Sounds like Tsukiji market won't relocate until 2018 or so. But for most of us, the highlight of Tsukiji Market is the small restaurants and grocery stores outside the main market. On hidden alleys, so many tiny dining spots run their business. With my friend from Emerson College, I went to Kurokawa, a tempura restaurant with 15 seats. We tried their famous Kaki-age Don. Don means a dish served over steamed rice in a bowl. Kaki-age is a type of tempura with diced seafood or veggie. Their Kaki-age had big chunks of fresh, sweet scallop and shrimp. The koromo (tempura batter) is so light and crispy, even after dipped in the original tampura sauce. Most of these small spots are cash-only, but the environment alone is worth the try.
After the big tempura lunch, my friend took me to a hidden tea cafe. You can have a tea and a Japanese sweet for 300 - 600 yen (3 - 6 bucks). They bring you a pot of hot tea for refills.
My last business trip to Japan. As always, I visited my favorite sushi place, Hide. We always toast with a beautiful plate of sashimi. He know how to pick the best seafood and decorate in a minimal yet excellent presentation.
An-kimo (angler fish liver) is usually prepared steamed or boiled and served in ponzu (citrus vinegar). 
Plump, sweet scallop grilled and wrapped in nori seaweed.
Winter is oyster. Oyster is my love! Japanese oyster has richer flavor and bigger in size compared to Western ones. Fresh oyster in Hide's original ponzu. I can get a bowl of this. Easily.
A new Mexican street food join opened up around the corner from my apartment. It's a very small, casually decorated spot. They don't deliver and BYOB for now, but the menu looked pretty interesting. I tried cactus salad. As I love seaweed, a bit slimy cactus was enjoyable. But maybe not for many people. It's simply seasoned with cheese and salt.
Enchilada is very unique here. Instead of red rich sauce, they use salsa verde with lots of cheese. 
Tacos here are $3, which is a bit pricey for this single-tortilla tiny tacos. But they are good. I personally have no eye for Rajas...
This popular street food was my favorite. Tiny tortilla looking thing has cheese, chorizo, lettuce inside. Very good snack!
Once in a while, a school of pigeons fly in circle over the buildings in my neighborhood. A couple of the neighborhood buildings seem to have a bird man, who feed and fly the birds. Not sure exactly but he maybe the one.
If you don't care so much about cart-style dim sum, Dim Sum Go Go on the lower Chinatown is a highly recommended spot. It's much cleaner than most Chinese restaurants, with two floors which serve even a long line to customers relatively quickly. 
I personally don't eat the steamed rice thingy often, but this one with scallion and cilantro became one of my new favorites. As they steam most dishes on order, it's not too greasy and taste fresh out of the steamer.
They specialize in dumplings and other steamed dim sum dishes. Everything we picked was good and is not slimy as you sometimes get from a cart.
A side of steamed Chinese broccoli is always a good compliment to meat/sea food centric dim sum. Some places over steam but here they keep the crunch perfectly!
A sneak shot from the next table. These people now how to enjoy dim sum!
Ippudo is a franchise ramen joint from Japan. They specialize in thick, rich tonkotsu (pork flavor) with smooth, straight noodle. I've already been twice and I do think it's as good as you get in Japan. However, the price is much higher and the ambience is totally different. It's more like a bar lounge and the menu has only a few ramen options but many appetizers. I guess western people don't buy the idea of slurping a bowl of noodle in a short time. To my fellow western friends, I sincerely ask that you set aside your appetizers and focus on the ramen when it's served.
I've been to most of Mario Batali's restaurants and all have been a great dining experience. For my friend's birthday, I went to Casa Mono near Union Square, about which I have been hearing great reviews. 
The least two favorites were the quail with fig salad and pumpkin goat cheese croquette. While the fig salad was really tasty, they salted the quail too much. Pumpkin was too sweet to my taste (I am used to and fond of Japanese kabocha pumpkin which is less sweet and more fluffy). 
This picture is from 2 years ago when I visited my friends in Pasadena. They have 3 German Shepherds. The biggest one is the baby. He sits on the lap every time people try to sit on the flower. They come wake me up in the morning. Oh, I miss them!
Some people can't take it. I love it. The lilly at the market caught me with its intense, elegant smell. After a week, the two bunches are still doing well, all flowers bloomed.
I just took a mini trip to Chicago. Stuck in the glamorous ballroom in Marriott hotel all day for this academic exhibition, I almost missed to experience Chicago. I sneaked out from the conference and gave myself one hour to do something touristy. The closest thing was the Museum of Contemporary Art, where Jeff Koons was featured. 
There is a debate over him being called an artist since he creates his artwork without actually producing them but by having other people to make them into a form. Well, maybe a half artist. But I don’t think people are recognizing the excellence or beauty of the production process. How nicely Michael Jackson is molded or painted in gold has so little to do with the piece’s artistic value. I think. 
Perhaps, Murakami, who recently captured attention from media and industries, also holds the fame as an artist and a pop culture visionary.
Here's a tip to keep cut flower fresh from the flower vender at the Union Square farmer's market: