Fugu!

Onions last dinner in Japan and since we were in the western part of Japan, which is known for "fugu" or pufferfish, we found a restaurant that served it!  Why is there a bit of "macho" in eating fugu?  It's because without the correct preparation, it has toxins that can kill you if ingested.  Fugu specialists have to be certified to be able to prepare it.  We each took a set course in which each course, except for the ice cream dessert, incorporated fugu.

First up, a salad consisting of fugu skin in a type of Japanese vinaigrette.

Then came a plate of slices of raw fugu!

Next came lightly battered fried pieces of fugu.  This was the most tasty. Onions and I concluded that it was the deep frying that we liked about it.

The main part of the meal was a fugu hot pot!

After hot pot, the server came over and used the water in which we cooked our hot pot, seasoned it...

....then he poured in some rice....

....added some seasonings, green onions and a raw egg.....

which turned into a fugu flavored rice porridge.

Non fugu ice cream for dessert.

In Japanese restaurants, the server walks you to the door and bids you farewell!  Awesome.