seen several decent sized flames in there, so presumably a build up over the years.

      Good question. Not sure to be honest, but there’s definitely not a karaoke machine in there, although it would be quite something if there was.

      Ah, what a wonderful quote from the always wonderful Orwell.

      Reply
  4. Paul says

    5/24/2022 at 7:04 pm

    I’m 100x more into restaurants or bar with a greasy wall than a clean and soulless one.
    I love when you can feel life, the print of the time. Counter and glasses are clean ? That’s all that matter !

    Thank you for sharing, as always.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/24/2022 at 8:52 pm

      You are very welcome.

      Likewise. Always try and seek out such places. Admittedly a few have perhaps been a little too greasy, but apart from one, the food has always been good and the glasses clean enough.

      Reply
  5. Richard says

    5/24/2022 at 8:40 pm

    Not sure I would want to eat at a place like that. I KNOW my wife would not!

    Reply
    • Lee says

      5/24/2022 at 8:54 pm

      It’s certainly on the grubby side that’s for sure, but like almost all these places, the food is fresh and the utensils etc. are old but clean.

      Reply

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