ottawa foodies

I've recently acquired what I hope is a nice junmai daiginjo saké from the US (Born brand - at a Shop-Rite liquor store of all places, which had a whole shelf top of sakés of all types!), and I'm looking for a more proper way to serve it than pouring straight from the bottle into my green eat cups. (I already know it's extremely bad etiquette!)

While I know Toronto's Pacific Mall has an excellent japanese pottery store, I won't have a chance to go there for a month, and I've already had the sake for a few weeks - out of the refrigerator, in an apartment non air-conditioned, so I don't think I want to wait that long before drinking it (and inviting friends for it, since it's not a 300ml bottle!)

So, are there good stores in Ottawa for tokkuri (flasks) and guinomi (narrow cups)? I've already gathered that masu (cedar box) is not good for this quality of saké.

Now to get the various sushi-making implements, knives and books I've received over the years and see if I'm missing anything (other than experience). And I already have very nice teas and a good tea service (Montreal's Camellia Sinensis has a wonderful $20 Japanese tea sampler), so I think I'm set for a good evening.

(Now if I could find that portable table-top teppenyaki grill I once saw in Toronto's kijiji...)

There is an Oriental store in the Glebe that used to have tea sets and saké glasses... if only I can remember the name..... East Wind.. that's the name!

*Raises hand to be one of the friends sharing the Sake.* Alas, I don't have anything more exciting then a masu and don't know of any stores locally which would help on providing that.

East Wind also exists in Westboro, across from MEC. There's also an Asian food/housewares store across from Zak's Diner in Byward Market

I cannot speak about this in particular, but my wife has a bunch of asian serving ware for sushi and a bunch of other stuff, and she often comments how you can spend a fortune on that kind of thing at some of the trendy shops in Westboro and the Glebe, or you can get the very same thing for a fraction of the price at one of the shops in Chinatown. Which shop in particular, don't ask me :-) Go look around if you want to save a bunch of money. I'd start at the 158 market.

LWB - that one across from Zak's (Tradewinds, or something?) used to have really nice stuff, not sure if they still do since I haven't dropped by there in a while. I used to buy my all my plates and bowls from there when I was a student because the prices were excellent. Also, the place in Chinatown, Global Gifts (or whatever they're called) might be a good place to check. It's too bad the gift shop that was attached to Suisha Gardens closed down (Kadaeya), as they had an impressively beautiful selection when they were open :(

Tradewinds is an iced tea brand. It could also be the name of the shop.

Global gifts sounds good in theory. But, yes the one across from Zak's still has nice things in the window.

Agreed with zy's and chimi's comments. The gift shop in Chinatown is Times Housewares and Gifts. It's on the north side of Somerset near Kowloon. There is another one on the south side of Somerset in the same general area on the second level of a split level building. Wish I could remember the name...

Chimichimi The Chinese grocery store across from Zak's recently changed hands since the original owners retired. However they seem to have more dishes than ever so Niall might have some luck there as well.

A little google-fu reveals that it's called Fairway Trading (the place in the Byward Market across from Zak's).

Global Homeware is the place I was thinking of in Chinatown (on the south side of the street). I was there more recently than the place in the Market... they sell everything from pots & pans, to range hoods, to Pokemon backpacks to Astroboy stationery... even sushi & sake serving kits & pottery! It's an awesome place (especially so if you want a fuzzy logic rice maker (?!&?!)). I'm always amazed with their inventory.

I know of Times, I bought my very nice teapot there for my Japanese teas (I needed something not too big but with a mesh for the loose leaves, that I can take out as soon as it stopped brewing). I'll look there. I already know to avoid the Glebe... I was just wondering if anyone had precise store recommendations in teh "I have/I know a friend who has bought the same thing". :)

Pasta Lover: I will try Fairway Trading too! I know very well where it is, next to the Sausage Kitchen.

Chimichimi: sounds like Global Homeware is definitely on my to-look list as well! Yay! Eventually, a rice maker may well get added, but only once I have made space for it.

Jagash: Don't worry, you'll know when I get my invitation out. :) In fact, since I know of the Hakutsuru Junmai Ginjo at the LCBO in the small bottle, it could make for a nice comparison. Too bad I missed the Japanese Embassy saké tasting...

Niall It just occurred to me there are two people in Ottawa who do Japanese tea ceremonies. Although their interest is in teas they might be able to tip you off on places to source Japanese pottery.

One of them is Rebecca Cragg: camelliateasottawa.blogspot.co

The other is Mark Chapeskie: www.cloudwalkerteas.com

Edit: Cloudwalker Teas focusses mostly on selling teas but they also give tea workshops.

I believe both companies offer tastings on an invitation only basis but receiving an invite is as easy as putting your name on their mailing list.

Just saw a sake set last week in Chinatown for $8.95--one carafe and 4 cups (no tray)I don't know the name of the store but it is directly across from Kowloon Market at Somerset and Arthur. (I was there to get their most awesome bbq pork and duck--sold out, but turns out the roast pork is absolutely delicious also. )BTW--everything is fairly reasonably priced--and on weekends the bbq lineup is not nearly as long as Kowloon.

I might try Arum at Bank and Catherine. They sell pottery bowls, cups etc. And it's not too far from those places on Somerset, so you can compare. It's a Korean grocery store, but they also sell some Japanese items. I bought a Zojirushi rice cooker here a while ago.

hi Niall, are you intending to drink this warmed up or cold? i'm happy to be corrected (i'm no expert), but i believe the tokkuri and guinomi are more for warmed sake.

For chilled sake, you could use champagne glasses and pour straight from the bottle. This was the method recommended to us by a higher end distributor in NY (couple yrs ago), and how i remember drinking it in visits to Japan (many yrs ago).

btw, where in the US did you buy your sake?

I was only able to visit Fairway Trading today - many many sets available there for $15-$35, in many different sizes and styles. One caught my eye, I'm keeping it in mind when comparing at other stores.

Downtown Diner: Arum is another suggestion I'll look, thanks! I've never been there.

Pasta Lover: Tea ceremonies would be wonderful, though around 3-4 hours I heard, and not on my schedule right now. But I'll certainly file that info somewhere useful. :)

itchy feet: The junmai ginjo and daiginjo are indeed meant to be served chilled, and yes, I'm aware many tokkuri are for warm saké, but I figured I could chill the tokkuri to keep the saké cool once out of the refrigerator and getting near its ideal serving temperature. No online guide on saké tasting says anything about how chilled saké is served. The one time I did get it, at Japanese Village (not on the menu, the owner gifted me with it - it pays to be a regular and always nice to the staff :)), it was a 300ml bottle and served on ice in a little container that seemed designed just for those bottles, poured in the cup overflowing in the masu. Since no special etiquette seems to be followed, I figure I can follow my own and have a much more artful presentation than just the bottle. :) Now maybe I should be looking at the wide-brimmed ochoko instead of the guinomi...

I got my sake just outside Trenton, NJ, which is where my friends are staying. I was originally looking for Bunratty mead, but I couldn't find online any store in my driving corridor that sold it. Let's just say that I jumped at the chance of trying a US$43 500ml bottle of junmai daiginjo. :)

don't have anything to add to where to buy sake cups. china town would be my first bet and global prices are cheaper than fairwinds trading or westwind.

i recently had sparkly sake which was very delicious.

Nial: artful is good, and it seems like you've come up w/ a practical plan for keeping the sake chilled.

In keeping w/ your pursuit of aesthetics, though, i still tend to think keeping a champagne or other flute handy would be useful to observe coloration and all that stuff.

also, for comparative purposes, maybe pick up something available from the LCBO? Heck, you could probably contract Zym to run some sort of double blind taste test. ;-)

anyway, enjoy!

hipfunkyfun: I saw the sparkling saké at Vintages, in the downstairs section - for $9, same price as the other 300ml bottles upstairs. I may just pick one up based on your feedback, just for comparison.

itchy feet: Well, saké is meant to be transparently clear and bubble-free, so there's no real coloration to observe, and I don't think the container has that huge a difference, except between narrow and wide brim for tastes to mix with air. And yes, I've spotted two others at the LCBO in small bottles to get to compare. The main goal in the smaller cups vs flutes is to keep the amount imbibed at a time reasonably small. I'm thin and have to go slowly at such things. :)

i guess i'm digressing from your main goal (to find those cups and to drink in small portions), but "meant to be transparently clear" would, in itself (imo), be a rationale for looking at it through a glass ... esp. if you're geeky (or distrustful, hehe).

and again, i'm no expert, but i believe there's a spectrum of "transparencies", variations between sakés, even among those that tend toward transparency, aren't there? i assume this might be something more noticeable (or not?) if you do happen to compare your (higher end) bottle w/ lower-quality sake.

