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Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — 1/640 sec, f/2.5, ISO 450 — map & image data — nearby photos
Just Because
girls in kimono with nice cameras
The other day in “On The Way To Lunch: Eastern-Kyoto Stroll” I ended with a few shots of the girls above taking advantage of a photogenic location, made more so for everyone else by their presence.
I was heading to the Kiyomizu branch of the most excellent Junsei Tofu Restaurant to have lunch with Paul Barr. The branch is so named because it's near the front gate of the Kiyomizu Temple, in an area that usually packed with tourists, so the quiet elegance of the restaurant is a welcome relief from the crowds. I learned of it from a friend who occasionally helps out with running the place.
Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — 1/640 sec, f/2.5, ISO 3600 — map & image data — nearby photos
Exceedingly Fresh Yuba
At the Kiyomizu “Junsei” Restaurant (順正清水店)
Kyoto, Japan
The place is known for its tofu, always made that day, but having been there a couple of times in the last month, I've decided that I prefer the opportunity for extremely fresh yuba (湯葉) — “tofu skin” — which literally develops before your eyes on a heated dish of soy milk.
Once the “skin” forms, you lift it with a bamboo stick...
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — 1/640 sec, f/1.4, ISO 450 — map & image data — nearby photos
Bite-Sized Portion
skimmed from the top of a heated dish of soy milk
Nikon D700 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — 1/640 sec, f/2.5, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Dip in a Light Sauce
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 — 1/640 sec, f/1.4, ISO 450 — map & image data — nearby photos
Ready to Enjoy
Tofu generally doesn't have much taste on its own, but can take on a wonderful range of tastes when artfully prepared. Yuba, on the other hand, does have its own very yummy taste.
The set yuba lunch comes with a lot of stuff besides the yuba itself, and at ¥2,150 is a great value. The entrance to the restaurant is here (but note that the building is too new to be shown on the satellite view.).
I’d love to go there sometime for lunch. Yuba is truly yummy, as you said.
I am free any Wednesday. Let me know a good day for you.
JUST BECAUSE is a great photo. Not many things as sublime as a woman in a kimono.., okay TWO women in kimonos. And then that juxtaposition of the Nikon cameras. Those don’t look like punk-@$$ kit lenses either. When you look at this photo you find yourself longing to see the faces that belong to these two figures. Its like an unfinished story, but in a good way.
Something about this photo is also quintessential Japan: the obvious cues being, Japanese people, kimonos and Japanese cameras… but it also shows the Japanese love for tech/gadgets.And that interesting dance between traditional and modern that is always fascinating to witness in Japan. Great shot.