Japan Eats

On this week’s episode of Japan Eats, Akiko is joined in the studio by Todd Bellomy, brewer and co-founder of Dovetail Sake, Massachusetts’ first sake brewery. Prior to opening Dovetail, Bellomy worked in the American craft beer industry, as a chef, and even as a sword-making apprentice in the Saitama Prefecture of Japan. Tune in to hear all about his life as a sake brewer. “Our philosophy is, we want people to drink it because it’s delicious, and not because it’s sake…we look to traditional Japanese brewing, but we’re not limited by that.” [18:00] – Todd Bellomy  

On this week’s episode of Japan Eats, Akiko is joined in the studio by Yuji Haraguchi, owner of the restaurants Okonomi and YUJI Ramen. By day, Okonomi serves traditional Japanese ichiju-sansai set meals for breakfast and lunch. In the evenings, Okonomi becomes YUJI Ramen, and offers an à la carte menu of seafood-rich ramen and mazemen. Haraguchi is currently working to open Osakana, a Japanese-style fish market dedicated to providing high-quality, local, and seasonal seafood to Brooklyn and beyond. Osakana will also offer cooking demonstrations and classes – for both beginners and experts – to share knowledge on how to appreciate local seafood. “Eat fish, live longer.” [12:20] – Yuji Haraguchi  

On this week’s episode of Japan Eats, host Akiko Katayama welcomes guest Rona Tison, the senior vice president of corporate relations at ITO EN, to discuss making green tea a true part of American culture. Tison has extensive experience in the tea industry and has received Green Tea Certification from ITO EN. Prior to joining ITO EN, Tison worked extensively in the hotel and service industry where she served as director of operations at the W Hotels The Court and The Tuscany, executive vice president at the lifestyle store Felissimo and rooms divisional manager at Le Parker Meridian, all in New York. “Part of the beauty about tea is also sharing with friends. You can enjoy it in solitude, a moment to relax and have a cup of tea, or you can entertain and share great conversations. All those activities are great, I think, in terms of overall health.” [23:00] *** Listeners, if you are interested in learning tea ceremony (which helps you to be calm and focused like meditation!) in New York City, check this out

On today’s episode of Japan Eats, host Akiko Katayama welcomes guest Gaku Shibata, owner of the restaurants Azasu and Yoppari in New York’s Lower East Side. They discuss Japanese gastropubs (izakaya), cup sake, and feeding sumo wrestlers.  

After discovering premium sake for the first time in 2005, today’s guest Tim Sullivan went on to found UrbanSake.com, which is now America’s longest-running sake website. Just two years later, he was awarded the title of “Sake Samurai” by the Japan Sake Brewer’s Association in recognition of his work promoting sake outside of Japan. Sullivan is now an instructor for the Sake School of America, and works as the International Brand Ambassador for the Hakkaisan Sake Brewery to spread sake culture both at home and around the world. “My quality of life has gone up so much because I’m able to work in the sake industry, something I love.” [12:45] – Tim Sullivan

Chef Michael Anthony, Executive Chef of Gramercy Tavern and Untitled of the Union Square Hospitality Group talks with Japan Eats host Akiko Katayama about living in Tokyo right after graduating from college. The move changed the course of his life and career. Tune in to hear how Michael’s experience in Japan stayed with him even as he moved to France and back to the U.S.    > #### “That was one of those moments that those decisions determined the course that my life would take.” [20:30] “In the kitchen you have to appeal to ppl on a personal level if you want to share ideas and work together as a team.” [24:30] –Chef Michael Anthony on Japan Eats

Over his 25­‐year career, Chef Takashi Yagihashi has been lauded by consumers and critics alike for his exquisite ways of melding contemporary French, Asian, and American cuisine, and today he is in studio with Akiko Katayama for a brand new episode of Japan Eats. A native of Mito, Japan, the self-taught Yagihashi was working in a local restaurant when the owner asked him to relocate to the States and work for him there; over the next several years, the young chef worked his way up the culinary ladder throughout Chicago where he has most recently helmed the Slurping Turtle restaurant and appeared on Bravo’s Top Chef Masters.  Tune in for more on this inspiring chef! Takashi  

John’s interest in cooking began with his curiosity in his grandmother’s expansive garden, learning early about the importance of seasonality, flavor and balance. At age 14, John moved to South Korea for three years where he not only became fluent in Korean, but truly embraced Asian flavors, language and spirits. After nearly two decades running a successful law practice and firm in Manhattan, John decided to pursue his real passion-a new culinary career at the French Culinary Institute (FCI) in New York where he graduated first in his class. It was at FCI that John met Dave Arnold, a well-respected renegade of modernist cuisine. Dave encouraged John to stage at Chef Wylie Dufresne’s wd-50. After staging for several years, he and was offered the new position as part of Research and Development at wd-50 before leaving in October, 2011 to truly take his skills and craft to a new frontier. In 2010, John and Dianna (his wife) purchased a home in Columbia County, New York, in the heart of the Hudson Valley and bou