Also, not to be pedantic, but i'm not certain its quite correct to say saké is meant to be transparent. There are some (albeit fewer) that are cloudy due (i think?) to fermentation methods and the type of rice (or the polishing?).

but, digressions aside, the important criteria (imo) is mouth taste, so enjoy it via whatever delivery mechanism suits your purpose ... I'm jealous! :-)

It's not a digression if it makes me think more about what I really want. :) And you definitely have more experience in this than me!

And yes, mouth taste is definitely the important bit here. I guess I can see the sake as it's poured too... And no matter what, I've learned of a few stores, and pretty (and inexpensive) dishes on which to serve sushi may well be acquired if nothing else...

i must apologize, my spelling is terrible (lack of sleep leads to lack of brain function!). anyway, i meant sparkling sake. it was very light and refreshing with just a hint of rice-y-ness. i would have liked it with some fresh veggie salad rolls, or veggie sushi. it may be too light for fish. it is expensive for the tiny bottle, but when you use little cups it seems to go much further.

hi Niall, given what's often said about a little bit of knowledge (the dangers), i feel compelled to qualify my "more experience": no "book learning", mostly casual "Jap-lish" conversations w/ co-inebriates of the sort straight from Lost in Translation:

me: "how do they make this particular sake?"
friend and barkeep: prolonged banter in Japanese...
friend to me: "its the rice."
me: "really, that's all he said? It seemed so much more..."

so, experience is a v. relative phenomena. ;-)

i will say, though, that your original idea (the cups) does make sense from the perspective of controlling the amounts sipped, and thinking back, that's how they served portions @ the sake tasting event ... suffice to say, you're in good company! Back to (envious) lurking on this thread.

hipfunkyfun: I knew what you meant, it's all good. :) The $8 I saw at Vintages, as I said, is the same price for any of the other 300ml bottles; it seems the standard price for the serving size for premium saké from Japan. (American and cheap sakés are much less expensive.)

itchy feet: You still had actual Japanese bar experience. :) Nice to hear about the tasting event! Though I gather they poured straight from the bottle?

This little party will have to wait now. I passed a gallstone today (starting at 3:30am) and the ER doctor said quite strictly no alcohol for at least a week...

the store in the Glebe that my fellow foodie mentioned above is also called Eastwind sister store to the one in Westboro

too bad, Kaeya (the lil store front of Suisha Gardens) closed as you could find authentic Japanese goods there

there are real and knock off sake sets found in many lil homegoods store in Chinatown)

my two sake sets I got in Montreal
one is for finer sakes served chilled is made of glass and has a compartment for ice in the carafe while the other for warm sake is of heavier pottery and meant to keep the heat longer

niall> my deepest condolensces re: gallstone
I recently went on a liver clense to help me deal with ragweed and it was no booze for 3 painful days :'(((

Niall, damn ... can i (we) ask -- how do you feel?? was it painful (the worst is over, right?)

honestly, relative to the number of times visiting Japan, i've had *too* many bar experiences. Nothing to be proud of, really: anyone can go to a bar in Japan. (well, there are some bars are off limits to foreigners, but that's another topic!)

and while I admit to plenty of fun, and will note there's really interesting places to drink (and eat) throughout Japan, apropos of this thread, a regret is never having visited a sake brewer (or a Jpn scotch distillery for that matter). That may change this fall as i'm considering (recession be damned) a return visit to see friends.

but, back to you and to add to this thread: any friends in Vancouver you can call in favors on or that might visit soon? There's a sake maker on Granville Island -- do you know of him? Again, i'm no expert, but i will say i thoroughly enjoyed the two bottles a visiting friend brought us.

www.artisansakemaker.com

Hello Niall, if you are going to serve your sake chilled, it is ok to use small glass in any shape. Tokkuri and Ochoko(small cup) are usually used when you drink hot sake. Guinomi is usually bigger than Ochoko, it is more like Japanese tea cup without handle. If you have good quality sake, I recommend you to drink it as chilled to enjoy nice, rich aroma.

