# #228 ET-PIG - Show: はちくちダブルヒガシ - Published: 2026-09-20 - Canonical: https://podc.club/en/episode/1603390424_4636e2b8566f.html - Audio: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/RKL9529928397.mp3 - Source: Edited from a machine transcript of the first 30 minutes of the episode. Not an official summary. The hosts trade complaints about neighborhood restaurants — an eel shop, a yakitori joint, and an izakaya — that spiral into stories about a staffer picking earwax, mosquitoes flying in through a propped-open door, and the mystery of a shrine's drum-and-flute sounds. In the second half, Shimura-san and the others judge three tofu dishes Higashi prepared for the second round of their diet project, rating each one with a circle or a cross. ## What this episode answers ### What did the host witness at the neighborhood eel restaurant? The host saw the older man grilling eel pick something out of his ear and drop it on the floor just as they were about to leave. ### Why were smoke and mosquitoes a problem at the yakitori shop? The shop's duct wasn't working, so smoke from the skewer grill filled the room, and the propped-open front door (kept open due to the heat) let mosquitoes in to bite the host. ### Why did the izakaya staffer become a topic of conversation? One of the older staffers didn't just hum along to "Marigold" playing over the speakers but sang the entire song from start to finish. ### What turned out to be the source of the drum and flute sounds coming from the shrine? The sounds actually came from a speaker mounted on a utility pole playing a recording on loop to announce an upcoming festival, not from live practice. ### What were the three tofu dishes Higashi prepared, and how were they rated? The three dishes were a fluffy tofu-egg-imitation crab stir-fry in Chinese-style seasoning, a mentaiko and shio kombu mix with mayonnaise, and tofu teriyaki topped with mayonnaise; all three received a circle (positive rating) from every judge. ## Article ## Ear Wax Incident at the Neighborhood Eel Restaurant Recording took place on September 20. The episode opens with complaints about the shops near the host's home. At a nearby eel restaurant, they splurged on a slightly nicer unaju (grilled eel over rice) set, and the food itself was good. But just as they were about to leave, they saw the older man grilling eel in the kitchen pick something out of his ear and drop it on the floor — a sight shocking enough to make the host half-joke about wanting to move house ("hikkoso kana," a play on hikkosu, "to move," and mimikuso, "earwax"). ## Smoke and Mosquitoes at the Yakitori Shop The next stop was a neighborhood yakitori shop, a counter-only place with a nice atmosphere. But the duct in the middle of the shop wasn't working, so smoke from the kagoyaki (skewer) grill billowed through the room. Because of the heat, the shop had propped the front door open, and mosquitoes came in through it and bit the host. That led to a side discussion about how getting bitten by mosquitoes indoors has become rarer in the city lately. ## The Izakaya Staffer Who Sang His Heart Out At an ordinary izakaya visited on a different day, Mukku's (Mugiwara's) song "Marigold" was playing over the speakers, and one of the older staffers didn't just hum along to a line — he sang the entire song, start to finish. The host called it strange, but said the izakaya's overall atmosphere was still good. ## The Truth Behind the Shrine Speaker Near the host's home, a shrine had been giving off what sounded like drum and flute practice all day, every day, throughout the summer. Assuming it was diligent rehearsal, the host had been closing the windows and running the air conditioner to bear with it. But stepping outside revealed the sound was actually coming from a speaker mounted on a utility pole. It wasn't practice at all — it was a recording played on a loop to announce that a festival was approaching. The story wrapped up as a simple case of mistaken assumption. ## Higashi's Tofu Dish Challenge, Round Two The second half of the episode turned to the diet project segment, in which Higashi prepares dishes for the others to try. Following the first round's chicken breast, this time the theme was tofu. Higashi brought three dishes: a fluffy egg dish stir-fried with tofu, egg, and imitation crab in a Chinese-style seasoning; a dish that simply mixed mentaiko (spicy cod roe) and shio kombu (salted kelp) with mayonnaise; and tofu teriyaki topped with mayonnaise. Kansai-san was absent that day, so the tasting was done with three people, and judges including Shimura-san rated each dish with a circle or cross card. All three dishes received a circle from every judge. The diet project runs through the end of September, with the next month's ingredient theme to be announced in early October. ## Takeaways - A string of neighborhood dining stories at an eel restaurant, yakitori shop, and izakaya included complaints about witnessing earwax removal and getting bitten by mosquitoes indoors. - The drum and flute sounds coming from the shrine turned out not to be practice but a speaker recording announcing an upcoming festival. - For the second round of the diet project, all three of Higashi's tofu dishes received a passing "circle" rating from every judge.