#31: Uchi...a learning experience

I just reviewed my eating experience at Uchi on Yelp.

I don't know what I was expecting to get out of it. Perhaps I came in with an already biased opinion because of how many people rave about it and how my flavor palette doesn't always agree with that of the general public.

I could rely on the ingredients being high quality. I could also count on them wanting me to eat a bunch of things at once to achieve a kind of flavor bouquet. Pork belly, because pork belly is trendy.

For a moment, I just came to the conclusion that I didn't like Japanese food as much as other kinds, after all, I'm Filipino (Bataan Death March people!!), I like Korean, Chinese, Thai, and Vietnamese food - so either SE Asian food or food from countries disposed to hating the Japanese. One thing that sticks out from this assumption is my liking of Niki's Tokyo Inn in San Antonio, TX. It's hole in the wall and very traditional.

Sushi had an original concept. It was fast food originally and in modern times, it's gone on steroids. Most of the time it feels like something you have to wait a long time for and pay a lot more for since it's gone over a crazy American makeover.

#30 Austin on the Cheap

I have not been eating out as much lately. I'm making a big effort to bash down my credit card bills before they start charging interest, so eating out has not been too much of an option. Just when it is a special occasion.

I've been living on a ramen diet. It's not so bad as I make ramen according to these specifications. I shop at the MT Market now more than ever. A lot of the things that I eat most often are just cheaper there, the best example being fresh shitake mushrooms. The Chinatown square is a real life saver for those who have to live on the cheap. My latest intake: Banh Mi. I feel like I'm getting a good dose of all the food groups when I eat a Vietnamese sandwich. I generally get annoyed buying sandwiches when I know nearly all of the ingredients are far below the cost of the sandwich, but at $3.50 a pop, I don't feel too shabby. What makes it so fab over the average sandwich? I'd be lying if I didn't say price, but also fresh crunchy ingredients, none of the average meat and cheese taste, and overall just a really awesome flavor. Go Baguette House!!