Japan Eats

Our guests today is Peter Hottum (AKA Sakeman Green) of Kuramoto US, which represents wonderful boutique sake labels in the US. Peter recently spent 6 weeks in Japan to study sake-making at 8 breweries in total. We discuss his intriguing experience at each brewery, along with an academic program he took in Tokyo, how he got on multiple media in Japan, and much, much more!!! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Massud Ghaussy who has a Japanese food and restaurant blog on instagram under TokyoManhattan. His posts not only describe restaurants he has visited, but also include many other elements behind the dishes, such as history, culture, cooking methods. He appeared on Episode 125 and 136, and shared his favorite Japanese chefs and restaurants in Paris, NY and in Tokyo as well as sushi restaurants in NY and Tokyo. In this episode, we focus on RAMEN!!!  Here is the list of the ramen shops that Massud recommends in this episode: Ippudo Ichiran Santoka Yuji Ramen Nakamura / Niche Minca Ramen Ishida Shuya Cafe de Ramen Enjoy!!! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Jeff Cioletti, the author of “Sake-Pedia: A Non-Traditional Guide to Japan’s Traditional Beverage”. Japanese sake is becoming popular in the US, which is now the biggest importer of the national beverage of Japan. But it is hard to find an easy and fun guidebook of sake. Jeff’s book is very handy for someone who is curious about it, for both beginners and connoisseurs. We will discuss why Jeff wrote the book, what you can learn from the book, what he learned from writing the book, and much, much more! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Derek Wilcox who studied Kaiseki cuisine at the 3 michelin-starred restaurant Kikunoi in Kyoto, and Edomae sushi at Ginza Sushi Aoki in Tokyo, also Michelin-starred, for 10 years in total. Now he is the chef at Shoji at 69 Leonard Street in Tribeca, New York, which earned a precious 3 star rating from the New York Times. Many cooks aspire to study Japanese cuisine in Japan, but it is not easy because of language and cultural barriers. Derek’s background is impressive and refreshing. In this episode, we will find out how he conquered challenges at the traditional (yet forward-minded) restaurants in Japan, how he interprets Japanese food culture, how he expresses the idea on his menu at 69 Leonard Street, and much, much more! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Maribel Lieberman, CEO and Founder of MarieBelle Chocolates in New York. She now has 8 locations of MarieBelle Chocolates worldwide, including 4 shops in Japan. In this episode, Maribel discusses her experience with Japanese culture through the fascinating project of bringing her iconic brand to Japan. Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest today is George Weld who is the owner of the iconic Brooklyn restaurant Egg that has served local and sustainable food since 2005. Many of the menu items are made with produce from his own farm in upstate New York. American cuisine is not very visible in Japan, but George introduces the essence of American dishes through Egg in Tokyo, which opened in 2017, and now he has the second location at a cool museum in Tokyo. In this episode will discuss Egg’s unique and fascinating concept, how George brought it to Japan, his experience and discoveries in Japan, and much, much more!!! Image courtesy of Diaspora Co. Japan Eats! is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Taichi Manabe, chief operating officer of Food Hub, which is a unique project to revive the declining community in Shikoku island of Japan through food. Taichi wanted to change the world through design, but he realized that food has a bigger and stronger influence for his purpose. He has gotten involved in multiple fascinating food projects before he became the COO of Food Hub, which is based in a small town with a population of 5,300 in Shikoku Island. We will discuss why food is important for our community, and Taichi's very local yet global projects!!! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Ron Silver, who is the chef/owner of Bubby’s. Bubby’s opened in 1990, and is now one of the iconic American restaurants in NYC, serving delicious breakfast, burgers pancakes as well as beautiful pies. What you may not know about Bubby’s is that there are six Bubby’s restaurants in Japan! We will discuss why Ron decided to open Bubby’s in Japan and his unique experience with the Japanese market and culture, how Ron is inspired by Japan as a chef, and much, much more! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Yuki Minakawa, the beverage and service director of Sushi Ginza Onodera in NYC, which has 2 Michelin stars. Yuki has worked at the NYC’s top Japanese restaurants, such as Masa, EN Japanese Brasserie and Kajitsu, for the last 10 years. She is in charge of the wine, sake and cocktail lists at Sushi Ginza Onodera. You might think sushi has to be paired with sake, but Yuki introduces you to many other interesting possibilities that will enrich your dining experience!!! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

