Untitled

Food
EDO ON A STICK SUPER SANDO

90 Say yes to yakitori with this
collection of skewered recipes
108 Chef Jimmy Callaway shares
the secrets to picture-perfect
by Tin Jung Shea of Sydney’s Japanese pressed sandwiches
Yakitori Yurippi. in his cookbook, Cult Sando.
Chicken and spring onion Pork cutlet, tonkatsu sauce

skewers .................................92 and white cabbage ........... 111
Miso glaze .................................92 Agedashi tofu with
Zucchini skewers .................... 93 tsuyu sauce .......................... 112
Onigiri .........................................93 Hokkaido scallop katsu and
Scallops in half shell ...............95 green onion nori ................112
Okra with ponzu and Black sesame ice-cream with
bonito flakes .........................95 red bean ..............................113
Tare .............................................. 95
Pork shiso skewers................. 96
Cabbage salad ......................... 96
Chicken meatball
skewers.................................. 97
Potato salad .............................. 97
98 WASHOKU IN MOTION
A collection of thoughtful
Japanese recipes inspired
by the traditional concept
of washoku.
Crisp pork and ginger gyozas

with sesame rayu .............. 100
Mushroom miso soup .......... 102
Grilled salmon tataki with lime
and jalapeño ponzu...........103
Slow-cooked teriyaki
beef ribs ............................... 105
The
Black sesame
Japan
issue crème brûlée ...................... 106
Pear and green apple winter
slaw ....................................... 106
Trio of Japanese pickles.......107
6 G O U R M E T T R AV E L L E R
MAY 2023 Features
ON THE COVER RAMEN SECRETS
Yakitori Yurippi recipes, p90
68 Hunt down the best ramen Tokyo has to offer
with Alexandra Carlton.
Recipe Tin Jung Shea
Photography Ben Dearnley
HOW TO HOST A HIBACHI PARTY
Styling Steve Pearce
72 Lee Tran Lam shares what makes a hibachi party
so much more than just a char-grilled picnic.
SUBSCRIBE
A COOKING CLASS OF ITS OWN
76
magshop.com.au/GMT
Details p86 Katie Spain on how taking an intimate cooking class
in Japan unearthed unexpected cultural delights.
THE FULL SQUID
Drinks 80 Ben Devlin embraces the Japanese art of gyotaku

from the ocean to his restaurant walls.
43 DRINKS NEWS New openings and expert tips.

46
49
WINE PEOPLE Noguchi Naohiko.
JAPANESE WHISKY Samantha Payne explains.
Travel
NEW FASHIONED KYOTO
52
53
COCKTAIL HOUR Whisky Highball.
MADE IN JAPAN Ned Goodwin’s top drops.
116 Kyoto may be famous for its deep-rooted cultural
traditions, but a new generation is out to change the story.
Regulars
PHOTOGRAPHY BEN DEARNLEY (YAKITORI YURIPPI). YUKA YANAZUME (KYOTO).
13 UPFRONT Editor’s letter and news.

28 FIVE OF A KIND Miso.
30 A QUICK WORD Nashen Moodley.
32 THE KITCHEN GARDENER Medlars.
34 COMMUNITY X KYLIE Sara Mansour.
A TASTE OF TOKYO
37
55
REVIEW Dining out.
EVERYDAY Simple, fast everyday meals.
124 Eat and drink your way across Japan’s busiest city
with Paul Ewart’s guide.
66 MASTERCLASS Okonomiyaki. EXPLORING HIROSHIMA

122 THE ART OF TRAVEL Making the practical perfect. 128 Stephen Corby goes from devastation to delight with
chef Ben Shewry in Hiroshima.
134 CHECKING IN Kimpton Shinjuku Tokyo.
ROAD LESS TRAVELLED
146
154
STYLE Home, fashion and beauty.
OBJECTS OF DESIRE Cameras.
136 These off-the-beaten-track Japanese destinations are
the perfect cultural stops after Tokyo and Osaka.
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D ED
FIN I
HARD TO
Joanna Hunkin
Editor
Deputy Editor Anna McCooe

