Oct 28, 2022 3 min read season one

Opulence Where You Least Expect It

Day 9
Kanazawa, 19,021 steps, 15.3 kilometers

I'm well into the second week of this trip. And into the second hundred of kilometers walked. It’s time to slow down a bit and take another rest day.

Need to be ready for the final city tomorrow.

Where you’re from? somehow became the hardest question for me to answer. When I say I’m from Poland, people rarely know where that is. When I say I’m from Hong Kong, they try to talk to me in Chinese. And if I say I live in Hong Kong but come from Poland, they look at me like I’m a crazy person.

And it’s usually the first question people ask. It’s much easier for me to answer where I’m going.

So… a rest day. Much less walking today. But more deliberate walking.

Simple meals, elevated

First, they show you the fish. It’s still alive and moving, by the way. Then, they skin it, impale it on metal rods, and grill it right in front of you. One last dip in sauce and they place it on top of rice and serve.

All throughout the chef was very eager to show me the details of his work. Reader — it was an experience.

This was the most exquisite unagi rice I’ve ever had. And I didn’t even order the most luxurious set on the menu!

I’ve never heard of oden omakase before. Oden, sure. But omakase? Just… how?

But there I was, sitting at the counter at Crafeat and being served five different versions of oden in succession — each serving spotlighting a different, locally sourced ingredient.

Green sheets of kelp. Tofu. Egg. A huge, fist-sized, piece of daikon. Nodoguro (yes, it’s all the rage in Kanazawa) fish cake with konjaku. With pickles and side dishes in between. All served in meticulously crafted, beautiful lacquerware (the restaurant is also a lacquerware shop).

Omakase oden! Delicious and nutritious. Nutlicious? (I'll see myself out...)