Search - cuisine

 
 
Japan Times
CULTURE / CULTURE SMASH
Apr 16, 2016

Anime biz sings the praises of shows

The first time I attended AnimeJapan, the industry's annual spring showcase in Odaiba, Tokyo, it was called the Tokyo International Anime Fair. Members of the public couldn't enter during the first two days, amateur cosplay (costume play) was prohibited, and while there were some presentations, most...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / JAPANESE KITCHEN
Apr 15, 2016

Hot in the shade of Japan's tiny pepper-tree leaves

In traditional Japanese cuisine, spiciness and zing are provided through yakumi garnishes — fragrant herbs, spices and vegetables added to a dish after it's plated. Not only do yakumi enhance the flavors and visual appeal of a dish, they're also believed to have health benefits such as aiding digestion...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Apr 15, 2016

Bullicio: Valencia wine bar puts a Spanish fire in the city’s heart

Anyone who has visited Spain knows it offers some of the best eating in Europe. But its food has never been embraced in Japan in the same way as French and Italian cuisine. So it's always good to see a new Spanish restaurant arriving in Tokyo — especially when it's as capable as Bullicio.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Apr 8, 2016

Tokyo bartender revives a 19th-century cocktail ingredient

The unsung hero of traditional Japanese cuisine is mirin, a deliciously sweet liquor made from sticky rice. Mirin is an essential cooking ingredient, used to balance the salty sharpness of soy sauce and to add luster to glazes. But prior to becoming a common fixture in the kitchen, the sugary beverage...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Apr 1, 2016

Chef Zaiyu Hasegawa presents creative takes on dishes that a mother would be proud of

Zaiyu Hasegawa pauses for a moment when I comment on the diversity of the clientele at Den, his restaurant in Tokyo's Jinbocho neighborhood.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Mar 26, 2016

Andrea Pompilio: 'Keep wearing fashion the way you want to'

Name: Andrea PompilioAge: 42
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Mar 25, 2016

Tokyo hotels turn pink for 'hanami' season

The cherry trees are beginning to bloom across Japan, and it is time to prepare for hanami (cherry-blossom viewing), which has been an annual custom since the Heian Period (794-1185).
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / THE UNRELIABLE FOOD CRITIC
Mar 18, 2016

Osaka's crazed, cheap and cheerful supermarket chain

This is a column about cheap food, and it doesn't come much cheaper than Osaka's Super Tamade supermarket chain. When I first arrived in the city I lived almost exclusively on precooked nikku jagga, a shrink-wrapped beef, carrot and potato bowl retailing at around ¥100. Haute cuisine it isn't, but it...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Mar 4, 2016

Sushi Tokami: Rare fish and red rice in a legendary basement

The road to becoming a top sushi chef is notoriously long and winding. Just ask Hiroyuki Sato. His discreet little 10-seater restaurant, Sushi Tokami, is only three years old and Sato already ranks among the best sushi chefs in the city. But he had to take a circuitous route to get there.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Feb 26, 2016

Don Tacos' new quesadilla chips try to satisfy Mexican food cravings

Finding fantastic Mexican food in Tokyo isn't easy — the hunt to find authentic cuisine seems to consume many non-Japanese living here.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 23, 2016

Tokyo sightseeing boats offer unique views, but missing foreign tourist tide

A trip to Tokyo does not necessarily mean elbowing your way through crowds. You can get fine views of the capital from a boat on the bay.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Feb 19, 2016

Ranjatai: Inventive yakitori in the backstreets of Jinbocho

Chicken and charcoal are a classic combination: Morsels of meat carefully skewered and cooked over glowing coals until they're tender, juicy and golden brown. Good yakitori is always a pleasure. At its very best it's worth crossing the city for. And Ranjatai's certainly belongs in that category.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Feb 9, 2016

Ten perfect Valentine's Days in 10 global cities

Early stroll: The Limmat River in Zurich, A beautiful place for a morning walk before your big date. Enjoy a panoramic view of the city from the observation tower on Uetliberg Mountain. | BLOOMBERG
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Feb 1, 2016

Let's discuss Japanese food sold overseas

The government plans to adopt a certification system for chefs of Japanese cuisine, in a bid to guarantee quality at establishments serving fare overseas.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 26, 2016

The fate of a dolphin activist in Japan's flawed democracy

Japan can change its image as the democracy where dissent is in detention by holding a debate with dolphin hunt opponent Ric O'Barry before expelling him.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / THE UNRELIABLE FOOD CRITIC
Jan 22, 2016

Downtown Osaka's faded replica of Korea's kaleidoscopic markets

There's something suspicious about the way Japan and Korea differ so much in the taste and presentation of their foods, as if a kind of sibling rivalry were going on, some struggle for distinction and specialization.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Jan 22, 2016

Bao: Mongolian comfort food at a cheerful little hole-in-the-wall

Comfort food comes in many forms — as many as there are countries and cultures. In the case of Mongolia, it is likely to look a lot like mutton cooked in a steaming hot pot together with boiled potatoes, cabbage, tofu, shiitake mushrooms and black cloud-ear fungus. That is the kind of hearty sustenance...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KYOTO RESTAURANTS
Jan 15, 2016

Rikichi: Bowling and the art of traditional Japanese kaiseki

In 2000, Harvard political scientist Robert D. Putnam wrote "Bowling Alone," a book about the decline of community and rise of individualism in the U.S. I thought about the title of that book over lunch at Rikichi — indeed there was plenty of room for thinking. Not only was I the only diner, but chef...
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 13, 2016

Abe's global contradictions

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe talks big about Japan playing a greater role on the global stage, but the reality has been disappointing.
COMMUNITY / Voices / OVERHEARD
Jan 9, 2016

Bavarian slip

This white sausage is our local cuisine.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 1, 2016

Setsuko Hara and the changing face of Japanese womanhood

At the risk of sounding unpatriotic, Yasujiro Ozu's "Tokyo Story" remains on my list of least favorite movies. I'm in good company — every woman I know dislikes it, and the passing of the film's star, Setsuko Hara (at 95 years old), in September was observed by the media with understated obituaries....

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight