Day 1: Autumn with Wendy & Lin :)

Despite reminding ourselves not to take any red eye flight, we were on it again. :))) We arrived in Haneda Airport at 6am...we definitely needed some perk-me-up.

It was to the car rental company to pick up our car after breakfast, officially starting our momijigari vacay to Nikko. The drive was approximately 3 hours. The timing was perfect and we arrived on time for traditional soba lunch at Santate Soba Nagahataan. 

Santate Soba Nagahataan is one of the most famous soba restaurants in Nikko. This place serves nothing but buckwheat soba, so if you are one who loves variety, you need to manage your expectation when visiting. :)

As for dessert, we had kiwis! :D

Details of Santate Soba Nagahataan:

365-1 Nagahata

Nikko 321-1108 

Tochigi Prefecture

T: +81 288-27-2488

Day 4: Eating Healthy at Restaurant Asperges

For today's lunch, we are having it at Restaurant Asperges. A Michelin star restaurant, it prides itself with serving diners freshest produce grown from the fields of Biei. :)

The decor of the restaurant is simply clean with full glass window that allows ample natural light to flow through every corner of the establishment. This simplicity is evident in the food Restaurant Asperges serves as well, allowing us to taste the natural flavors of every ingredient.

What we do before every meal...finding every opportunity to "cling" our glasses. :D

Colorful edible works :)

This dish caused so much anticipation and excitement. The waitress brought out a huge Staub pot and was explaining to us in Japanese what it was, keeping the pot closed at all times. (note: our gasp of the language is bare minimum).It must be something really good and we were all anticipating it was some premium beef or seafood. When she opened the cover to present the star dish, we gotta hold in our laughters, not wanting to appear rude. The look on our faces...priceless.

So here we have it...the star dish... :))) Half a cherry tomato and a stalk of broccoli. 

Dessert was simple and clean too. :)

This has gotta be the lightest meal of our trip but we were stuffed from laughing. :))) An experience that inked deeply in our memory.

Details of Restaurant Asperges:
6-2-6 Omachi, Biei, Kamikawa District, Hokkaido 071-0204, Japan
T: +81 166-92-5522
W: https://biei-asperges.com/

Day 3: Back at Yabuhan for Chilled Soba :)

When you are in Otaru, you need to try the soba at Yabuhan. It's Lin & my second time here and we are still loving it. :) Be prepared to queue...

Nothing beats having chilled soba during summer. :) And together with tempura..... :D

Details of Yabuhan:
047 Quiet Street
Shop No.19 0032 2-chome
Otaru
T: 0134 33 1212
11.00am - 8.20pm

Day 2: A Ryokan Experience with the Cousins :)

We had a good nite sleep at Mercure Hotel! Plus a scrumptious traditional Japanese breakfast, we are all ready for our second day in Hokkaido. :D 

I've a soft spot for croissant.... :)

Nijo Seafood Market is within walking distance to Mercure Sapporo (6 mins walk). That's the first place we are gonna check out today. :)

It's not possible for us to buy fresh seafood as we are on a road trip. But we are definitely laying our hands on the anchovies, dried shrimps and scallops. They make awesome broth! :D

Are you into Soup curry? It's another signature food you need to try when you are in Hokkaido. :) There was a long queue by the time we get to Soup Curry Garaku! *.*

Tabulating our funds while we waited for our food. :D

We chose chicken soup curry and pork soup curry to try. There're not the thick curry we are used to. Think spicy soup. :)

What's curry without rice? :D

Garaku Soup Curry....checked....off to our next destination. :D We stumbled upon Noymond Organic Cafe on our way to Soup Curry Garaku and they serve gelato! Of course we need to make a stop here after lunch. :)))

For Charlotte & Lydia :)

Happy bellies, happy us. :D We are off to our ryokan indulgence at Club Jyozankei. :)

Our room at Club Jyozankei is huge. We should have just gotten one room. :)))

Cheers to our first ryokan experience together. :)

Club Jyozankei has a library where guests can enjoy complimentary drinks. :)

Dressing up in our Yukata and ready for our dinner at the Ryokan. :)

This isn't the bill. It's the menu. :)

I treasure every cousins get-togethers. Though we are busy with our own commitments, we are close at heart. :) 

And we finished our second day on a sweet note. :D

Details of Soup Curry Garaku:
Japan
〒060-0063 Hokkaido
Sapporo
Chuo Ward
Minami 2 Jonishi
2 Chome
６−1 おくむらビルB１
T: +81 11-233-5568
W: https://s-garaku.com/

Details of Noymond Organic Cafe:
2 Chome-7-1 
Minami 3 Jonishi, Chuo Ward
Sapporo
Hokkaido 060-0063
Japan
T: +81 11-211-0039
W: https://noymond.owst.jp/

Details of Club Jyozankei:
2-10 Jozankeionsennishi
Minami Ward
Sapporo
Hokkaido 061-2303
Japan
T:+81 11-595-2001
W: http://www.club-jyozankei.com/