Thai Herb Kitchen is the most authentic Thai near Waikiki

"The studies, to be valid, have to be independent, double-blind, peer-reviewed and published in a major medical journal. This rules out any agenda-based funding"
Your kidding right? No one believes that these things can rule out agenda based funding. Which precisely why most respectable journals now require full disclosure of the support of the research.

as yes, the IFIC! Such an unbiased source of information. Never mind their ties to the industry.

I am glad we have your substantial expertise on medical matters Maria to refute the worlds leading migraine experts who tell us that the msg-migraine connection is not to be dismissed. Or for that matter, the people on this thread who have first hand experience with MSG and its nasty effects.
14 patients is a small sample, yes, but not at all meaningless. As far as your idea about the aspartame or C02 being the cause, they were both in the control as well, so that would wash out.
I am sure you would prefer us to trust the results of the numerous studies funded by the MSG industry, as those would of course be beyond question.

some studies, including the most recent one found on medline (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19...) , confirm that MSG can indeed cause headache. So too do some of the worlds leading migraine experts, including David Buchholz.
So in sum, your pronouncements are to be taken with a grain of salt, not msg.

indeed it would appear the msg manufacturers are worried about these troublesome ideas about the product getting any reception.

Which is the best? I haven't been out much in several years. Used to like Nonbei back in the day.
Sushi Izakaya Gaku gets lots of good reviews. If you had to pick one, where would it be and why?

Glutamate receptors, neurotoxicity and neurodegeneration.
Lau A, Tymianski M.
Source

Division of Applied and Interventional Research, Toronto Western Research Institute, 399 Bathurst Street, Toronto, ON, Canada, M5T 2S8.
Abstract

Glutamate excitotoxicity is a hypothesis that states excessive glutamate causes neuronal dysfunction and degeneration. As glutamate is a major excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system (CNS), the implications of glutamate excitotoxicity are many and far-reaching. Acute CNS insults such as ischaemia and traumatic brain injury have traditionally been the focus of excitotoxicity research. However, glutamate excitotoxicity has also been linked to chronic neurodegenerative disorders such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease and others. Despite the continued research into the mechanisms of excitotoxicity, there are currently no pharmacological interventions capable of providing significant neuroprotection in the clinical setting of brain ischaemia or injury. This review addresses the current state of excitotoxic research, focusing on the structure and physiology of glutamate receptors; molecular mechanisms underlying excitotoxic cell death pathways and their interactions with each other; the evidence for glutamate excitotoxicity in acute neurologic diseases; laboratory and clinical attempts at modulating excitotoxicity; and emerging targets for excitotoxicity research.

This is from 2010
Me thinks thou doth protest too much!

funny then that a major class of Alzheimers qdrugs, called NMDA receptor antagonists, work by BLOCKING the activity of glutamate.
Funny too that despite your protestations that you don't advocate for the use of MSG, you seem to come to its defense at the drop of a hat.

seconding My Kitchen! Flavors are wonderful

What is REALLY interesting, is that one of the leading drugs for Alzheimers, works by blocking glutamic acid receptors in the brain!!
"I consider it ironic, that the pharmaceutical industry is investing vast resources in the development of glutamate receptor blockers to protect CNS [central nervous system] neurons against glutamate neurotoxicity in common neurological disorders, while at the same time the food industry, with the blessing of the FDA, continues to add great quantities of glutamate to the food supply."

-- Richard C. Henneberry, Ph.D.
Director, Neuroscience Program
Conte Institute for Environmental Health

but seriously, i am sure you are capable of the impossible?

a rich uncle mysteriously shows up to pay?

Someplace that a reservation might be gotten at last minute and would be a likely wow meal?

thank you all

Sasashu (笹周) was always my favorite place to take a bite in Tokyo
Not at all fancy, (even a bit shabby), the food not over the top but always somehow just right, the sake incomparable, and it felt like home.

Now these 2 years since it has gone, I have struggled to find something as settling.
A fools game for sure, as there is never going back...

any recommendations from those who knew Sasashu ?

I find in the US that Yelp is most often wrong, although if you can identify a group of reviewers whose taste you trust you can use the site to some benefit.
Is Tablelog the same ?
Any good english review sites people trust. I used to think bento was ok but now not so.

I am in Tokyo.

Good place to spend some time, people watch and hopefully enjoy some decent coffee between Shinjuku and Shinagawa preferably not a chain?
Wifi would be ideal but rare i know

Sushi Dai is imediately next to Daiwa Sushi
Daiwa operates out of two stalls, Dai one so the wait is longer at Dai
both are great especially for the $. SImilar fish elsewhere would cost 2-3 times more imo

that last comment about the relationship between the itamae and the customer is the most important one and sadly the one most difficult for foreigners to access the pleasure of. the best sushi i have eaten was in large measure do an an exceptional itamae, who made me feel for a couple of hours like a king...all of the best places have great fish and rice..the ambience can very wildly...

Anyone know of any decent eats in Kunitachi area?
Thanks if so!