By Adam Brownstein September 20, 2026 // Tokyo, Japan “For some of our most important beliefs we have no evidence at all, except that people we love and trust hold these beliefs. Considering how little we know, the confidence we have in our beliefs is preposterous—and it is also essential.” From “Thinking Fast and Slow”Continue reading “The Family Recipe: My Quest for the Perfect High Holiday Brisket”
Baryshnikov
By Adam Brownstein — Tokyo, Japan — July 12, 2026 Early on in our marriage, my Japanese wife endured an intense indoctrination into the most salient canon of Western culture. This was, as you may guess, enjoying the full panoply of Friends (all 236 episodes from the first Rachel and Ross meet cute to theContinue reading “Baryshnikov”
Very Short Stories That Explain Japan: On Risk
By Adam Brownstein // Tokyo, Japan // March 29, 2026 On Risk One hazy Saturday morning in the early summer of 2017 my wife informed me that she was off with her mother to look at land on which to build a house. Her non-chalant tone belied serious intent; looking at land meant possibly buyingContinue reading “Very Short Stories That Explain Japan: On Risk”
In Through the Out Door
By Adam Brownstein — Tokyo, Japan — March 15, 2026 Tokyo is the world’s best food city. A bold claim, but it has the data and the sentiment to back it up. Its 195 Michelin star restaurants sits comfortably ahead of Paris’s 123. The reason can be traced to variety (84 of the establishments areContinue reading “In Through the Out Door”
Inside Out
By Adam Brownstein – January 30, 2026 – Tokyo, Japan Two important events in human history coincided with the occasion of my eighth birthday, February 10th 1978. The first was the release of Van Halen’s self-titled inaugural album. From its initial fade in of “Runnin’ With The Devil” to its bluesy send off with “IceContinue reading “Inside Out”
The Real McCoy
By Adam Brownstein – August 3, 2025 – Tokyo, Japan The sages tell us that many ages ago there was a wondrous festival of torches that took place every year around the perimeter of the Temple in Jerusalem. Young rabbinical students and even members of the Sanhendrin were given to performing splits, cartwheels andContinue reading “The Real McCoy”
Keeping the Beat
By Adam Brownstein — June 27, 2025 Even dust, when piled up, can become a mountain. Japanese Proverb ————————————– One late evening in the winter of 1967 Norman Pilcher, a senior constable at the time, knocked on the door of a sprawling country manor. Pilcher was not alone, but accompanied by 18 other members ofContinue reading “Keeping the Beat”
Japanese Garden
By Adam Brownstein — January 21, 2025 The first time I visited Kyoto was nearly a major minor tragedy. After spending several pleasant days and nights wandering the cobblestone paths of Gion, sitting in silence at the Chōraku-ji Temple and eating sumptuous hammo fish, it was time for me to return to Tokyo. I spentContinue reading “Japanese Garden”
Latke Or Leave It
January 2, 2025 By Adam Brownstein One of my earliest memories was my father imploring me to stop. The setting was our family’s rental apartment at 2727 Palisade Avenue in Riverdale, and the occasion was Hanukkah 1975. His warning centered around my attempt to set a Bronx Borough record for the most latkes ever consumedContinue reading “Latke Or Leave It”
Monkey Business
By Adam Brownstein Son, I’ve made a life out of readin’ people’s faces, Knowin’ what the cards were by the way they held their eyes. So if you don’t mind my sayin’, I can see you’re out of aces. For a taste of your whiskey, I’ll give you some advice. The Gambler Due to aContinue reading “Monkey Business”
