Issue #21 September: The Osaka World Expo is Not for the Weak 🇯🇵

Plus the best Michelin-star lunch deal, where to begin exploring Chinatown, and an art exhibit hidden inside one of the Painted Ladies

Apologies for the late send this month. I got back from Japan on Sunday and have been adjusting to life back on a cold toilet seat. It was a fun trip, mostly spent at the World Expo in Osaka. More on that below. I did spend about a day-ish in Tokyo so I’ve updated that travel guide with additional highlights, including a fancy dessert spot, a beautiful art museum, a Perfume concert at Tokyo Dome, and our stay at Muji Hotel. But first, some fun things in SF. 😊

Eat 😋 

Hed 11 (Japantown, SF)

I love a leisurely lunch so I was very excited to discover that Michelin-starred Thai restaurant Hed 11 has a $40 lunch special Friday-Sunday. It’s a 5-course menu with 4 options: beef, pork, seafood, and vegan. We tried the beef and seafood menus and were blown away by how delicious every dish was. Both menus started with a grilled scallop with rice noodles, followed by soups and salads with our respective proteins along with sides of sauteed cabbage and 3 types of rice. We finished with cheesecake for dessert, completely satisfied and planning our next visit. 🍲

Sōhn (Dogpatch, SF)

The highly anticipated all-day Korean cafe and gathering space, Sōhn, opened its doors last month to lines wrapping around the block. It took over the former Daily Driver space, offering two floors: a coffee bar and gift shop downstairs with additional seating upstairs. My friends and I went before opening and luckily didn’t have to wait too long before we got a table. We shared the breakfast sandwich, galbi patty melt, popcorn chicken, and mandu. Everything was tasty, but the standout was definitely the homemade banana oat milk you can add to an iced coffee or matcha drink or even by itself. I got it with hojicha and the sweet creaminess of the milk just took the drink to another level. We did see people reading or on their laptops, but it’s probably a better working cafe on a less busy weekday. 🥪🍵

Shop 🛍️

On Waverly (Chinatown, SF)

I recently attended a book event at On Waverly, a super cute bookstore, gift shop, and community space focused on celebrating Asian artists and creators. The owners are sisters, Cynthia and Jennifer Huie, who had always dreamed of opening a community hub in Chinatown. Cynthia is also a new board member of Chinatown Community Development Center, which I’ve been involved with for many years. The space is expertly curated with books, art, apparel, home goods and also hosts a wide variety of fun events from book talks to mahjong lessons to cooking classes. While our world may feel isolating at times, it’s good to know there are places like On Waverly to find community. 📚    

See 🖼️

fnnch Museum (Alamo Square, SF)

SF-based street artist, fnnch, has found a famous venue to showcase his retrospective of Honey Bear paintings. Located inside one of the city’s iconic Painted Lady houses, the exhibit features a total of 116 Honey Bear paintings. While I’ve seen plenty of Honey Bears walking about the city, I had no idea there were so many different bears. My favorites include Paddington Bear and Grey Poupon Bear. Admission is free, but tickets are required. 🐻

Watch 📺

The Good Place (Netflix, 2016-2000)

What does it mean to be a good person and does it even matter are questions the characters explore in The Good Place, a sitcom created by Michael Schur (The Office, Parks & Rec). The show ran for four seasons achieving both critical acclaim and audience popularity. The story is about Eleanor (Kristen Bell), who mistakenly ends up in The Good Place after she dies having lived a corrupt and selfish life. She meets Michael (Ted Danson), the immortal architect of the seemingly perfect and colorful frozen yogurt filled neighborhood. He introduces Eleanor to her soulmate Chidi (Willam Jackson Harper), a moral and ethics professor and their neighbors Tahani (Jameela Jamil), a beautiful socialite and Jianyu (Manny Jacinto), a monk who has taken a vow of silence. There’s also an AI assistant named Janet (D'Arcy Beth Carden) who helps the residents with whatever they need. As Eleanor settles into her afterlife, she quickly realizes she doesn’t belong, but not everything about The Good Place is what it seems. The show is what you want from a sitcom: smart, funny, well-paced, easily bingeable, but it also tackles complex ideas like ethics and moral philosophy. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever watched, leaving me both wanting to read Kant and also eat jalapeño poppers.

Read 📖

Gwyneth: The Biography (Amy Odell)

I’m a paid subscriber to Back Row, a fashion and culture substack by Amy Odell, author of multiple NYT best selling books. I enjoyed her previous biography about Anna Wintour and was excited to read all about Gwyneth Paltrow. Like many, I find Gwyneth both fascinating and disturbing and this thoroughly-researched book with over 220 sources explores this dichotomy in juicy detail. In addition to Gwyneth’s life as an actor and founder of Goop, the book also explores topics like nepotism, celebrity culture, social media, and the wellness industrial complex. I’m not sure whether I like Gwyneth more or less after reading this book, but it does make me want to rewatch some of her older films. And maybe buy a sweater from her Goop line.

