September 10, 2025

[Morning One-Plate Meal on a Cafe Tray from Tsubame City] This morning, I arranged bread from the bakery, salad, a banana, and coffee on a single plate. The plate I used is the “Cafe Tray,” made in Tsubame City, Niigata Prefecture.

[Morning One-Plate Meal on a Cafe Tray from Tsubame City]

This morning, I arranged bread from the bakery, salad, a banana, and coffee on a single plate. The plate I used is the “Cafe Tray,” made in Tsubame City, Niigata Prefecture.

Until around 1970, Tsubame City was a town that exported many industrial products for military and hotel use in Europe and America. While few molds from that era remain, this metal tray was created by utilizing the city's reliable metalworking techniques and developing new molds.

Made of stainless steel, it's sturdy and won't break if dropped. Perfect for your daily breakfast tray, it's also reliable for outdoor use or as a child's meal tray. The more you use it, the more you appreciate its Tsubame-like functional beauty—lean and efficient. Whatever you place on it looks clean and tidy.

Even a simple breakfast of bread and salad looks somehow special when served on this tray. Durable, practical, and a piece you'll want to cherish for years.

Glocal Standard Products's Cafe Tray
https://www.shokunin.com/en/glocal/cafetray.html
Ceramic Japan's Moderato Mug
https://www.shokunin.com/en/ceramicjapan/moderato.html

September 09, 2025

[Hawaiian Poke] Have you ever tried poke? It's a signature Hawaiian dish featuring seafood cut into bite-sized pieces and tossed with seasonings like soy sauce and sesame oil.

[Hawaiian Poke]

Have you ever tried poke? It's a signature Hawaiian dish featuring seafood cut into bite-sized pieces and tossed with seasonings like soy sauce and sesame oil. While similar to Japan's zuke-don (marinated sashimi rice bowl), it's actually a uniquely developed Hawaiian cuisine.

The word “poke” comes from the Hawaiian language, meaning “cut” or “to cut into small pieces.” Poke made with tuna (ahi) is especially famous. Hawaii is an archipelago surrounded by the ocean, where fishing has been a central part of life since ancient times. Originally, fishermen would dice freshly caught fish and mix them simply with salt, seaweed, and kukui nuts (also known as candlenuts). Even without refrigeration, adding salt and seaweed enhanced the flavor, allowing them to enjoy the fresh fish more deliciously.

For ancient Hawaiians, seafood and seaweed were highly nutritious and essential ingredients. The custom of dividing caught fish and sharing it around a communal meal fostered a culture of sharing food, making poke a dish that symbolized community.

From the 19th century onward, many immigrants from Japan, China, Korea, and the Philippines came to Hawaii to work on sugarcane and pineapple plantations. Their culinary traditions were incorporated into poke. Japanese immigrants added soy sauce and wasabi, Chinese immigrants incorporated sesame oil and scallions, and Korean immigrants introduced chili peppers and kimchi. This simple traditional poke evolved into diverse variations like “soy sauce poke” and “spicy poke.”

Poke is also popularly served over rice as a “poke bowl.” Classic versions include “ahi soy sauce poke,” “spicy ahi poke,” and “Hawaiian Style with Seaweed.” Incidentally, the Hawaiian word “poke” is pronounced “pōke,” but it's also called “pōki” based on the English pronunciation, and is widely known in Japan as “pōki-don.”

In recent years, it has spread to the U.S. mainland and countries around the world. Variations enjoyed include vegetarian poke with tofu, avocado, and vegetables, and “poke nachos” served on top of nachos. Since it uses raw fish, the fact that it can be made without cooking makes it perfect for hot-weather meals.

Hawaiian poke bowls combine a base like rice, brown rice, salad, or quinoa with fish (tuna, salmon, octopus, shrimp, etc.) and toppings (seaweed, avocado, kimchi, spicy mayo, sesame oil, fried onions, etc.) in any combination you like. Its appeal lies in customizable combinations, ensuring every mix tastes delicious.

The key is cutting ingredients into 1.5–2cm cubes. For Japanese-style, add soy sauce, sesame oil, white sesame seeds, green onions, and ginger. For spicy, try mayonnaise or chili powder. Korean-style incorporates gochujang or kimchi. Why not enjoy it casually at home?

Ichiyougama's Menbachi 16cm
https://www.shokunin.com/en/ichiyou/menbachi.html
Seiryugama's Kobachi L
https://www.shokunin.com/en/seiryu/kobachi.html

References
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/ポケ
https://www.allhawaii.jp/about/gourmet/
https://www.hawaiianairlines.co.jp/hawaii-stories/food-and-entertainment/origins-of-poke
https://lealeakitchen.golflinks.nagoya/__trashed/
https://www.aloha-program.com/news/detail/1922

September 08, 2025

[Raffles Hotel and the Singapore Sling] “Raffles Hotel.” I first learned the hotel's name from Ryu Murakami's novel of the same title, which sat on my family's bookshelf.

