This is basically a cooler from 475BC-221BC.
It's an ice chest used during ceremonies and when important guests visit.  There are hooks at the base of the legs that stabilizes the structure.  There is also a hook that locks the lid in place as it clamps down at the opening.  If pouring wine from the ice chest, the lid does not need to be opened, there is a separate small outlet for releasing the wine.  During summer it could hold ice inside to keep the food cool, and during winter it has a compartment to put charcoals in to keep the food hot.  It's the earliest "fridge" as well as oven.

So...that's what the description says.  I am really surprised people used ice back in 475BC.  It's a good thing to know because if I accidentally get transported back in time and stuck in that era I'll know there are chilled food and drinks.

I am hoping they'd start digging up ancient laptops and evidences of Internet soon.


　　戰國（公元前475—前221年）
　　高63.2、口徑63厘米
　　1978年湖北隨縣曾侯乙墓出土
　　湖北省博物館藏

　　此冰鑒為重要祭典或宴請重要賓客時使用。銅冰鑒為方鑒內套方形尊缶，方鑒底部安有彎形栓鉤，正好插入缶足穿眼，把缶穩住。其中一隻栓鉤還裝有倒鉤，栓鉤插入后，倒鉤即自動倒下卡緊，使缶不能搖動。灌酒挹（yì）酒不需打開鑒蓋，隻用打開缶蓋，設計巧妙。方鑒四面和四角各有一條攀附狀的龍作耳，龍尾部又有小龍纏繞，並附有兩朵小花點綴其上，狀貌十分俏麗，鑄作精細，是失蠟法鑄造的較早的典范作品。蓋內銘刻“曾侯乙作持用終”。方鑒與方尊缶之間有較大的空隙，夏季可置冰塊於其中冰冷食物，冬季則可置木炭以溫燙食物。既是最早的“冰箱”，也是最早的“烤箱”。《楚辭·招魂》：“挫糟凍飲，酎（zhòu）清涼些。”冰鑒旁邊有漏酒的漏斗，即是去糟的設備。

Kaiseki at Kaygetsu near Stanford.
 
Menu


Course 1: bell pepper tofu
It's not really tofu...and I didn't really like it.  However, they had uni imported from Japan with rich flavor.
Once I put the uni in the mouth, I breathed into the mouth with lips sealed and allowed its rich aroma to fill my mouth.
A mixture of sweet, salty, and 濃稠 began to fill my mouth.
B+ for uni and creativity.


So kaiseki is known for different plates for each dish.  This bowl for sashimi reminds me of a clamshell.
I am very critical of fresh fish, since my mom educated me on what to look for.
Also I have a very sensitive palette, so I could actually taste if something has been inside the fridge or water has been sitting out for too long.
All these are defrosted fish, and they have been frost bitten. :P
Freshness is a must in sashimi, when it's been frozen for too long, when unfrozen its texture is usually very soggy and the meat has no...elasticity(?).
Also, the right cut of the meat is crucial.
The salmon tasted fishy and soggy because it's not fresh, the toro was fiberous when it's suppose to be fatty and melt away on top of the tongue like butter, and the white fish is just...soggy.
Major fail for a restaurant like this...
(am I being too critical?)

F


Slow cooked veggie.
Nothing really stands out since I am not accustomed to these mountain wild veggie, thus I cannot appreciate its freshness.
However, I did enjoy the mixture of the mountain potato and broth mixed together.
The soup base is extremely light, and probably made with tsuyu.
B+


Hassun, or 八寸.
I suppose it got its name from a tray that is 8"X8".
Aside from tolerable sushi piece in the middle, everything else was just really great!
The softshell crab was perfect.  I was surprised a cold dish softshell crab did not taste fishy at all.
Great marinade.

The lotus root slice was stuffed with egg yoke mixed with yellow mustard.  A little spicy and tangy.
Salmon marinated in miso was pretty good, there was also anago and tamago that were just really good.

A for this one.


Fried dish.
Can't see it in the back, but the dish consisted of:
tempura shiso leaf, ginger, and Kobe beef wrapped in bamboo shoot wrapped in yuba and tempura the whole thing.

I was pretty impressed with their tempura skill.
Batter is light, which is not easy...
The shiso leaf is really good.  Actually, there wasn't much flavor, but I am just impressed they could tempura a leaf...something so...light.

I couldn't appreciate the kobe beef, since I am not a big red meat eater.

A for the leaf!


Grilled dish.
The chicken roll (left) is so delicious.  It's oragnic dark meat wrapping around fishcake.
The salad on the right is supposedly truffle oil salad.
I tasted no truffle oil.  Maybe they only gave 1 drop using piping?
Regardless of the stingy truffle oil, I give it A for the great chicken.


Gohan.  Rice was well cooked with 5 veggie.  Soup was ok.  The pickled veggie is ok.
By this time my stomach was about to explode since I drank so much tea, so I can barely taste anything now.
Everything is so light in this dish...I wonder why they brought it out after chicken.

I can't rate this one since I couldn't taste it.  It's my fault.


The dessert box.
On the lower left corner is the black sesemi "mochi", which is no mochi at all.  It's made with the same style as the first dish, which I have no idea how it's made.
However, the fragrant black sesame in conjunction with black sugar syrup was a wonderful mix.
The top right corner was frozen banana with cream rolled in a green tea sponge cake.  It was good, but nothing special about it.  It's topped with fresh strawberry and syrup.
The big blob next to it is red bean paste.
A for this one.

I think the restaurant is about a B+ to me.
The menu comes with sake pairing.  The whole idea of eating with wine seems a bit silly to me, especially for Japanese food.  Since everything is so light in flavor and the point of eating a lot of Japanese food is about freshness, having alcohol that numbs the palette really does not make sense.  Then again, it could be because I am a lightweight drinker nowadays.  No more frat parties for me.


I was just telling Shinning that if we don't celebrate birthdays and forgo the presents, we could probably start buying expensive designer furnitures to decorate our new place.
However, the idea seems a bit sad since there won't be any kind of celebration...

I guess I still need my Ph.D. to make more money.
It seems variable though.
Some of the part-time faculty makes about $120,000 a year, some of them make about $70,000...
I guess hardcore education makes more than clinical teaching.