Giant Robot kindly invited me to sign copies of my Crazy, Wacky Theme Restaurants book at the GR2 gallery in Santa Monica. V-fingers to good friends who came to support!

Sailor collar Lolita dress: Baby, the Stars Shine Bright (from Closet Child Harajuku)
Yellow boots: John Fluevog
Butterfly hair decoration: from a dollar store
White rose bracelet: a ribbon from a New York fashion district store
Lavender lipstick: D’Lilac, sent to me from Lime Crime

Have you ever been to a Giant Robot store? I could spend hours browsing through the art books, Japan toys, kawaii gizmos, you name it. Atsuyuki of Jazzminshroom came by to say hi.

Adorable pup Sparrow was eager to pose for photos. And here’s what an autographed copy of my book looks like! A fluid, fast-drying pen is a book tour necessity. I always carry around a Staedtler permanent lumocolor medium pen in purple.

It was a pleasure to meet reader Blackfeathers at the signing. I hope you’ve all been enjoying the recent male fashion focus. As always, I’m open to suggestions for the blog; let me know in the comments.

A reader sent me link to this photo and marveled, “Doesn’t he look like Lemon?” It sure does. This dashing character is Klavier Gavin from Phoenix Wright (fitting, since I cosplayed as Angel Starr from the series). Also shown is a Japanese photo of my BTSSB dress and Lime Crime’s sparkling unicorn lipstick tubes — d’lovely!

Hugs for Boing Boing writer Lisa Katayama (who runs an awesome blog, TokyoMango) — she interviewed me about my Theme Restaurants book and the appeal of Japanese pop culture. The article is here and pasted after the jump.

I received several messages from readers who got Crazy Wacky Theme Restaurants: Tokyo for Xmas or birthday gifts. Thank you for thinking of me, and I hope you enjoy the book. You know I had so much fun writing it!

My current question to you on Twitter: “Chest hair on males, yay or nay? Y’all know my preference… ~__^”

Song of the Day #261: And One – So Klingt Liebe (This song… this group… I can’t get enough of them.)

Why so serious, Carmina-sama? It’s a sunny day in La-la-land, you’re flanked by cute Visual Kei rockers, and you’re at a signing for your very own books! But one must always stay in character for cosplay — at least in my mind — and I’m the bento lady with a grudge from Nintendo’s Phoenix Wright. Grr. (More photos of my costume are here.)

Ementhy attracted random passersby to the table by beckoning frantically and calling: “Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Come here! Hey! Hey!” Half of the time, his approach worked. The other half averted their eyes and speed-walked away in terror.

Here’s a closeup of my octopus choker, made from red felt and black thread. (If you want the edible version, there’s a recipe for octodogs in my cute cookbook!)

Annenberg TV featured me in a news story about “how La Carmina’s Cute Yummy Time is changing the way people think about healthy food.” You can view it here and below:

As I say in the video, all the cute-faced creations in my book are made from healthy ingredients.

Thank you to everyone who came to my signings. It was lovely to speak to you in person, and your outfits rocked.

I’d say Hi Hi Caro wins the award for “most kawaii haircut.”

And this pic wins the Nobel Prize for Awesome. Come join in the fun! My J-pop books, Crazy Wacky Theme Restaurants: Tokyo and Cute Yummy Time are in all major bookstores and can be purchased online. Perhaps you’d consider putting them on your Xmas wishlist? Thanks, everyone, for your continued support.

Congrats to Amanda, who was the first to figure out my cosplay outfit! I’m dressed as Angel Starr, the bento lunch lady from the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney game for Nintendo DS.

What do you think of my handmade cosplay outfit?
Pillbox hat: Magenta felt glued and sewn around a cardboard cake tin (!!). A white face sponge and black fabric forms the onigiri decoration.
Furry cardigan: An old knit cardigan with faux fur trimming sewn onto the bottom and sleeves.
Mermaid dress: Sewn from a pattern.
Octodog necklace: Red felt and black fabric. Close-ups to come.
Tights: I know, they’re in horrendous condition. Blame Ementhy; he tore a huge hole in them.

When the Adventure Team came across this painting (in Little Tokyo’s Weller Court), we felt moved to re-create it for your amusement. Lemon was reluctant to lie face down on the floor: “But it’s dirty!” Our photographer, Caro, gave him the look and pointed at the ground. He sat.

The bizarre artwork is by Tokyo artist Heisuke Kitazawa, aka PCP. It’s titled “The New Kid Revival” and described as “An illustration about the desperate need to communicate.” We did an interpretive dance to complement the theme of despair — do you think we succeeded?

Once you’ve started shooting with a pro camera, you can’t go back to dinky digitals. My Sony DSLR 700 with Minolta lenses makes everyone look a little more lively.

Tomorrow, I’ll post photos from the LA Kinokuniya book signing. I’m glad you’re enjoying the cute yummy male fashion photos! What are your thoughts on ripped jeans? Silver jewelry for guys?

I can’t stop laughing at the video above: Yukiro Dravarious and the Mad Hatter Happy Phantom Candyman sing a glorious Disney duet, A Whole New World. Obviously, drinks of the non-soft variety were consumed prior to the filming. The “over sideways and under” hand movement! And the crotch thrust at “freewheeling!”

Finally, it’s Environment Week on CNNGo, so I wrote an article about Green Kids: 6 fun programs get kids environmentally engaged. It begins with a funny anecdote about my dippy-hippie fifth grade camping experience — hope you dig it, man.

Los Angeles. Ah! What a heavy metal adventure. Serial killer art, fudge cake, a Zen garden, Twisted Sister Xmas, cosplay book signings and wearing each other’s clothes… hold tight for a deluge of photos!

The LA book signings picked up some press, so let’s begin with a round-up. Liz Ohanesian of LA Weekly interviewed me about the differences between Western and Japanese Goth fashion and subcultures; the article included photos of GPK Prince Ken, DJ SiSEN, and yours truly with the LA Adventure Team (Ementhy and Lemon, above). You can read the interview here as well as after the jump.

The LA Times food section did a feature on my adorable cookbook, Cute Yummy Time. The article refers to me as a “cool hunter” and devotes an entire paragraph to my baby bear, Basil Farrow!

- The About.com Manga blog by Deb Aoki (a must-read), included Crazy, Wacky Theme Restaurants in its “Great Gift Books” guide.
- WaCowLA featured Cute Yummy Time in a front page article that also plugs my book signings.

Wasabi Fashion Kult calls me a Harajuku Alien and asks me 22 random questions. I tried to be entertaining. Below is a sampling; you can read the rest here.

One word that Basil Yuen Farrow would use to describe you. Mommy!
Your preferred method of transportation? Piggyback.
Tell me about your personal heaven? Cute Visual Kei boys hand-feeding me cute food in a room full of cute earless cats.

Speaking of… Hi Hi Caro took several Polaroids of me and the boys for her blog. Can you figure out what my cosplay outfit is? Are you excited to see more photos of the LA Adventure Team?

Song of the Day #251: Alphaville – Forever Young (80s dance mix) (because that’s how it should be.)

The minute you think you’ve visited every Tokyo theme restaurant, a new one pops up. I had dinner with a group of Goths at 京町恋しぐれ / Kyoumachi-koi-shigure in Shibuya. It’s a traditional Kyoto-themed restaurant and belongs to the same group that operates Christon.

We enjoyed fruit shochu and artfully-presented modern versions of Kyoto cuisine — such as a veggie dish that we cooked in a basket, right at the table. Poor Buddha got some torture action: Mistress Maya put her fingers up his nose and Count de Sang gave his nip a twist!

The restaurant looked like old Kyoto, with paper-sliding doors, a traditional Japanese bridge, greenery and moody lighting. It may not be the wildest, weirdest theme restaurant in Japan, but it was well worth a visit. (For photos and stories of maid cafes and over 30 wacky theme restaurants, check out my new book.)

For us, this is a casual Goth look. Do you usually wear black or alternative clothes, even to dinners with friends?

LA is insane insane insane… tomorrow is my last day here. Wait until you see the photos and videos!!

You’re all winners when it comes to creativity — it was a delight to read about your dream theme cafes in the comments of this post. But Mark Batty Publisher and I can only send out five autographed Theme Restaurants books, so here are the lucky ladies chosen via a random number generator. (I will email you with further instructions.)

1. Samina Spookiness: I’d so run a romantic gypsy-themed restaurant. Lots of candles, violin music, wooden walls with lots of scarves and fabric hangings. The servers would be dressed as Gypsies, and there would be live musicians on a stage playing folk songs, with a fortune teller booth in back. Lots of reds and golds, with bits of green thrown in, and hearty food and drink like thick stews, roasted meats, ales and wines served to tables with long and heavy tablecloths.

2. Brie Cante: My restaurant would be like a freaky circus type of place with lots of themed performers (Cirque Du Soleil daily) and there would even be rides (nothing super fast or upside down because afterall, it is a restaurant) and super cute packaging on the burgers and fries etc… Also, each table would have built in gaming systems and the floors would be clear so there would be a fish pond underneath and make you feel like you were walking on water. I forgot to add that the food would be the fun foods that you only find at a carnival such as: funnel cakes and hotdog on a stick, lemonade etc…

3. Marie: Hmm… I would have a to make a Harry Potter theme restaurant! I’m such a huge fan! When people would arrive, they would be given a property of one of the characters from Harry Potter. The café could look like The Great Hall, where the kids at Hogwarts eat. That would be totally awesome. The food they would serve will be Harry Potter inspired, and of course Pumpkinjuice and Berty Butt’s Every Flavour Beans would be awailable! Plus magical chocklatefrogs. The waitresses and waiters would have Hogwarts uniforms on them, and people would be seated after houses.

4. Laura: Oh my. I think mine’s theme would be “ethereal dreamland”. It would be all be very soft, with damasc wallpaper, and tulle curtains, and the waiters would be suspended in wire (like that restaurant that has the tower of wines, where the waiters get suspended by wire to get the bottles for the customers) but aaaalll over the place, and they would have to wear long tunics to enhance the “ethereal” element. and there would be just a tiny ammount of smoke (produced by smoke machines, or dry ice) to give a foggy illussion. About the food? Well, it would be more of a cafe, with cotton candy and sweets and tea for everyone!

5. Malone: Can I have a Basil Theme Cafe? The waitresses have to wear folded cat ears. People sit on comfy couches with Basil pillows! Complete with a fuzzy tummy to snorgle! They eat pastries shaped like Basil and the coffee mugs have whiskers. And the cappucinos can be dressed up so the foam looks like basil peeking out of the mug! And on the walls you get pictures of famous people with Basil’s face superimposed! Foremost among them has to be Basil as Buddha.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to enter the contest and spread the word; I’ll have more giveaways for you soon. I’m also blown away by your kind words about my NBC Weekend Today Show cute food demo — you’re all so good to me!

I am gnawing my teeth in anticipation for my Los Angeles book signings and events. Already planned: M/R/X New Romantic club night on Nov 28 (I went to the Minimal party last December and loved it), the Pinky Violence Japanese B-movie poster exhibit at Hyaena Gallery (where my Dienzo vampire portrait hung), possibly jazz at Matsumoto’s and a burlesque show at Bordello… and lots of good food and friends. What else should I check out while in LA? Let me know in the comments!

La Carmina – LA Cute Yummy Time book signings
WHEN: Saturday, Nov 28 and and Sunday, Nov 29; 2-4pm
WHERE: Kinokuniya Bookstore, 123 Astronaut S Onizuka #205, Los Angeles CA

This year’s Halloween was a bloodfest and I’m not ready to put away the fangs. So Mark Batty Publisher and I are giving away FIVE copies of my new book, Crazy Wacky Theme Restaurants: Tokyo! Did I mention they’re autographed by yours truly (author La Carmina)?

It’s easy to enter and win Crazy Wacky Theme Restaurants, a jaw-dropping tour of Tokyo’s weirdest dining establishments. La Carmina’s photos and stories take you inside a haunted jail and Dracula’s lair… Waitresses dressed as maids slap you when you lose a food version of Russian roulette that concludes with a mouthful of wasabi; a drunken Buddhist monk imparts wisdom; boy-toys dote on female customers; ninjas deliver menus and throw food.

I often ask my friends: “If you had to open your own theme restaurant, what would it be?” Yukiro’s dream is to be mistress of a cyber café. Imagine the space-age outfits and neon makeup.

As for me: I’d like to open a restaurant where every table is filled with cute young Goth boys!

How about you? Let me know what type of theme restaurant you’d open, and you can win 1 of 5 copies of my Theme Restaurants book!

† HOW TO ENTER (contest open internationally. Up to FOUR entries per person.)

† ONE POINT: Visit the Crazy, Wacky Theme Restaurants page for inspiration. Then comment here, with your response to my question: “If you had to open your own theme restaurant, what would it be?”

