The FanimeCon 2022 weekend has ended! I hope everyone who attended had a great time! In a previous post, I shared a few spots in downtown San Jose I love. So this year, I made sure to try some new ones. In this post, I’ll share what I ate and where I went on Fanimecon weekend.
Day 1
10:30 AM – Arrival
I arrived at the Hotel De Anza early, and I was lucky that they had a room available for check in. If that wasn’t the case, I would have gladly left my luggage with staff and picked up my Fanimecon badge at the convention center. While the Hotel De Anza is a half mile away from the San Jose McEnery Convention Center, it’s close to the San Pedro Square Market. Since I was planning to eat there for the majority of the weekend, it was the best spot for me. Before going to the con, I wanted to make sure I had my makeup and wig on. Even though masks could not be removed in the con center, eye makeup is still essential when wearing a wig. Once I finished getting ready, I headed to Fanimecon.
12:00(ish) – Badge Pickup
Kudos to the FanimeCon staff for choosing to uphold strict guidelines regarding vaccination and masking. That level of attention made me feel much safer as an attendee. Of course, the trade off for that was a longer badge pick up wait time. FanimeCon staff verified the vaccination status of attendees before they could pick up their badges. But once I was inside the convention hall, badge pickup took less than five minutes. I did some people watching while I waited for a friend, who still had to pick up their badge.
15:00 – Late Lunch @ Anchors
In the end, I went to grab a late lunch at the San Pedro Square Market. In past visits, I had passed by Anchors, but never tried it. This seafood restaurant has all the popular seafood favorites such as: lobster rolls, fish and chips, and seafood cocktails. My scallops and chips were fried to order, ensuring they were fresh and piping hot. The fries were crispy and perfectly seasoned. The scallops were moist and sweet, and the crispy batter had a hint of parsley. While it came with a container of their house-made tartar sauce, all I needed was a squeeze of lemon juice.
19:30 Dinner @ Urban Momo
I’ve never had Nepali food before, so I tried Urban Momo for dinner. I learned that a momo is a dumpling that is steamed or fried. Indian food lovers will recognize the spices in this dish. The filling of the chicken momos had cumin, ginger and turmeric. But these spices don’t add heat— just a nice dimension of warmth. I paired my dumplings with a mango lassi. The sweet, thick yogurt and fruit drink was even more filling than my meal.
20:00 – A Cocktail @ 3 Sisters Bar
As in years past, I went to 3 sisters bar for a cocktail. Oddly enough this time, their cocktail menu was the same as the San Pedro Square Market Bar. I’m not sure why. Regardless, I ordered a Fallon’s Revenge. According to the menu, it contains pear vodka, fresh cucumber and jalapeño, lime juice, St. Germain, agave and soda. St. Germain is one of my favorite liqueurs, so I had to order this. But unfortunately, it brought out the worst in each ingredient. The cocktail had a waxy aftertaste; it reminded me of an unripe banana. I was baffled.
My friend’s drink was just as confusing. La Mariposa is made of Hendrick’s gin, Chareau Aloe Liqueur, sugar, lemon, soda water and a butterfly pea flower tincture. Butterfly pea flower is the on-trend ingredient for blue beverages and “magic” color-changing drinks. In this cocktail, the tincture stayed a purplish blue. Based on that, we suspect that the “lemon” on the ingredient list was the dehydrated one only used as garnish. It is a shame, because my friend said it needed acid. It was one note, and that note was “vegetable.” A sad way to end the night.
Day 2
9:10 – Starbucks
When I am at FanimeCon, I try to avoid Starbucks like the plague. It’s busy and crowded. Unfortunately, I needed to kill time before the convention halls opened at 10:00. My breakfast was a London Fog and a caprese panini. I felt sorry for the Starbucks staff having to deal with a broken oven on a busy weekend.
11:30 – Lunch @ Ozu Ramen
1st street isn’t far from the FanimeCon activities. It’s about ten minutes away, on foot. This makes Ozu Ramen Kitchen a great choice for lunch before heading back to the convention. Their specialty is Black Tonkotsu Ramen. However, the name doesn’t refer to the color of the broth. Their rich, pork bone broth is seasoned with fermented black garlic. Black garlic is sweet and earthy, which perfumes the rich pork bone broth. Another highlight was the pork slices, which had a great char flavor.
2:30 – Bubble Tea @ Tea Villa
Since no trip to an anime convention is complete without at least one trip to a boba shop, I made my pilgrimage. Luckily, just up the street from Ozu Ramen, you’ll find a Tea Villa franchise. I love peach flavored everything. So I was happy to see that one of their seasonal shop specials was the Peachy Fox: a drink with a peach oolong tea base, with strawberry and peach boba.
4:00 – Snacks @ Mochinut
Welcome back to the San Pedro Square Market! One of my favorite Asian snack franchises is Mochinut, which has recently come to this location. Their name is a portmanteau of mochi, a glutinous rice flour used in Asian confections, and donut. So what makes mochi magic? When it’s fried the outside is crisp and the interior is fluffy and chewy. There’s nothing dense about these donuts, and they’re absolute heaven fresh out of the fryer. Likewise, their fried hot dog and cheese stick batter has the same texture. In Korea, hot dogs and cheese sticks are battered and then encrusted with potato or instant ramen noodles for extra texture. This might sound weird, but try them with a dusting of sugar: The combo of sweet and savory really pops.
Day 3 – Going Home
7:30 – Breakfast @ Voyager Craft Coffee
Finally, I head home. While I planned to grab breakfast at Voyager Craft Coffee every day, I only managed to it at the end of my trip. That said, the hearty slice of seeded toast slathered with hummus and topped with avocado and arugula was a perfect breakfast. The light drizzle of olive oil added almost a citrusy brightness. Though the snowbird isn’t as pretty as their lattes, it tastes great. Tea lovers like me will enjoy the blend of mint and chamomile, with honey and milk.
All in all, my food adventure at FanimeCon was a success. Admittedly, I was tempted to go back to familiar places, but I don’t regret trying new things. In fact, I’ve already scoped out new places to try when I return.