Osaka Japanese, I mean Corean, restaurant

I just arrived back at the YWCA from Osaka Japanese restaurant. Getting there was the real adventure. Left Dar at 2:30. Arrived at the closed gate of the restaurant at 5:00pm. In the meantime, Sophy was serving as my on-duty satellite service, texting me relevant information - address, phone number, walking directions, driving directions. In the end, I hopped into a car with three Asian guys who had been zipping and zooming up and down the main drag. Eventually, I flagged them down and they too were looking for the Japanese food Mecca.

It’s an incredibly fancy restaurant with indoor air-conditioned seating, complete with buzzers at each table just as you would find in a Corean restaurant stateside. The outdoor seating includes three huge grill setups. The owner is a nice man though I feel somewhat bad for him. Well, I felt somewhat bad for him and then later revised that sentiment. I was one of four tables for the entire 90 minutes that I sat there. He later told me that there was a much better turnout during the week because all of the diplomats head out of town on the weekends. They are on 2-3 year stints and therefore spend most of their weekends away from Dar Es Salaam.

But the food. The Japanese food was passable. The fish was excellent but the rice had too much vinegar, which is saying something from a Corean who likes his vinegar (though certainly not as much as Chungtech). On the other hand, the Corean meal was excellent. It started with a traditional pumpkin soup, smooth, rich and hearty. There were also adzuki beans tossed in for the occasional texture. The bibimbap came out beautifully displayed on a plate with the gochujang as the centerpiece (mixed with sesame oil as I like it). The local “spinach” had a strong astringent flavor that was a pleasant contrast to the mix of other flavors from the carrots, mung beans, beef, etc. And the miso soup! Pieces of kelp imbibed the soup with a strong taste of the ocean. Wow. Great Corean food in Osaka Japanese restaurant in the suburbs of Dar es Salaam. Never could have imagined it.

It’s been a fun trip to Dar es Salaam after all. I was somewhat dreading it. Not looking forward to time in the big, hot, dirty city. The YWCA has been a good spot for me with friendly staff and travelers. Though it is supposedly full to the house, it does not feel crowded. Men’s bathroom is very quiet and there have been no waits for the facilities. The first night here I turned away from the registration counter found that there was an Asian guy looking at me. I said, “what’s up?” or something to that degree of informality. Geung Suk suspected my Corean-ness and we ended up going out to dinner. It was a Corean-Kiswahili-English night. Oddly enough, it was the first of two.