I don't know any of store which sells sake set, but I would try China Town, any of asian grocery stores since they sell asian dishes.
If you would like to get more info about sake set, try Japanese community site
jottawa.com

When you cook sushi rice, add a sheet of konbu (it is hard dried sea kelp, this is not nori), it gives sushi rice good flavor! Wasabi and Gari(pale pink coloured pickled ginger) will be a nice finishing touch for your sushi.

Enjoy!

Hi:

I've just tried to find the name of the store online, but was not successful. But! I can tell you exactly where it is: it is at the corner of Somerset West and Arthur, on the south-east side. It's a great store. It is Somerset west past Bronson. Arthur is the cross-street. I bought my rice cooker there 15 years ago, and some sushi mats recently. I highly recommend it.

Chef Obi: I am well aware of Kaedeya's closing, and lament it muchly. Your cold sake carafe is exactly what I'd be looking for, then! Where in Montreal did you get it? I want to go back relatively soon to sample three chocolatiers I recently found out about*, and I could easily pass by there, I think.

*I now have a list of _eleven_ artisan chocolatiers in Montreal, and that's just on the main island. This is an insane number. They don't know how good they have it. When I have finished the revised list and finished the Ottawa list, I'll post a link here.

itchy feet: it was a gallstone, not a kidney stone - MUCH less painful! I'm tired but good. I don't know anyone in Vancouver, and have never visited - I've only once passed through Vancouver airport on a Seattle-Ottawa connection, that's the only time I touched west coast soil.

Aisu Kurimu: Domo arigato! I know I want the saké chilled, and just wondered what was the most visually-pleasing way to serve it. I will abandon the tokkuri idea then, and concentrate on the cups themselves. I will heed the community site and sushi recommendations!

Glinda: more stores to try! Yay! Thank you! :)

My suggestion for serving chilled sake
Short stem glass would be nice.

Try google image search with following key word: sake, reishu, kiriko, glass

*gasps at the glass* YES! That's what I want!! Those are gorgeous! And I expect to not be able to find them locally! :)

So combining my having to wait, maybe I _should_ call the Pacific Mall store and see if they have kiriko-style glasses. Paired with the carafe chef Obi mentioned, I should be set...

Niall - If it is those clear sake carafes with the little nook for the ice, you really ought to go to Global Housewares or Time in Chinatown. They have them. I have even seen some with hand painted decorations. Their warm sake sets are Made in Japan. And while you are there, you can pick up a rice cooker. BTW if you don't already have a rice cooker, what do you use for rice?

Is that place - Zen Interiors - still in the ByWard Market? They had some very nice ($) sets.

For cold sake, we always add a little lemon zest. And ice...

Tangent; I don't understand why people use rice cookers. I have never used the things and I find rice easy to prepare with an old fashioned pot on the stove.

wichypoo Zen Interiors the store is closed but I "think" their online shop is still open for business.

Niall I admit I know nothing about saké glassware but I am just throwing ideas out here. In a former life I used to work at Birks and the picture of the saké glass that Aisu Kurimu posted reminds me of the pinwheel crystal we used to sell. Although Birks is a little pricey maybe some of the stores that sell stemware (like C.A. Paradis or the Glebe Emporium) might have something comparable? Just a thought...

Pasta lover: Yes, kiriko glass is just like fine crystal ware :)
Try Bay, McIntosh & Watts Ltd, Stores...

Niall: Yakimono store in Pacific Mall (Utsuwa no Yakata) and East Wind in Ottawa sell exactally same items, difference is $$ price $$

Jagash: I admit that I cannot cook rice by using pot :(
We used to use wood stove and heavy cast iron pot to cook rice. Manufuctures of rice cooker try to reproduce the taste of wood stove cooked rice. Panasonic for example,the latest IH rice cookers have IH coils in the lid, so that the inner pot is heated at high temperature from all around. The result is rice that tastes as if it's been cooked on a traditional kamado stove. Innovations have also been made in the materials and shapes of the inner pot to achieve better heat generation. Other technologies developed by manufacturers include pressurizing the rice with the steam that's generated during cooking, which gives the rice a stickier, fuller consistency, and applying ultrasonic vibration to help the rice absorb water better.
In 2003, Panasonic developed a high-temperature-steam IH rice cooker that brings out the sweetness and aroma of rice by using very hot steam at 130 degrees Celsius (266 degrees Fahrenheit).

