Japan Eats!

Our guest is Daniel Bennett who is the sake sommelier at Sushi-san www.sushisanrestaurant.com and The Omakase Room at Sushi-san www.theomakaseroom.com in Chicago.  Both are a part of Lettuce Entertain You Restaurants, which is an independent, family-owned restaurant group that owns, manages and licenses more than 110 restaurants nationwide with over 60 concepts ranging from fast casual to fine dining.

Daniel is a certified sake som...

Our guests are Régis Camus and Carl Hirschmann, co-founders of Heavensake https://www.heavensake.com/, which was founded in 2016.

Heavensake is truly unique.  It is the first sake producer that introduced the blending (assemblage) technique to the traditional sake-making process.  The mastermind behind Heavensake is Régis Camus who led the renowned Champagne House Piper-Heidsieck as the Chef de Cave for 28 years.  Another key point...

Our guest is Hilo Mahelona who is the chef and founder of Hilo Beverly Hills https://www.hilobh.com/ in Los Angeles, California.

Growing up in Hawaii under Japanese and Hawaiian parents, Hilo has a unique yet authentic sushi-making philosophy.  And the moment you step into his restaurant, you will feel his bright, warm hospitality.  The combination of the two makes the restaurant very popular among sushi lovers and Hollywood celebr...

Our guest is Thomas Frebel who is the creative director at Noma https://noma.dk/.  Noma is the famed restaurant in Copenhagen with numerous accolades, including three Michelin stars and The World’s 50 Best Restaurants’ No.1 spot.

Since its opening in 2003, Noma’s chef/owner René Redzepi has been inspiring the world through his strong philosophy of cooking with Nordic traditions and his never-ending pursuit of creativity.  Noma’s lan...

Our guest today is Tim Anderson who is a chef and food writer based in London.  Tim’s early interest in Japanese food led him to global adventures in L.A., Japan and the U.K.  A bowl of ramen he encountered in L.A. fueled his passion for studying it and he moved to Fukuoka, Japan.  Then he opened his ramen restaurants in the U.K. after winning the popular MasterChef competition on BBC One.  Now he writes and communicates his insigh...

Our guest is Kumiko Hashimoto who grew up in the family of the 200-year-old sake brewery in Osaka.  She now plays a key role at Dojima Sake Brewery https://fordhamabbey.co.uk/ near Cambridge in the U.K., which the family founded in 2018.

Dojima Sake Brewery is the first sake brewery in the U.K.  It is known not just for the quality of sake it produces but the scale of the project.  The property is set in a historic, approximately 7...

Our guest is Alexander Nicolau who is the founder of Mandaracha https://www.mandaracha.com/ in Kyoto, which opened in 2019.  Originally from France, Alex fell in love with Japanese tea while he was working in the fields of food technology and open innovation.

Mandaracha is a very special place where you can find a variety of Japanese tea, which Alex selected by visiting and meeting with each producer.  You can also enjoy a tea cerem...

And my guest today is Toshio Shinko who is the fifth-generation owner of Marushin Honke in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan.  The company was founded in 1881 and since then, it has produced high-quality traditional Japanese food products, such as miso and soy sauce.  In 2002, in addition to managing Marushin Honke, Toshio founded the new company Yuasa Shoyu, or Yuasa Soy Sauce https://www.yuasasyouyu.co.jp/yuasa_gb_front.html in English ...

Our guest is Emily Yuen who is the executive chef at Lingo https://www.lingobk.com/, a unique Japanese American restaurant in Brooklyn, New York.

Emily has an impressive culinary background.  She worked at top French restaurants in the world, including Le Gavroche in London, DB Bistro in Singapore and Boulud Sud in New York. She also studied Japanese cuisine at the legendary Shojin restaurant Kajitsu and served as the executive chef...

Our guest today is Yoshihiko Shida who is the chief Instructor of Tokyo College of Sushi & Washoku London www.sushicollege.uk, which opened in September 2024.  The opening is exciting since the school is the first major Japanese culinary school in Europe.  Chef Shida has worked as an educator and instructor in Japanese culinary institutes for over 32 years. Before that, he gained over 10 years of practical experience in a variety o...

Our guest is Rafal Maslankiewicz who is the chef at Ikigai www.ikigai.nyc in New York, which opened in July 2024.  Ikigai is a very unique concept.  First of all, it is a not-for-profit organization, which is highly unusual for a restaurant.  Secondly, beyond covering the fundamental costs of running a business, all proceeds are donated to a food bank.  In fact, 80 days after the opening, Ikigai donated over $12,000, which funds 63...

Our guest is Kakuho Aoe https://www.instagram.com/kakuhoaoe_nakamichi0316/ who is the chief Buddhist priest of the Ryokusenji Temple in Asakusa, Tokyo.

Kakuho Aoe joins me to discuss why food is important in the Buddhist practice and beyond, why the Buddhist diet called Shojin Ryori is great diet for vegan, vegetarian and sustainable-minded people regardless of their religion, the eye-opening dinner events “Kuayami Gohan” (Dining in...

Our guest is Jun Mattison who is the assistant manager at The Rice Factory New York https://trf-ny.com/.  The Rice Factory New York is an importer, wholesaler and retailer of premium rice.  The company offers the best taste and flavor possible by fully controlling the quality of rice from farming, storing, milling and transporting.  

Rice is eaten all over the world but for Japanese people, it has particularly a special place in th...

Our guest is Phillip Frankland Lee who is the chef/owner of Sushi by Scratch.  Sushi by Scratch Restaurants began in Los Angeles and New York marks its tenth location, which opened in September 2024.

Phillip is known for innovative omakase-style sushi preparations, while still respecting the values set by sushi masters. For example, he uses premium seafood mostly from the Toyosu Market in Japan and he imports rice from Toyoama Pref...

Our guest is George Kao who is the head of sales at Boken Sake https://www.drinkboken.com/　based in New York.  Boken Sake is a unique concept.  The company collaborates with authentic Japanese sake breweries and produces sake under the Boken brand.

Many sake breweries consider expanding to overseas markets, but a lot of them are family-owned small businesses without enough resources to make it happen.  Boken can effectively create ...

Our guest is Ririko Tatsumi who is the founder of Annn based in New York.  Annn is truly a unique concept.  Traditional Japanese sweets are called Wagashi.  One of Wagashi’s key ingredients is An, or Anko, a bean paste made with different kinds of beans from red, and white to green.  Not just colors, their flavors are diverse and it is fun to discover how simple beans can create rich flavors in Japanese sweets.  That is why Ririko ...

Our guest is John Gauntner who is one of the world’s leading non-Japanese sake experts and educators.  He has been writing and lecturing about sake since 1994, in various newspapers and magazines in Japan and overseas. He has published six books on sake across two languages, and hundreds of articles on the topic.  Several times each year, he runs the Sake Professional Course, a week-long intensive sake study course, held both in an...

Our guest is Nobu Yamanashi who is the president of Yama Seafood based in New Jersey.

Founded in 1980 by his father Kengo Yamanashi, Yama Seafood has been one of the most reliable sources of high-quality seafood in the U.S. for almost 45 years.

Nobu joined us in Episode #245 in November 2021 to discuss why he decided to succeed the highly demanding job in the seafood business, the changing needs for seafood at New York City restaur...

Our guest today Xander Soren who is the founder of Xander Soren Wines https://xandersorenwines.com/ . 

Xander Soren Wines is a unique boutique California Pinot Noir producer whose mission is to create wines that pair exceptionally well with sushi and other Japanese foods without overpowering them. Equally unique is Xander’s background. He spent 20 years at Apple where he played a pivotal role in helping to develop digital music pro...