Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Hi!! How's everyone doing?
I had one thing I forgot to let you know of.

I changed my book about food to CONFLAKE CRUSADE!
It was written by Gerald Carson.

 
This book is about how "food reform" happened in the US. "Food reform" is in other words, eating scientificly, which overall mean eating healthy food. The author mainly talks about cornflakes (kellog) and how it spread in the US. There are other stories between the corkflakes, for example, about atomach aches and bread crumbs.
 
I chose to change my book because the former book was not interesting to me. It was almost all quoatation from other people's writing or thesis. Howeer, this book is written story like and I was attracted by the place cornflake first appeared, Mighigan. I used to live in Michigan when I was in elementary school, so I was very eager to read this book and get some information about Michigan.
To me this book is interesting because I could know how people started to realsize to eat healthy and how cornflakes and Michigan is connected to it.

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

http://www.afternoon-tea.net/tearoom/menu/sweets.php

Restaurant Review

Hello~ How's everyone doing?
Monday, I went to Afternoon Tea Cafe with Risako for dinner!!
I had so much fun!!
 
★RESTAURANT REVIEW★
 
★Service staff
uniform clean-5 (staff were wearing simple clothes which meets their cafe)
friendliness    -5 (my friend was working with a smile)
smile              -4 (same)
professional   -5 (we were served very well)
speed              -3 (the speed was not fast but not slow)
 
★Restaurant
cutlery clean  -5 (sometimes, there are unclean cutlery in restaurants, but Afternoon Tea Cafe was      well cleaned)
music             -4 (music fit the cafe, but a little too loud may be because where we sat  :( )
clean              -5 (it was nice and clean)
overall feeling positive and fun-5 (I enjoyed food and talk with Risako)
comfortable   -5 (nice and quiet atmosphere)
 
★Building
restrooms       -2 (there were no restrooms in the shop. we had to go out of the shop and walk)
sign                -1 (there were no signs for the cafe so it is not easy to notice)
access             -4 (Afternoon Tea Cafe tamaplaza is in Tamaplaza Terras, which is very close from the station)
clean               -5 (Since Tamaplaza Terras is also pretty new, the building was very clean)
light                -5 (appropriate light which made us comfortable)
 
★Food categories
taste                -5 (very good!!:) )
quality            -5 (
temperature    -4 (it was at nice temperature)
apperance       -5 (it looked very professional and like some kind of art! It was delicious, too)
cost                 -5 (we ordered in a set and ate pasta, bread, cake and drank tea. it was good price with all of them)






 
Risako and I decided to go to Afternoon Tearoom. The reason we chose the restaurant is because we both like Italian food and that we both live near the station, Tamaplaza, where the restaurant is.

The restaurant is in a station mall called Tamaplaza Terras. There are many restaurants, clothing shops, book shop and so on in this building. Good part is that it is very near the station. Once you get out of the station, you’ll recognize the building right away with the signs. However, there are no sign of the restaurant which pops in our eyes. When you go up the escalator, you’ll see the Afternoon Living, which deals with cutlery, furniture and towel and many more things that are needed in houses. That shop stands out so many people might have missed the corner, where the restaurant is.

 
 
 
 
 
 
Entering the restaurant, you are welcomed by smiling staff and to a table. The restaurant is not crowded so it is able to choose a seat, which makes customers very comfortable. Once you are seated, you are served with water and menus. Staff are kind that they explain the menu for you and answer any questions.

Main meals are mostly pasta, but there are also risotto, sandwich and salad. Most of the time, there are special menus (period limited) which makes people feel special with new menu and also enjoyable to those who often come to the tearoom and is familiar with all of the normal menus. Tearoom is famous for sweets and many kinds of tea, too. Recommendation is Highteaset, which is served with pasta, bread, drink and dessert or salad. The quality of the plates are very high with nice price.
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
First, we are served with past and bread. After finish eating them, staff serves with us the drink and cakes. The timing was very good because there were not a long space of time between main meal and the dessert. Finishing the meals, it is able to enjoy the quiet and comfortable atmosphere of the tearoom. The temperature of the room was perfect and the music is relaxing. Staff often comes to the table to refill water.
We enjoyed having dinner at Afternoon tearoom and would like to continue going there. I love the atmosphere of the shop and the taste of food so I’d recommend going there.


 
 
 

Thursday, January 1, 2015

Video Review

Hello~ I haven't posted for a pretty long time...


Today, I'd like to introduce a restaurant video!!






Turtle Tower Restaurant






-What is revealed about the reviewer and the culture (both the local culture and/ or ethnic background of the food?)




The restaurant makes  nothern vietnamese cuisine of Hanoi. The cook is the speaker's father, who has been cooking all his life. He was taught to cook by his mother who also was taught to cook from her father. They are especially famous for their beautiful and delicious broth.


-What criticism do you have of the video, either concerning the professionalism, production quality or the content




I think the quality of the video is very high, with explanation from the restaurant and many pictures and videos of the cooking process and cuisines. I also did like the way there were a kind of interview in the video. However, I wanted to see the specific things of the restaurant rather than people talking about broth.


-Notice whether the voices of the speaker are monotonous or have a pleasing emphasis certain words and phrases. How does that affect your understanding and enjoyment of it?




Speaker who introduced the restaurant was speaking from third person's point of view and explained the history and cuisines of the restaurant. Other people who were having discussions about broth was talking from their own point of view. People discussed about how they like broth or not.


-Are there any expressions or phrases that stand out in your mind after watching this video? What techniques or languages would you like to use when filming your own video review?


No, not really, but I remember people talking about "broth". So I got an image that the main theme about the video was broth not the restaurant, and that made me confused.