† THREE POINTS: Write a blog post/Tweet/Facebook message/forum entry that spreads the word about my new book. If you’re blogging, please include “Crazy, Wacky Theme Restaurants: Tokyo by La Carmina” in the post title and link to my book page: http://www.lacarmina.com/tokyorestaurants.php You are free to use any of my book’s photos here in your post. Then comment here with a link to where you posted the blog entry. If your comment doesn’t show up, don’t worry – I’ll check my Spam regularly and approve your entries.

Happy Halloween Hangover, darklings!

We’ve reached the final location of the Bizarre World episode I co-hosted for Travel & Discovery Channel. The Tokyo spooks met us at Edelstein in Harajuku — a cafe where the waiters cosplay as awkward teenage schoolboys! (I wrote about this boarding school fantasy in my Crazy, Wacky Theme Restaurants: Tokyo book.)

As you’d expect, we all dressed up to match the school theme. Professor Fearstone (far right) applauds: “Well done, class. I am proud to say we beat the Saitama Grammar for backward children. You’re English is coming on in Beaps and Lounds!”

Host Andrew Zimmern drank rose tea and ate dainty cakes with this motley crew. He interviewed each of us about our fashion and lifestyle — and sincerely listened to what we had to say. A great guy. Perhaps I’ll meet up with Andrew again in December, as we’ll both be in Hong Kong.

Even if they’re fake, Carmina loves being surrounded by pretty young androgynes, yes she does…

It’s risky to be a Japanese schoolgirl. Yukiro almost got felt up in the subway while wearing this outfit. Then, Comte de Sang lifted his skirt as we went up the stairs… tsk.

Fantastic news: Crazy, Wacky Theme Restaurants will be distributed by Random House, starting in January! The book is available online now, but if you’re having difficulty getting it, the problem will soon be solved. (Also check back soon for a signed book giveaway.)

I’m on Day 3 of 5 of Halloween and couldn’t be happier. Please add me on Twitter to keep track of my dark thoughts, and I’ll try to add everyone back. Hope to see you at my NYC book signing on Oct 31 (info at the end of this post)!

PS: Wrote a CNNGo article about top 10 Asian new wave horror extreme movies! Do you agree with my picks? What’s your fav?

Possibly the best. Photo. Ever. A bloody vampire, Cheshire Cat and fetish flower girl with Travel Channel TV host Andrew Zimmern, sucking on the brains of a decapitated mannequin. Andrew joked that this is one photo that doesn’t require red eye reduction!

We crammed into a pink jail cell and the crew filmed us chowing down on insane-jail-monster themed foods, such as landmine pizza and Russian Roulette takoyaki. The cocktails were literally cock-tails: one had a floating penis in it, another had to be mixed with a vibrator. You’ll have to wait until the show airs to hear Andrew’s reaction and our “sumimasen” opera singing!

Those who have seen my Crazy Wacky Theme Restaurants book know that customers eat in jail cells and are spooked by monsters…

…and handcuffed by nurses in skimpy outfits! (Check out more photos from the book here.)

Off to Philadelphia!!! Tomorrow, I will be on the Chef’s Table radio show, 3:30-4pm. I hope you can come to my Philly book signing on Saturday, October 17! It’s from 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM at Fante’s Kitchen Wares, 1006 South 9th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147 — tell your friends!

How bizarre is Andrew Zimmern’s world? He travels around the globe, scarfing strange foods and diving bald-head-first into subcultures. And he gets to share his experiences with Travel and Discovery Channel’s many viewers. Posing with a terrorist and a rose nymph: all in a day’s work.

Alcatraz ER is one of the most outrageous theme restaurants in existence (and it’s the first one featured in my Crazy Wacky book.) Andrew knew that my friends would be joining us for dinner — but I don’t think he expected everyone to be dressed like this!

Nyan nyan! Le Comte de Sang is wearing an Alice Auaa leather corset, spider garters and vampiric red contacts. Yukiro is wearing a Cheshire Cat furry jumpsuit and (possibly? hopefully?) nothing underneath.

I didn’t expect to be in Tokyo again so soon (this is my third of possibly four forays into the Land of the Rising Sun in 2009 alone). What a pleasure to see old friends and have everyone be involved in the Bizarre World TV shoot.

Mistress Maya of Midnight Mess infamy tips her hat to the LAPD. She seems a little too eager to get bitten!

What type of theme restaurant is Alcatraz ER exactly? Tomorrow, come into our jail cell and witness the bloody feast…

Song of the Day #217: Meth – a drug or a new Visual Kei release being pushed by HearJapan?