Acting Art Director Jacqui Triggs
Designer Holly Doran
Creative Consultant Hannah Blackmore
Words
Senior Sub-editor Suzanna Chriss
News Editor Jordan Kretchmer
Editorial Coordinator Charlotte Wishart
Food
Group Food Director Sophia Young
Senior Food Editor Dominic Smith
Digital
Digital Managing Editor Jayde Malifa
Digital Editor Cordelia Williamson
Contributors
Alexandra Carlton, Stephen Corby, Fiona Donnelly, Paul Ewart,
Ned Goodwin, Michael Harden, Anna Hart, Matty Hirsch,
Kylie Kwong, Lee Tran Lam, Jane Lawson, Samantha Payne,
Simon Rickard, Katie Spain, Max Veenhuyzen.
@gourmettraveller
[email protected]
GOURMETTRAVELLER.COM.AU
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Editor’s letter
It took me nearly 40 years to make my way to Japan
Editor’s letter
for the first time – not helped by a certain pandemic,
which curtailed a few plans along the way. When
I finally touched down in Tokyo last year, I was
thrilled to discover the bright lights and frenetic
SUBSCRIBE NOW energy were every bit as dazzling as I’d hoped. Being
magshop.com.au/gmt swept along in a tide of humans down Takeshita
Details p86 Street in Harajuku, drowning in colour and chaos,
was exactly what I’d imagined Tokyo to be.
What I hadn’t quite anticipated, however, was
the deep sense of serenity that manages to co-exist
in the city; the moments of stillness and calm that
greet you unexpectedly, bringing welcome balance
to your day.
And while this wasn’t what drew me to Tokyo
initially, it will definitely be the reason I return –
and venture further afield to explore other regions
of Japan and discover their unique personalities
and energy.
In this, our third annual Japan issue, we called
on both locals and repeat visitors to share their inside
secrets and help uncover some of Japan’s lesser-known
delights. From Tokyo’s ramen secrets to the coastal
hideaway of Kochi, you’ll find plenty of inspiration
for your next Japanese odyssey. Because one visit
will never be enough.
R ME OTHER
OU M
’S
WHAT GT LOVES THIS MONTH
G
DAY
P
ED
A
PROV
Wüsthof Classic Colour Series Tudor Royal

Continuing this year’s trend of bold With two delicious new dial colours
colour in the kitchen, German knife joining the Tudor Royal family –
brand Wüsthof has launched a new chocolate brown and salmon –
colour series, featuring five striking this sport-chic wrist piece is
shades, including coral peach. perfect for everyday elegance.
PHOTOGRAPHY CHRIS COURT (PORTRAIT).
wusthof.com.au tudorwatch.com
Shibori Studio
Australian designers Karen GT subscription
Davis and Pepa Martin use Give the gift of inspiration and
the Japanese art of shibori to escapism this Mother’s Day, with
create unique, one-of-a-kind a subscription to Gourmet Traveller.
fabrics, homewares and artworks The best part? Every month, they
at their Stanmore studio. receive a fresh reminder that you care.
shibori.com.au magshop.com.au/gmt
Dishes and destinations
The Gourmet Traveller team share where
they’ve been and what they’re eating.
Mount Fuji, Japan

There is an indelible feeling of wonder at the
foot of Japan’s tallest summit. At the base
you’ll find onsens, blooming sakura and warm
hospitality, only adding to the impressive
majestry of this natural, symmetrical beauty.
Jordan Kretchmer, news editor
Marriott Momi Bay Resort, Fiji