Tune in to Japan Eats as host Akiko Katayama is in studio with Chef Marco Moreira. Brazilian-born chef Marco Moreira arrived in New York City in 1982 eager to explore the city and immerse himself in an exciting, multi-ethnic culinary scene.  Through an inspired twist of fate, he ended up training as a sushi chef at the very beginning of the sushi craze.  From the start, he proved his skill in this highly technical profession and quickly earned acclaim as one of the most talented sushi chefs in New York City.  In 1986, he launched Marco Polo Sushi Catering, and soon afterwards he was hired to implement the sushi program at Dean & Deluca. With the skills and experience in the Manhattan restaurant scene, Marco devoted himself to turning Marco Polo Sushi Caterers into a full-service company (renamed Marco Polo Caterers) that catered to select clients in New York City and throughout the tri-state area.  At the same time Marco pursued other positions at Bouley, the Quilted Giraffe, and as chef de cuisine at The

Japan Eats is brand new this week with host Akiko Katayama in studio with food critic and author, Robert Sietsema.  Presently editor for Eater, Robert shares how he transitioned from the rock and roll scene to food writing and adds his unique view of Japanese restaurants in New York City. Initially focusing on the best ethnic eats in the city, Robert dissects what the term means to him and how he finds some of the best unknown restaurants.  Akiko highlights some of Robert’s past articles and talks the evolution of Japanese food and community throughout the big apple plus his favorite places to eat! “The popularity of sushi here has proceeded in such a way that you can spend as much as three to five-hundred dollars!” [32:15] –Robert Sietsema on Japan Eats  

Japan Eats returns for 2016 with none other than the man who wrote the book on science and cooking, Harold McGee. His career defining book, On Food & Cooking, has been referenced as a cooking bible for a generation of forward thinking chefs and culinary professionals. Discover how Harold was inspired to make a career of researching and writing about what happens when we cook, prepare and consume food, not to mention Japanese food! Harold is largely responsible for the molecular gastronomy/modernist cuisine movement and is cited as a major influence from the likes of Heston Blumenthal, Alton Brown and Dave Arnold. Harold’s passion for gastronomic knowledge has changed the way we eat food in this country, and his journey is as inspiring as his work, so tune in for a great show!

Known as “The Sake Guy,” and “The Sake Evangelist,” John Gauntner is recognized as the world’s leading non-Japanese sake expert and this week he joins in studio for the season wrap-up of Japan Eats.  He chats with host Akiko Katayama about his residency in Japan since 1988, he (necessarily) both speaks and reads Japanese fluently, and is well known in the sake industry as the window to making sake understandable and popular outside of Japan.  Tune in for a chat on all things sake and more!

Wylie Dufresne is in studio with Akiko this week for an intriguing episode of Japan Eats!  Hinting at his new project opening in the new year, Wylie explains how he found himself in the restaurant industry and why working in the industry is likened to playing a team sport.  What does Wylie think about being considered a predominant figure in the modernist/molecular gastronomy food realm? What’s his brainstorming process like?  Tune in for a great discussion on finding inspiration from all around, his Japanese influences (like dashi), plus the duo dissect some of Wylie’s notable dishes. > #### “Often times we will try to take things people are familiar with and play with it, have fun with it.” [14:30] –Wylie Dufresne on Japan Eats

“Kampai!” or “Cheers!” This week on Japan Eats host Akiko Katayama welcomes Stephen Lyman to the studio talking all about the Japanese alcoholic beverage shochu.  Founder and editor of Kampai!, Stephen explains his devotion to shochu, of which he is an expert and shares his travels to Kyushu (where 90%+ of authentic shochu is made) where he visited 6 distilleries and tried 262 different shochu (there are an estimated 6,000 labels from 600 distilleries in Japan) in just 5 days.  Stephen went on to neighboring Okinawa where he visited 5 more Awamori distilleries. Upon his return from Japan he realized he had just scratched the surface of understanding shochu, but by this point his obsession had turned into a passion.  After the break, Akiko and Stephen taste select shochu in studio and discuss traits to look for in the unique beverage. “Virtually all shochu is aged 3 to 6 months.” [28:30] “If I’m just out drinking with friends, the easiest way to drink it is on the rocks… In the summertime I really like shoch

