We walked into what seemed like a quiet, unassuming restaurant. The long and narrow passageway was lined with tatami rooms on either side, and they were full of guests. We were at Heikechaya in Shimonoseki, near Fukuoka in Japan. The restaurant is known for serving the famous Japanese delicacy known as fugu, or blowfish/pufferfish. What is special about fugu is that it is poisonous. Its organs contain tetrodotoxin, a lethal poison that is said to be even more deadly than cyanide.

Was I nervous to try it?