A.I.R. Myoko, Niigata, Japan Overwater villas, poolside Piña Coladas
Luke Burgess’ residency at this boutique and lush greenery equate to tropical
ryokan in Akakura Onsen was a hit, not island bliss at Momi Bay. Set around
least because he has a knack for a lagoon, backdropped by volcanic
unearthing pristine local produce. Case hills, it’s easy to slip into island time
in point: this delicatel tofu, with a bold here (possibly aided by kava).
sauce buzzing with kanzuri, Niigata’s Cordelia Williamson, digital editor
famous snow-fermented chilli paste.
Max Veenhuyzen, WA state editor
Promenade Bondi Beach, Sydney a’Mare, Sydney

Moreton Bay bugs and golden brioche amp Sundried tomato is the secret hero in
up the wow-factor in this elegant take on this capasanta gratinata (scallop gratin),
prawn toast. It’s one of several delicious bringing an unexpected hit of umami
reasons to visit Bondi’s newest resident, to the decadent appetiser. Alongside it,
which serves up A-grade people-watching New Zealand scampi are topped in
alongside superb snacks and share plates. a vibrant garlic and herb crumb.
Anna McCooe, deputy editor Joanna Hunkin, editor
IRASSHAIMASE!
Restaurant openings in Sydney,
Melbourne and Brisbane, Oz Harvest’s
big night out, the best matcha to buy,
and Tokyo’s hottest hotels.
Amuro
20
PHOTOGRAPHY TOMO OKAI.
unlimited organic veggies, each to be
swished around in a rolling dashi broth,
flavoured with kombu, bonito and dried
shiitake mushrooms. This can be joined
by seared bonito or cuttlefish sashimi;
and finished off with zosui, a Japanese-
style congee made using the broth.
T H E L AT E ST F R O M C H E F S A N D R E STAU R A N TS A R O U N D AU ST R A L I A Over in Surry Hills Armorica Grande
Brasserie is the third restaurant from
Andrew Becher, the owner of Franca and
R E S TA U R A N T N E W S Parlar in Potts Point. Taking over the
former Toko space on Crown Street, the
150-seat venue is underscored by North
SYDNEY of France flavours and wood-fired
Kei Tokiwa (ex-Chaco Bar and Sekka cooking. Executive chef José Saulog is
Dining) is bringing his love and on board again and devotes a hunk of
knowledge of sake and snacks to the menu to steak frites, showcasing
Darlinghurst with the opening of Amuro. different cuts of Australian beef and
Drawing on his time living in Tokyo, lamb from Gundagai. While it’s a slightly
Tokiwa oversees this intimate 20-seat more casual affair than Becher’s first
spot, where a hand-written menu may two restaurants, you can still expect
behold chicken karaage, Hokkaido glitzy seafood towers, intimate booths
scallops with umeboshi dressing and and schmick interiors, including timber
sobacha (buckwheat tea), and ama ebi ceilings, brass gantries and original
(sweet prawn) with yuzu and wasabi art by The New Yorker illustrator,
stem. You won’t find a sake list, but David Plunkert.
instead the opportunity to chat through In the CBD, Oti – an Italian sandwich
your tastes and wants with the team to and pizza bar by the chefs behind Totti’s
find a sake to suit you, drawing upon – will soon open in the former Lorraine’s
the “Ichigen-san, o-kotowari” style of Patisserie site. “It’s a fast little corner
service common in Japan. spot where we’ll be making Roman-style
In more Japanese openings, pizza by the slice,” says chef Mike
Chatswood has welcomed a high-end Eggert. “There will also be freshly baked
Clockwise from above: Armorica’s shabu shabu restaurant Hanasuki. Chef schiacciata bread, for simple fresh
foie gras torchon with fruit bread;
Takashi Yamamoto showcases five Italian-style sandwiches, with meat
Darlinghurst’s Amuro; and the
dining room at Hanasuki. protein options (like kurobuta pork belly; sliced straight into the sandwiches or
or marbled wagyu sirloin) alongside onto the hot slab pizza.”
News
MELBOURNE
The team behind Heartattack and Vine
has opened a new day-to-night eatery
on a sunny corner in Carlton, called
Sunhands. The multi-faceted café-deli-
wine bar sees head chef Pat Drapac
(Bar Romantica and Old Palm Liquor)
concocting a menu of seasonal small
plates that go from suiting a latte
to minimal intervention wine. After
launching as a daytime venue, the team
has recently extended hours into the
evening, with snacky plates including
oysters with mignonette; pickled
octopus; baked ricotta with agrodolce;
mussel escabeche; and an ever-
changing handmade pasta.
Nearby in Collingwood, Maha North
is the next evolution of Shane Delia’s
restaurant stable. Refocusing and
replicating the menu of sister venue
Maha East, the northside iteration will BRISBANE
include king prawn kataifi; crunchy Woolloongabba’s South City Square is
chickpea fried zucchini flowers; and continuing to carve its name out as an
Lebanese garlic dumplings with upcoming food and drink hub, with the
poached leeks and spiced chicken. arrival of a Euro-inspired neighbourhood
bar, South City Wine. Following the
success of the team’s nearby Casa
Chow, the venue leans into natural
wines, fine Champagne and bistro meals.
With swish old world-inspired interiors
(think green marble tabletops, dark
timber panelling and oil paintings), the
worldly wine list will be joined by bites
including chicken liver parfait; snails
Clockwise from
à la Bourguignonne with garlic butter;
below: a spread and duck breast à l’orange.
at Maha North; Next door, the same team is behind
chef Shane Delia; Purple Palm, a peppy Palm Springs-
Sunhands’
channelling, gin-focused bar. While
snacks; and its
team; Brisbane’s alfresco cocktails are the speciality here
South City Wine. (the open-air venue is a collaboration
with Adelaide Hills distillery, 78 Degrees),
PHOTOGRAPHY JUDIT LOSH (SOUTH CITY WINE).
guests at Purple Palm can order small