[Raffles Hotel and the Singapore Sling]

“Raffles Hotel.” I first learned the hotel's name from Ryu Murakami's novel of the same title, which sat on my family's bookshelf. As a student, I only knew that the hotel featured in the novel was located in the tropical country of Singapore. As an adult, I discovered that this beautiful colonial-style hotel is home to the Long Bar, the birthplace of the Singapore Sling. Raffles Hotel and the Singapore Sling gradually became part of my image of Singapore. Then, this summer, on the final day of my trip, I finally experienced the original Singapore Sling at the Long Bar—accessible even to non-guests.

Raffles Hotel opened on December 1, 1887, as a 10-room establishment by the Sarkies brothers, Armenian entrepreneurs from Isfahan, Persia. Named after Sir Stamford Raffles, the British diplomat and father of modern Singapore, the hotel quickly gained fame for its grandeur and charm. It became a sophisticated gateway to the Orient, attracting the world's elite and cultural figures. After opening, it underwent numerous expansions, eventually developing into what was once called “the most magnificent building east of the Suez Canal.”

In 1915, the iconic Raffles Hotel cocktail, the Singapore Sling, was born. Its creator was Ngiam Tong Boon, a bartender from Hainan Island. At the time, it was frowned upon for women to drink alcohol in public. He developed a cocktail that looked like fruit juice, so “ladies could enjoy it comfortably in company.” Originally called the “Gin Sling,” this elegant red cocktail had a sweet, easy-drinking flavor. It soon gained popularity under the name “Singapore Sling” and spread rapidly around the world.

We visited the Long Bar just after 5 PM, when the afternoon heat lingered. Following the signs, we climbed the stairs to the bar on the second floor. The walls displayed photos and explanations detailing the hotel and cocktail's history. We admired these as we approached the Long Bar step by step. Though we'd heard this popular spot could have waits of over an hour and a half during busy times, luckily on this day, it seemed we'd only have to wait a little while. The view from the second-floor corridor of the orange roof and pure white exterior walls was filled with classical beauty, making the visit worthwhile just for that sight alone. After waiting in line for about five minutes, we were finally guided to a table seat on the third floor.

Inside the bar, green wallpaper met a modern floor design, while ceiling fans inspired by southern islands gently circulated air. Hotel guests and tourists from around the world enjoyed the Long Bar in their own way. We ordered Singapore Slings and Raffles Hotel's original beer. A heaping bowl of shelled peanuts in a burlap sack sat on our table. The bar's custom is to simply drop the shells onto the floor. Every time someone walked by, the crackling sound of shells breaking somewhere created a unique atmosphere special to this place. It made perfect sense that most patrons were ordering Singapore Slings—reportedly 800 to 1,200 are sold daily, accounting for 70% of the bar's revenue. The Singapore Sling that arrived carried a sweet aroma reminiscent of tropical fruits. Its taste was fruity and juicy, ending with a faint bitterness. Its sunset-like red hue overlapped with the Singapore sunset that writer Somerset Maugham, a regular at the hotel, called “the mystery of the Orient,” making me truly feel this was a cocktail steeped in history and stories.

Raffles Hotel celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1987 and was designated a national monument by the Singapore government. After extensive renovations, it reopened in August 2019 with new bars, restaurants, and social spaces. Surrounded by lush tropical gardens, it remains a tranquil oasis that lets guests forget the city's hustle and bustle, captivating many visitors today. The Singapore Sling, too, continues to be cherished in bars worldwide over a century after its creation. Having tasted the original Singapore Sling in a hotel steeped in over a hundred years of history, I suspect that for some time to come, whenever I encounter a red sunset somewhere, I'll fondly recall that tropical fruit-scented cocktail I drank that day.

Raffles Hotel
https://maps.app.goo.gl/eqorP4VXb4umQoj46

References
https://www.raffles.com/ja/singapore/about/#timeline-item-fe4442c4da
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%A9%E3%83%83%E3%83%95%E3%83%AB%E3%82%BA%E3%83%BB%E3%83%9B%E3%83%86%E3%83%AB
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B7%E3%83%B3%E3%82%AC%E3%83%9D%E3%83%BC%E3%83%AB%E3%83%BB%E3%82%B9%E3%83%AA%E3

Shokunin.com Blog

September 2025

[Morning One-Plate Meal on a Cafe Tray from Tsubame City] This morning, I arranged bread from the bakery, salad, a banana, and coffee on a single plate. The plate I used is the “Cafe Tray,” made in Tsubame City, Niigata Prefecture.

[Hawaiian Poke] Have you ever tried poke? It's a signature Hawaiian dish featuring seafood cut into bite-sized pieces and tossed with seasonings like soy sauce and sesame oil.

[Raffles Hotel and the Singapore Sling] “Raffles Hotel.” I first learned the hotel's name from Ryu Murakami's novel of the same title, which sat on my family's bookshelf.