@TokyoFoodMap: Pretty Damn Great

I have written previously of being infected with what I can only term “Tokyo Love.”  It is a cherished affliction which transforms drab, suburban residential streets into wonderlands of tiny, eccentric gardens; reveals dark, dense alleyways as gateways for incredible dining.  It is a love that creates great potential in every train station, every tiny ward, every office building with a basement full of restaurants, every caught glance of an old man stirring a cauldron of broth.  It is a love that, as you may have gathered, is tied directly to my stomach.

I am not alone in this sickness, this joyful disease.  A fellow-traveler (who I have never met in person) is a guy named Adrian Bianco.  I gather that he is German, though I could be wrong about that.  He runs a company called Biancissimo which amongst other things, deals with branding and marketing in a manner that seems (at least to an old guy like me) straightforward and honest — putting love of culture/sub-culture in front of hype.  For me, the more important thing is that Mr. Bianco spends his days biking around Tokyo eating in (seemingly) a different place each and every day.  He records his culinary adventures in an excellent Instagram account @tokyofoodmap.  I follow his travels with a mixture of envy and appreciation, often thinking to myself: Goddamit!!! Another incredible looking spot!  This lucky mutherfucker! Then I remember how lucky I am to be living here and how thankful I am that he is sharing his spots, so I make detailed notes for future dining reference.  @TokyoFoodMap incorporates all angles of fressing from tonkatsu, to pork-belly rice bowls, to izakayas, to ramen shops, to Nepalese curry: it is a map ingrained with the restless curiosity and open heart of true Tokyo Love.  It is a map I am happy to share for all interested in the deep, dark, dutty warrens of Tokyo’s food culture.

To check out Mr. Bianco’s map, please follow @tokyofoodmap on Instagram and for a very good, but less detailed view check out his website: https://www.biancissimo.com .