As expected, the basis of the food is rice!

I think Japanese people are the best ethnic group to eat many taste. Their way of thinking is flexible, maybe.... In one hand, Japanese people can taste Chinese food, French food, and Italian food. But in the other hand, Japanese food can't always accepted in French. Japanese people have special tongue?

Every day, we hold rice bowl in a hand and eat side dish. This is Japanese dining table. In other words, we can put 2 and more food into a mouth, and chew together, eat together. And, we can taste each food's deliciousness. I think this is Japanese people's sharpness of taste. Dining table triangle's indispensable mediator is "rice". In foreign country, their way of eating is basically "one food, one mouth". Chewing beef steak, they taste steak. Chewing bread, they taste bread.

When I come to that point, I think there should be "rice" that matches grilled fish, "rice" that matches meat dish. Probably, this kind of thing is not deeply regarded by professional chef. I think they left this important point, and too much adhere to "that ingredient is nice…" and so on.

In my case, if there is taro's sweet simmered dish, I want to eat a bit soften rice, if main dish is roast meat, I want to eat not so hot rice. If I ask "How about to eat rice with grilled fish?" there must be several kinds of "rice" they like. Only at that point, we have many rooms to open. I think not only rice's place of production, how to cook it, temperate, and combination with side dish should be regarded. Cooked rice by firewood's fire is a bit hard because firewood's fire will dry rice's water, but cocked rice by electric rice cooker is a bit soft, with no scent. Each type of rice has best combination with certain side dish, I think.

I don't want to be a chef who just regards rice by its breed. I want to be a chef who can feel each year's rice's original taste.

After I became to think about rice deeply, I took pride in the same ring with chefs in Kyoto. Chefs in Kyoto have very good eye to choose their dish's ingredient, but unexpectedly, I think they don't have much mind for rice.

After I became to cook rice well, I had changed my restaurant's course dinner menu and how to serve it. Before that, I thought "before rice, I have to satisfy eater's stomach 80-90%." But now, I want to eat my customers to eat "rice" of course menu's ending more delicious, so I control dishes before it. I want to eat "rice" exactly, and after that, I want to satisfy them.

As for myself, I eat rice 1 meal in a day…no no, 3 meals in a day is OK. If there isn't rice, I feel sad. When I got tired, naturally my body needs rice and soup. As expected… I turn to here.


Extract insert from "Another side" (Sony Magazines)