I brought 2 panasonic rice cookers with me when I came here from Japan. Not only you can cook rice, you can also steam veggies and even bake cakes :)

AisuK> the glass you pictured looked very similar to a set of two glasses I've collected over the years...I love blue glassware but these have quite a stem

oh and thanks for that little tidbit on rice cookers

while I used them when I worked at the Thai resto, I found cooking it ala stovetop to be easiest when not alot is required and at home I have found the microwave offers me a scorchless option when I am running around doing chores :S

I used to use my cheap rice cooker all the time, until I found these instructions for microwave cooking:

2 cups Basmati rice (I rinse mine)
3 cups water
(dash of salt + butter to taste)

Put in 3 quart microwave dish, and cook uncovered for 15 minutes on high (or 80% on my 1200 watt beast) or until steam holes appear in surface of the rice). Cover dish, and cook on high for 5 more minutes. Let rice stand for 5 minutes, then fluff, and serve. No faster than stovetop, but it's been perfect basmati every time! If I want a crust on the rice, I toss it in the fry pan for a quick heat up.

witchypoo: I went to Times today and they don't have any cold sake sets, only warm pottery ones. Global did have two sets, but one was extremely plain at $40, and the other was nicely decorated at $100. A little outside my range. However, their warm sake sets are better-priced than the same I saw at Fairway Trading, though the latter has a much wider selection.

As for rice, I currently am going through a large bag of basmati rice; normally I've used Uncle Ben's. Both are pot-cooked the same way: boil twice as much water as rice, put rice in, keep boiling while stirring for two minutes, reduce to simmer and cover until water is evaporated. Only works for long-grain rice, and Japanese rice is short-grain. if I wanted to make sushi rice, the cooker would be very nice.

Glinda: the store you described at Arthur _is_ Global Gifts, mentioned before.
Pasta Lover: Global Gifts is also the name of the store on Somerset on the 2nd level of a split level building you were thinking.
W.C.: the store with the $8.95 sake set across from Kowloon is, you guessed it, Global Gifts. :)

Aisu Kurimu: The online store for Utsuwa no Yakata has ice saké sets that are beautiful for rather low prices, though it's for the US market only. You said the difference with East Wind is price, but which would you say have the lower prices?

chef Obi: Very nice stemware! And I don't think the stem length (or presence) would make that much difference, other than personal preference. The cat looks nice, too. :) The microwave is not an option for me for rice cooking - or any cooking, since I don't have one. ...why is everyone looking at me like that?

Pasta lover/Aisu Kurimu: I'll look at the fine crystal ware shops mentioned, as additional sake cups. Most cold carafes come with two cups already, but I'll likely want more. :)

well the stemware is part of a collection I've amassed over the years and one of a set of two I'm not particularily attacted too (aka might be for sale)

ditto for the cat lol

as for the micro, meh, I only use mine to boil water, reheat soups and cook the occasional cup o'rice

I reviewed my transactions and I actually found my chilled sake set at Kaedeya...it was mixed in with my receipts for food purchases...that reminds me I used up the last of my togarashi

lol it's plain and lavender glass and there was a 3rd cup added by a friend who had procurred it on one her frequent sojourns to montreal (therefore the montreal connection in ma tiny lil brain)

if Value Village maintained an online inventory, i'd point you there because i've often seen interesting stemware on their shelves. Its hit and miss, of course ... can't really recommend a physical trip there on that basis. Unless, of course, you want to combine it w/ a visit to the Dutch store or similar haunts on Merivalle...

so many ways to prep rice! Stove-top here.

Hello Niall, Pacific Mall store is cheper, but should consider total cost (shipping cost, traveling cost to Toronto, etc)
Have you checked Ebay?

