"In recent years we’ve seen the proliferation of niche Asian cuisines in the U.S., restaurants with menus more specific than just “Chinese”, “Japanese” or “Korean”.

"We first stumbled on these watching master bladesmith Vincent Kazuhito Lau sharpen knives (pictured here) at his home base just a stone's throw from Best Made. As you can see he uses them for just about everything: stabilizing his bench stones, wiping down his knives, keeping his work area nice and dry. The tenugui has been a traditional staple of the Japanese home, used as a hand towel, dishcloth, washcloth, handkerchief, etc... They also make great headband / sweatband, and are often used to denote participants in various Japanese sporting endeavors.

"Last week hummus and yoga were “in”, and while they’re not out yet, there’s a new top dog in Popularville: Japanese Whisky. Notice the spelling — that’s whisky with a -y, like Scotch whisky, not whiskey with an -ey, the spelling used for U.S. and Irish varietals.

"White carbon steel & magnolia handles, made exclusively for Best Made by Toshiki Nambu, a 71 year old blacksmith in Japan. Just evidenced by the detail that goes into the preparation of their cuisine, one would surmise that our favorite kitchen knives have always been Japanese.

The soaring popularity of Japanese Food has created a recent fad of Japanese food costumes.  With Halloween fast approaching, there are several unique 'Sushi' costumes that have been popping up across North America. (Don't miss out our Top 10 Halloween Theme Sushi Rolls/Balls)

"Okay, here I am not doing it quite properly, I should have my palm facing up and have the bottom of the bowl or cup like china sitting on my fingers and side supported by my thumb.  I was too focused with taking picture here...

"From Mars Bars and Creme Eggs to Eccles cakes and even butter - it seems there isn't a food that avant garde chefs haven't tried to coat in batter and deep fry to create a less-than-healthy snack.

Okonomiyaki is a food. It is a Japanese food. It is a cross between an overfilled omelette or pancake or a very thick pizza; some heathens call it a Japanese pizza – and it is all of these, yet it is not – sort of. You decide.

It is quite hard to say what it is, but despite not looking the best in my opinion, nor sounding the best when you look at the ingredients included, okonomiyaki is actually fantastic to eat, and yes you do come back for more. Just to help, here is how you pronounce it ok-o-no-mi-yaki, yes just how it looks.

If you’re planning to have a few drinks before it’s back to work next week, maybe this will whet your whistle. The red hot nickel ball (RHNB) is back again, and this time it’s taking on vodka. But not just any vodka — this is wasabi-infused vodka.