Visit ✈️

Osaka, Japan

This was my third trip to Osaka and while it’s often described as a mini-Tokyo, I will say there is a distinct Osaka vibe. They pride themselves as being the most food obsessed city in Japan as seen by the numerous street vendors on Dotonbori and their food halls are somehow even more insane than those in Tokyo. The energy is laid back, but also loud and weird. People stand to the right like they do in the US vs. the left in Tokyo. The main catalyst for the trip was the World Expo so I’ll start with that experience. 

See 🖼️

• World Expo: If you ask me what was harder, running my half-marathon or attending the Osaka World Expo, I’d probably just burst into tears. Imagine the most intense amusement park experience combined with the most confusing and frustrating bureaucratic process and you get the Expo. Simply buying the tickets took hours of research and patience on the most horribly designed website on the internet. Once we got our tickets, we then had to enter several lotteries at set times for the most popular pavilions, which we did not win. This meant we could only see pavilions that did not take reservations which meant standing in multi-hour lines squished like sardines with the other 200,000 daily attendees. Luckily for us, the weather was more bearable than it was in the height of summer. A portable fan and an umbrella made all the difference. The best parts included the impressive Grand Ring structure with a scenic walkway at the top and lots of seating on the bottom. Some fun pavilions we got to see were the Healthcare Pavilion and the Women’s Pavilion in partnership with Cartier. The highlight and what really made the whole experience worthwhile was the France Pavilion. After waiting two hours, we finally made it in and were immersed in breathtaking art installations that highlighted legacy French brands like LV, Dior, and Chaumet. One room had a spinning globe made of LV trunks overlaid with projections from Daito Manabe, Japan’s star media artist. And because it’s France, they had the cutest little gift shop with Expo-exclusive items from Saint James. The last time Osaka hosted the Expo was in 1970 so it’s a big deal for the country to have it return. Was it worth it? Sure, in a Type II fun kind of way, but I don’t think I need to attend another Expo anytime soon.

• Osaka Castle: Probably the most famous landmark in Osaka, this castle was built in the 1500s during the Azuchi–Momoyama period. The castle itself can get crowded, but the beautiful surrounding grounds are free to wander.
• Dotonbori: A Time Square-esque attraction with neon lights, giant billboards, theaters, arcades, shopping, and a canal. 
• Nakazakicho: Described as Osaka’s bohemian neighborhood, it was a nice break from all the glitzy skyscrapers in Umeda. Tiny shops and cafes line the streets. We had lunch at Taiyo No To Cafe, a cozy place that serves simple lunch sets, and then enjoyed a sweet treat surrounded by dried flowers at Picco Latte. We visited not one, but three different stores selling creepy dolls as well as a cool upcycled men’s shop, Kanenaga. 
• Harukas 360: I know it's cheesy, but observatories never get old for me and this one’s worth a visit for amazing views and a cafe with floor to ceiling glass windows. Don’t miss a trip to the bathrooms either!

Eat 😋

• La Pizza Napoletana Regalo 🍕: A one-man show making award-winning pizzas in a tiny shop. Definitely one of the best pizzas I’ve ever had. 
• Masahiko Ozumi 🍰: Adorable and delicious knit cakes. I had a hard time choosing, but eventually went with a matcha yuzu cake and a chocolate with hazelnut one in the shape of a handbag.

• Kamakura 🍜: Osaka-born ramen chain that serves ramen with actual vegetables. IYKYK how rare this is. You can also top your bowl with the complimentary spicy scallion mix. Don’t miss the gyoza either. 
• Kaiten Sushi Ginza Onodera 🍣: A high-end conveyor / tablet style sushi chain with branches throughout Japan. The warm interiors of this Osaka location made the fish even tastier. 
• Nishitenma Nakamura 🍱: For our last dinner, we went to this Michelin-starred restaurant owned by female chef, Akemi Nakamura. Every dish was thoughtful and beautifully presented. They were even kind enough to use a tablet to translate the story behind each dish for us in English.

Shop 🛍️

• Kuromon Ichibi Market: Local fish market with over 150 seafood shops plus tons of stalls selling street food and souvenirs. 
• Hankyu: High-end department store with a massive food hall and a breezy rooftop. I finally made my first Issey Miyake purchase after lusting for their styles for years. 
• Inside My Glass Doors: You know a store is cool when there is no signage. Also when there’s a secret basement with such low ceilings, you could hit your head and get a concussion all for the sake of fashion. 
• Shinsabashi: This popular covered shopping street has literally anything you could possibly buy. From vintage stores to pop-up boutiques to pharmacies to big-name brands. 

Stay 🛏️

St. Regis: Probably the best value luxury hotel I’ve ever stayed in. The location was super convenient, around the corner from the train station and steps away from Shinsabashi. The rooms were spacious and came with a butler and a butler box where you can leave and pick up items without having to make human contact. The breakfast buffet was also a treat.