David Israelow is the global winner of the 5th Washoku World Challenge, which is a cooking contest where chefs from around the world compete in technical expertise and passion for Japanese food. David joins the host Akiko Katayama to discuss how he studied traditional kaiseki cuisine, how he expresses it uniquely on his plates, his experience at the Tokyo Sushi Academy, the documentary film he is working on, and much, much more!!! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, the Sakemen (judo wrestlers/superheroes) joins me to discuss traditional sake breweries they closely work with and why they are so precious!!! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This is an episode from Manga Sensei, which is one of the most popular Japanese language learning podcasts. The host John Dinkel majored in Japanese language in college and lived in Japan as well. So he has deep experience in Japanese language and culture. If you are willing to learn Japanese, I suggest that you subscribe to John’s super-approachable and effective podcast Manga Sensei on iTunes, Stitcher and Spotify. John invited Akiko Katayama, the host of Japan Eats! to his podcast as a guest, and had a fun conversation about Japanese food culture. I hope you will find this episode a nice little window to peek into Japanese mindset and culture! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This episode is a live recording of the special event at Japan Society in New York on October 24, 2018, which Japan Eats!'s host Akiko Katayama moderated. The theme of the event was the modern craft beer culture in the US, and the title was Crafting Beer: Traditional Techniques, Modern Brews. Joshua Bernstein, a Brooklyn-based beer journalist and author of Brewed Awakening, The Complete Beer Course, Complete IPA and Homebrew World, discusses fascinating collaborations between sake and beer breweries, and the resulting delicious craft beer inspired by Japanese sake. I hope you enjoy learning about the new frontier of Japanese sake in this episode. Japan Eats is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Yoshoku, or "Western food" is an important genre of Japanese cuisine. Our guest Shintaro Eleazar Okuda, Chef de Cuisine at Bar Moga in the West Village, NYC, discusses what yoshoku is, how Bar Moga's menu features the charm of yoshoku, his unique culinary background and much, much more!!! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Tea is an essential element of Japanese culture. If you visit someone’s house, he or she will ask you “would you like a cup of tea”? Some people may find green tea a little too bitter or exotic, but there is a lot to discover in the world of Japanese green tea. In this episode, Oscar Brekell, a certified Japanese tea instructor based in Tokyo and the owner of "Oscar Brekell Tea Selection", will discuss how he fell in love with Japanese tea, how it changed his life, what tea you should drink, and much, much more!!! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ramen has become as popular as sushi in the US lately, and Ichiran Ramen is particularly unique among hundreds of ramen shops for offering each customer a VERY private dining experience. In this episode, Kayla Copeland of Ichiran USA tells you the concept of the solo dining that can maximize the flavor in your bowl!!! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest today is Andrew Richardson who has worked at The World Sake Imports, one of the greatest sake importers in the U.S., for the last 11 years. Andrew's journey with sake is intriguing - from drinking at a local bar in Kyoto with strangers to creating a sake paring menu at wd~50, the legendary innovative American restaurant in NYC. In this episode, we will discuss his unique career in sake, his favorite sake breweries, and much, much more! Powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

"And our guest today is Massud Ghaussy who has a Japanese food and restaurant blog on instagram under TokyoManhattan. His posts not only describe restaurants he has visited, but also include many other elements behind the dishes, such as history, culture and cooking methods. He appeared on Episode 125, and told us about his favorite Japanese chefs and restaurants in Paris, NY and in Tokyo. In this episode, we will continue our conversation with Massud with the focus on sushi restaurants along with the history and the cultural background of sushi!!! " Here is the list of the restaurants we discussed in this episode. Hope you will get a chance to experience them! Kura Kuruma Zushi Kyubey Shimbashi Tsuruhachi Bunten Suzumasa (ex Koraku) Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Koji is becoming a culinary keyword lately, and our guest Jeremy Umansky is one of the most knowledgeable and experienced professionals in the field with an innovating, refreshing mindset. We will discover what Koji is, how it is used traditionally, how you can use it in your own kitchen and much, much more!!! Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Japanese cocktail culture is getting global attention lately, but we don’t know too much about what it is outside Japan. Today, we will discover it through the unique concept of Katana Kitten, a new Japanese-American bar in the West Village in NYC. Our guests are three key players of the cocktail industry: Masahiro Urushido, the Managing Partner, Head Bartender & Director of Deliciousness of Katana Kitten, James Tune, the General Manager and Managing Partner and Greg Boehm, the co-owner and the Founder of Cocktail Kingdom, which brings rare-to-find great cocktail books and barware to the cocktail community. Japan Eats is powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.