When you cook sushi rice, it is very important to substract water, because you will add vineger & sugar mixture when rice is cooked.
I will post my recipe later :)

chef obi, your blue glass is very nice!
I love blue grasswear and blue and white china.
This is my wine and cheese set, glass used to be a pair, but I broke it.
Mine has very short stem :)

pete, I will try your micro method, Thank you for your tip!

Aisu Kurimu: I'm already booked to go to Toronto in mid-September, and it doesn't look a problem to detour by Pacific Mall. (Just a bit long by transit...) So cheaper there is great by me! It's such a great store for my unqualified eyes...

Hello Niall, I found this online store, just for your info.
www.shopjapan.ca
Store is located at London Ontario.
I think I will buy some Arita Donburi Bowls.

You can enjoy Japanese food and buy goods at Pacific Mall, but think you need cash, vendors in that mall prefer cash for some reason...

The best kind are the ones that have been given to you as gifts Niall! This is our set, given by a friend many moons ago. Reminds me I need to buy saké more often...

Well, as follow-up...

- Went to Utsuwa in Pacific Mall on Sunday Sep 13. They sold the last two cold saké sets they had that very morning.

- Went to Arum last night - nothing.

- Went to East Wind in the Glebe last night - nothing, but they said their Westboro store had some...

- Went to the East Wind Westboro store today, and was greeted by the same staff as the Glebe last night, so service was prompt. :) They had four sets! Woohoo!

After much thinking and pondering, comparing mentally with the sets I saw at Global ($40 and $100 for the type found here: www.tokiusa.com ), I decided to buy two sets, pictured at right.

The top is dark blue and heavy glass, from Tsukiyono: www.tsukiyono-glassart.co.jp/ (site all in Japanese) and feels wonderful. It was $60. I'll use it for the "regular" cold saké, after keeping the bottle in the fridge.

The bottom is very thin and lightweight glass - it feels almost like plastic! Beautiful construction and elegant lines, in a traditional teapot shape, for $40. I'll use it for the better saké, such as the junmai daiginjo I have. I can't tell where it comes from; it only has a symbol on it, put at the bottom. Aisu Kurimu, can you help and see if it identifies the factory/style/artisan/anything?

When talking to Neal at East Wind, he said that this is the end of the season for selling cold saké sets, so I'm lucky to have found any at all; they don't order more until the spring. When I mentioned what it was for, his eyes lit up and he perked up with "Invite me!!" :) He confirmed that the LCBO at Rideau and King Edward is the only good place in town for saké.

Niall, I love your blue glass sake set. It is so pretty!!
The symbol at the bottom means "handcrafted"
If you want me to read label on the package or the paper came with your sake set, I will read them for you. :)
You said that the glass is very thin and light weight, I checked your link in Japanese.
Yes, we got this thin yet strong glass making technique from Holland back in 15th century. Nagasaki region is very famous for this thin glass art called "Vidro" (Vidro is Portugal, which means glass)
I have two of them. You blow it, then the thin and resilient glass bottom will spring and it makes cute sound.

I think I may have a few of those still kicking around... but they aren't for enjoying saké! LOL

Chimichimi: Have you ever been to Nagasaki??

Arigato, Aisu-sama for your help and knowledge! Alas, there was no specific box with the set, it had obviously been on the shelves for a while from the layer of fine dust I had to clean off. They just used whatever box would fit the contents once wrapped in tissue paper. I certainly can't assume the boxes I have were for the sets I bought.

So now I need to clean up my place a little more before thinking of inviting people for saké tasting. First, I have to finish all the chocolates on it... :)

I think I'm getting close to ready for making my Japanese party... I think the knives can work for sushi carving, at least the basics.

Sakes bought, left to right:
- Gekkeikan Zipang sparkling saké, just for fun
- Hakutsuru draft saké, likely Junmai
- Hakutsuru Junmai Ginjo
- Born Junmai Daiginjo

With the mats and the rice paddle and the sushi books (not pictured), I don't need much more to be ready, I think. :)

Niall, You don't need to thank me :)
Hope you and your friends will have a good time!!

By the way, have you ever tried Shochu before?
en.wikipedia.org
You can buy shochu at LCBO.