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J.J. O'Donoghue
For J.J. O'Donoghue's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHY DID YOU LEAVE JAPAN?
Jun 9, 2018
Akiko Hirai: A natural ceramicist in London
Learning crafts in the U.K. can give artists more room to breathe.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KYOTO RESTAURANTS
Jun 9, 2018
Temarizushi to Nihoncha Souden: Elegantly crafted sushi bites
The sushi might be the start at Temarizushi to Nihoncha Souden, but the tea is no slouch, either.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KYOTO RESTAURANTS
Jun 9, 2018
Assemblages Kakimoto: An award-winning chocolatier
Expect innovation, talent and, yes, chocolate at Assemblages Kakimoto.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jun 2, 2018
YouTube: Picking up where TV cooking shows left off
YouTube channels such as 'Jun's Kitchen,' 'Cooking With Dog' and 'Ochikeron' are using the video sharing platform (and often cute animals) to show just how easy it is to make Japanese food.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
May 26, 2018
Rafaela Takeshita: This conservationist certainly doesn't monkey around
Brazlian primatologist on her research methods, where to soak in a hot spring like a Japanese macaque and ecotourism.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / OSAKA RESTAURANTS
May 26, 2018
Bistro de Yoshimoto: French cuisine with some flair
It was only after lunch was fully served and I was sipping on my digestif that I noticed the name on the painting hanging on the wall beside me: Yoshimoto. The watercolor next to it, a neat recreation of Le Mont Saint-Michel, bore the same signature.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHY DID YOU LEAVE JAPAN?
May 12, 2018
Mayumi Uejima-Carr: Setting the Table For Two in the United States
After reading about the NPO Table For Two, a quick Google search and a 'passionate email,' Mayumi Uejima-Carr now educates American students about the health benefits of Japanese cuisine.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KYOTO RESTAURANTS
May 12, 2018
Kishin: New opening is full of breakfast promise
For Atsushi Nakahigashi at Kishin, a traditional, local breakfast is the most important meal of the day.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KYOTO RESTAURANTS
May 12, 2018
By Twotone: Snap-friendly cafe offers wholesome lunch sets
By Twotone is serving up affordable lunch sets in a chic, minimalist cafe space.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
May 5, 2018
Why cleaning is good for you, according to Buddhist monk Shoukei Matsumoto
Turn cleaning from the ultimate chore to a restorative feature of your life.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / RECENTLY PUBLISHED BOOKS ABOUT JAPAN
May 5, 2018
'Shinrin-Yoku: The Art and Science of Forest Bathing': It's simple, get out into nature when you can
According to Qing Li, forest bathing is a cure-all: Time spent with trees can boost the immune system, increase energy, decrease anxiety, depression and anger, reduce stress and bring about a state of relaxation.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / TELLING LIVES
May 2, 2018
Stressed out? Bathing in the woods is just what the doctor ordered
If you go down to the woods today — and you should — leave your smartphone behind. Find a spot by a bamboo grove or take shade under a camphor tree and immerse yourself in the total effect of shinrin-yoku, or "forest bathing."
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / OSAKA RESTAURANTS
Apr 21, 2018
Liaison: Flair and performance from kitchen to table
Despite the unassuming setting, chef Hideyo Dezaki delivers seasonal, creative fare at Liaison.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / OSAKA RESTAURANTS
Apr 21, 2018
Critters Burger: Serious people making serious burgers
Critters Burger may be turning 10 but their burgers are as on-point as ever.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KYOTO RESTAURANTS
Apr 7, 2018
Izuu: Where 230 years of practice makes perfect mackerel sushi
Since 1781, Izuu has been making saba-zushi the true Kyoto way and has no plans to change their recipe now.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KYOTO RESTAURANTS
Apr 7, 2018
Lucky Gyoza Center: Don't be put off by the mess
Though Lucky Gyoza Center has been open less than a year, it has a great range of delicious dumplings. It is rather sticky though.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / OSAKA RESTAURANTS
Mar 24, 2018
Taiwan Tanpao: A quick visit for a dumpling or six
You could easily pass a whole day as a flaneur in Osaka's Tenjibashi-suji Shotengai, the longest shopping arcade in Japan. Unlike its southern counterpart, Shinsaibashi-suji, there is still room to breathe in Tenjinbashi-suji and it's not (yet) full of tourist-traps masquerading as historical shops.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / OSAKA RESTAURANTS
Mar 24, 2018
Sushi Chiharu: In delicacy lies the art of sushi
For the 90 minutes that lunch played out at Sushi Chiharu, the smallest upscale-sushi restaurant I've ever eaten at, there was a steady stream of jazz hits underscoring the sushi shokunin (artisan) who catered to the full house.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KYOTO RESTAURANTS
Mar 10, 2018
Tai no Tai: Ambitious kaiseki that plays on the basics
Chef Noriyuki Hashinaga's new outpost — Tai no Tai — opened less than a year ago and it is close to his eponymous restaurant in many senses of the word.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KYOTO RESTAURANTS
Mar 10, 2018
Walden Woods: Where great coffee meets bare aesthetic
Before being transformed into a cafe, the building that Walden Woods occupies produced ready-made curtains. Almost nothing about the squat, brick building was remarkable. But when the cafe came along, it was out with the old and in with the "throw out everything and paint what remains off-white" aesthetic.

Longform

Later this month, author Shogo Imamura will open Honmaru, a bookstore that allows other businesses to rent its shelves. It's part of a wave of ideas Japanese booksellers are trying to compete with online spaces.
The story isn't over for Japan's bookstores