Happy New Year my fellow Ibarakians!
And so we bid farewell to 2023 and welcome the year of the dragon, 2024. This year was great! I tried a lot of different places and went to a lot of different events. Time to select some of the best of 2023.
The categories for this year are:
Best Event
Most Fun Place
Best Sweets
Biggest Surprise
I will also be posting my wife's winners for this year.
Best Event
Tanabatayoichi in Himitsukichi
This was a tough one. There were so many events, and markets this year that I couldn't even report on half of them. After reviewing which events I talked about this year it came down to Ibafornia or Himitsukichi. Both events had a great atmosphere and very friendly people. Ibafornia had way more selection of food and drinks, but Himitsukichi had a greater selection of wines and beers. This was a very close call but in the end, I'm giving it to Himitsukichi. One of the main reasons is the company, the sun going down on a beautiful forested area, and a delicious Hi-5 burger.
Unfortunately, my wife didn't get to come to most of the events I posted about. But she is a big fan of Burger Baka so that is her winner this year. She was frustrated by the traffic and waiting time for the burgers, but she enjoyed all the burgers we had and the park.
Most Fun Place
Granberry Daichi
Strawberry picking and strawberry parfaits. Could this not be a more fun place? It was amazing walking into that huge strawberry-picking house and then having the strawberries lowered from the ceiling for our picking pleasure. It was so much fun, we went twice! Once for picking and once for the incredible strawberry parfaits. I hope we can go again next strawberry picking season.
My wife agrees with me on this one. She also thinks this was the most fun place we visited in 2023.
Best Sweets
Cup of Joe
This category was extremely difficult to decide. This year I had an amazing milkshake at Todai Coffee in Oarai, a delicious Mexican ice cream from Happy Tortilla Arthur, and fantastic crepes from Ajitora in Tsuchiura. All of those sweets and desserts were incredible. But it inedibly came down to two choices: the donuts from Troppo Donuts in Tsukuba, or the waffles from Cup of Joe in Hokota. Troppo makes a different variety of tasty donuts, but Cup of Joe makes some of the best waffles I have ever had in Japan. In the end, I'm giving it to Cup of Joe. Their waffles are fresh with just the right amount of crunch and the whipped cream is heavenly.
My wife doesn't completely disagree with me but she believes the best sweets we had this year were the souffle pancakes from Cafe Rob in Tsukuba. They are amazing pancakes and I recommend giving them a try.
Biggest Surprise
Special Boars
This category goes to Special Boars without question. I wasn't sure I would be impressed by their Cuban Sandwich, but it captured my heart and always made me want to come back for more. The cheese, the pork, and the bread are all perfect and just make me want to lean back in ecstasy with every bite. I am craving one just writing about it. I had a lot of surprises and great food this year, but Special Boars was on a different level. I was even taken aback by their Elvis Sandwich. Both sandwiches are winners and if you haven't tried them, you should.
My wife's pick for the biggest surprise goes to Aoinisai Farm for their blueberry pizza. Blueberry pizza! That would shock anyone who heard it. So you can imagine how surprised we were when we tried it and it tasted fantastic. I hope we can have that pizza again next year.
Well, this is my last post of 2023. I would like to thank you, my fellow Ibarakians, for sticking with me through this food adventure and for all your encouraging words and advice. Thank you for the recommendations and information on new places and events this year. I wish you, your friends, and your family a very Happy New Year filled with happiness and delicious food.
See you next year!
As always, I will be taking a three-week break. See you in mid-January. Enjoy your holidays!
Dragon art by Art Naoki:
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