Have you ever heard of natto? Otherwise known as a traditional Japanese food made from soybeans fermented with Bacillus subtilis, natto is known for its powerful smell, strong flavor, and slimy texture typically eaten with a bowl of rice, and today it’s the topic of discussion on _ Japan Eats _.  Host Akiko Katayama welcomes Ann Yonetani, founder of NYrture Food to the studio talking about her pioneering efforts to bring the probiotic, nutrient-dense, gluten-free, and strangely addictive food to the masses.  Between the history of the breakfast/snack food and the science behind working with bacteria plus production techniques, Ann shares the multiple health benefits of the superfood and more! “If there’s any one food that I feel is a superfood, it’s natto!” [26:00] “You can basically do anything with it that you could with a flavorful cheese.” [41:30] –Ann Yonetani on Japan Eats

How does one go from a food writer to a restaurant owner? Find out on a brand new episode of Japan Eats. Akiko Katayama is joined by Harris Salat, Ganso’s Managing Partner, journalist and restaurateur. A Brooklyn native, Harris is the author of numerous articles about Japanese cuisine, and has trained in Japanese restaurant kitchens in New York, Tokyo and Kyoto. He and Tadashi Ono are the co-authors of three popular Japanese cookbooks, “Japanese Hot Pots,” “The Japanese Grill,” and “Japanese Soul Cooking.” “To do good ramen is quite difficult. we work hard everyday, still, to do good ramen. our product is amazing right now, but it was a real effort [to get there].” [29:00]    

This week on  Japan Eats , host Akiko Katayama is in studio with Sebastian Beckwith, owner at In the Pursuit of Tea. In Pursuit of Tea is a company with the mission to explore remote, traditional areas of tea production and find the finest teas available. In this episode, Sebastian talks about his experience working with and distributing tea to restaurants, the history of tea and the fascinating process of how different teas are made, how to differentiate different varieties and where they come from. “You can have many steeps of tea from the same leaf [loose leaf] and get different flavors coming from each steep.”  [15:45] “People think of matcha as just powdered green tea,[…] it certainly is not.” [32:45] The Sencha, we thought always paired well with dark chocolate… [41:00] –Sebastian Beckwith on Japan Eats  

This week on _ Japan Eats _, host Akiko Katayama is in studio with author, cook, and farmer, Nancy Singleton Hachisu.  Leaving California for Japan in the late 1980’s, fully intending to learn Japanese in one year and return to the States for graduate school, Nancy shares how she instead fell in love with a Japanese organic farmer.  Now living with her husband and three sons in their eighty-five-year-old traditional farmhouse, Nancy has taught home cooking to Japanese housewives for over two decades and is the leader of a local Slow Food convivium.  Her newest book, “Preserving the Japanese Way: Traditions of Salting, Fermenting, and Pickling for the Modern Kitchen,” introduces Japanese methods of salting, pickling, and fermenting that are approachable and easy to integrate into a Western cooking repertoire. Tune in for a thorough discussion on Japanese farm life and what is next For Nancy!  

Born and raised in New York, though has called Japan home for more than four decades, writer and Japanese Food Culture Specialist Elizabeth Andoh joins host Akiko Katayama for another informative episode of Japan Eats.  Explaining that her formal culinary training was taken at the Yanagihara School of Traditional Japanese Cuisine, in Tokyo, it was in 1972 that she began her own culinary arts program, A Taste of Culture. Combining spicy tidbits of food lore with practical tips and skill-building lessons on how to prepare Japanese food, Elizabeth’s programs are conducted in Tokyo and offer a unique opportunity for foreign residents and visitors from overseas to explore and enjoy Japan’s culture through its food.  Tune in to hear more about Elizabeth’s fascinating path through the Japanese culinary world. “I often say what got me in to food was a bad bowl of noodles!” [9:00] “If you have a balanced meal – sweet, sour, salty – it’s likely you will avoid food cravings.” [17:30] “Long before Iron Chef there was t

Chef Michael Romano is in studio for Japan Eats this week with host Akiko Katayama.  Talking his impressive background beginning at the iconic Serendipity in New York in 1971, it was upon impressing a young Danny Meyer that propelled Michael to eventually joining staff at the Union Square Cafe while it earned numerous accolades from The New York Times and Zagat.  Today Michael can be found, wearing the hats of both Chef and explorer, at Union Square Tokyo, the Japanese outpost of the New York restaurant. He shares details behind marrying the American restaurant to the Japanese culture plus more on this in-depth chat! “Tokyo is not New York, you have to respect the way people eat.” [15:00] –Chef Michael Romano