plates of charcuterie and cheese from
South City Wine too.
Finally, West End is now home
to luxe izakaya, Ippin. Kick off with
“popcorn” lobster bites and snow crab
chawanmushi, before ordering from
the raw bar section that spans salmon
sashimi and spicy tuna rolls; or the
robata grill menu of prawn skewers,
wagyu steak and barbecued coral
trout with sansho and shichimi rub.
News
FOO
OD
O
D
FEELG
HARVEST BOON
Almost everyone has felt the rising cost of living impact their lives recently but the
people who access OzHarvest’s services, are feeling it more than anyone. “In my
19 years working in this space, I have never seen the need as great as it is now,”
says founder Ronni Kahn, who has 600 charities on the program’s waiting list.
OzHarvest has long been at the frontline of fighting food insecurity, using
rescued produce to provide food relief while combatting waste. Each year the
program hosts a headline fundraiser to aid these services, with this year’s event
being the Community Cookoff. The concept empowers food fans and philanthropic
members of the public to fundraise for OzHarvest. Those that do will get to step into
the kitchen with some of the country’s best chefs at restaurants including Aria,
Margaret, Lankan Filling Station, Rockpool Bar & Grill, Da Orazio, and Kitchen by Mike.
Each of these venues will then transform into community dining spaces, similar to
OzHarvest’s own community hub and restaurant, Refettorio in Surry Hills. Kahn
explains, “Our Refettorio is a beautiful space that anyone can come to and have
a beautiful, free meal that’s been made with love and dignity. We thought, ‘What if
this year we ask our chefs to host people?’” This win-win scenario not only grants
Clockwise from below: fundraisers access to cook in some of Australia’s best kitchens, it also gives them the
OzHarvest Community Cookoff chance to enjoy this food alongside OzHarvest’s participants in some of Australia’s
volunteers don aprons; and
most incredible dining rooms. “It’s an opportunity to break bread with people who
prepare meals; Aria chef Matt
Moran with OzHarvest founder you wouldn’t usually. And to find out, they are exactly like you,” says Kahn.
Ronni Kahn and volunteers at While many restaurants have filled up fast, there’s still an opportunity for
the Community Cookoff 2022. fundraisers to get involved. “This community model broadens the ability to participate;
and we’re sharing the love with chefs in their spaces and encouraging people to
come into their spaces,” says Kahn.
PHOTOGRAPHY JOHN PUAH.
The Community Cookoff will take place across the country, with Cutler & Co on
board in Melbourne; Biànca in Brisbane; as well as restaurants in Adelaide and Perth.
“We support organisations that support youth, single mums and low income families.
It’s across the board,” says Kahn. “When you think that six million Australians at some
point need food relief – and 300,600 families need food relief on any given day in
Australia, these numbers are significant.” communitycookoff.com.au
Cathay Pacific has opened a spacious new lounge at
Tokyo’s Narita airport, which will welcome Oneworld
Alliance travellers, including Qantas frequent flyers.
cathaypacific.com.au
2 1
MOCHI MASTER
3
Sydney-based mochi maker Elliot
Tu has long loved the rice-dough
based dessert, growing up
M ATC H A
watching his family prepare freshly

made batches. “My siblings and
I would help pound and stretch
1
Yukiro
small batches of mochis,” says Tu.
THREE OF THE BEST
Recommended for koicha (a stronger, thicker

These days you can try this style of tea) and cold brew, this ceremonial
grade matcha is made in small batches from young
nostalgic treat through Mochipang,
leaves, resulting in a less bitter, smooth tea.
a handcrafted mochi dessert range. zenwondersmatcha.com.au
He takes inspiration from different
2
St Matcha Yutaka
cultures to put a twist on the
This premium verdant green organic matcha
traditional daifuku. “Traditional powder is made in Kyoto and possesses a subtly
mochis consist of anko (red bean sweet and earthy flavour. Use in a thinner style of
paste) filling. Our fresh fruits are matcha (usucha) or a modern matcha latte.
stmatcha.com.au
also choppped into bite-sized
3
chunks rather than a singular piece Orchard St Matcha
to ensure every element of the Juice, tea and tonic bar Orchard St imports an
impressive Kyoto-made matcha tea. Best paired
mochi is savoured in every bite.” with a ceremonial whisk, this tea is a well-balanced,
mochipang.com versatile option. orchardstreet.com.au
NEWS
L
HOTE
LATEST EDITIONS
As Tokyo remains Japan’s number one The calmly lit lobby and spacious rooms
place for Australian tourists to visit, a new strike a surprising contrast to the city
generation of hotels is a welcome arrival. – famed for its bright lights and compact
This latest high-end accommodation spaces – instead taking on a calming,
straddles the Western market while still Japanese minimalist aesthetic, with
tapping into deft Eastern sensibilities. wood panelling, open green spaces
The Tokyo Edition Toranomon, which and sprawling views out towards the
opened in 2020, is a forward-thinking Tokyo Tower.
example of this. The hotel is an offshoot The Toranomon location is the first
brand overseen by Ian Schrager, who of two Edition Hotels to arrive in Tokyo,
helped to forge some of the world’s first with the Tokyo Edition Ginza set to
boutique hotels and was the co-owner of open in the latter half of 2023.
New York’s iconic Studio 54. This groovy Over in Chuo city, the Bulgari Hotel
integrity remains true throughout the Tokyo is the newest luxury outpost to
Clockwise from above: vegetable
tempura at the Gold Bar, Tokyo
hotel, from the street-style photography open. With views over to the swarming
Edition Toranomon; the luxe interiors of Tokyo’s young and hip in the ’70s, to Tokyo Station, the Imperial Palace
at the Gold Bar; the 40th floor of the sound system, which is a masterclass Gardens and even out to Mount Fuji on
Bulgari Hotel Tokyo. in subtlety and mood making. clear days, the luxe hotel is perched 40
floors above the city. Milan-based
architectural studio Antonio Citterio
Patricia Viel oversaw the design of the
rooms and entry, taking cues from Italian
design, all while interweaving local
tastes and paying homage to the lauded
luxury jewellery house.
Alongside the Kimpton Shinjuku
Tokyo (see p134), these openings
usher in a new balance of elegance
and design without foregoing Japanese
ideologies and style.
editionhotels.com/tokyo-toranomon;
bulgarihotels.com
News
OMAKASE UP
Omakase restaurants are
notoriously hard to book – in
particular Sydney’s Sokyo.
Now one of Australia’s most
in demand chef ’s table has
introduced a ballot system.
Known for booking out within
hours of releasing seats, the new
system will offer diners another
chance at scoring a seat.
sokyodining.com.au
PHOTOGRAPHY CHRIS BERNABEO (ALISON ROMAN) & SAMANTHA ROSE (SOKYO).
BOOK AHEAD
ROMAN HOLIDAY
Trafalgar focuses on multi-city, Delicious and divisive, Alison Roman’s recipes captured
experience-led trips, with luxury much of the internet back in 2020, while her best-selling
coaches and lush destinations. cookbooks set the agenda for dinner parties galore.
Embracing a fuss-free, fast and loose cooking style, Roman
Itineraries for this year are on didn’t simply tap into the zeitgeist; she created it (so much
sale now, with excellent value so, many of her recipes are known simply as #thepasta and
journeys across Germany, Italy, #thecookie) and ushered a new generation of home cooks
Spain, Ireland and beyond. Trips into the kitchen. This May, Roman will make her way from the
Big Apple to Australia, diving into the art of recipe writing, her
include accommodation, flights,
appreciation for anchovies, dinner party must-dos and more,
some meals, local specialist tour with an appearance at Melbourne Writers Festival on May 5;
guides and more, making your followed by Brisbane Powerhouse on May 7; and finally a talk
trip cohesive and hassle-free. at the Sydney Opera House hosted by Melissa Leong on May 9.
flightcentre.com.au mwf.com.au; brisbanepowerhouse.org; sydneyoperahouse.com
News
SOCIAL CANTINA
South Eveleigh has been forging its dipping broth; cochinita pibil, which sees
Clockwise from below: name as a leading food precinct since it a corn tortilla topped with pickled onions
Coyoacán Social chef
opened in late 2021, and now with the and pineapple and habanero sauce; and
Roman Cortes with his
mother Maru Navarro; arrival of Coyoacán Social it will further flautas deep, where tortillas are stuffed
snacks and a spread at embolden this status. The Mexican with cheese, salsa verde and chipotle
Coyoacán Social. cantina is the latest venture from Plate It chicken, then deep fried. These will be
Forward, a social enterprise dedicated joined by salad bowls, an array of vibrant
to creating equal opportunity across salsas and horchata.
the table. Like all of Plate It Forward’s other
Coyoacán Social is overseen by head venues, each meal purchased will result
chef Roman Cortes, who through his lived in meals being donated to the wider
experience of addiction is ready to help community, and they also plan to donate
with Plate It Forward’s giving ethos. meals to the centre in Mexico where
Food will be central to this, with Cortes Cortes began his recovery. With
bringing recipes from his family to the a connection to the greater Eveleigh
menu. Drawing upon his time growing up and Redfern areas already established
in Mexico City and his mother’s birthplace with Plate It Forward donating more than
of Coyoacán, the menu will explore how 150,000 meals to local communities,
food fosters connection and helped this forward-thinking restaurant will
Cortes on his own recovery journey. hopefully create a blueprint for how
Casual, colourful, flavourful eats will other food precincts can incorporate
underpin the menu – think birria tacos, socially minded businesses across
served with a rich accompanying beef Australia. coyoacansocial.com
NORTHERN EXPOSURE
This year Holland America’s Alaskan cruises set sail
with a new sustainability certification, exclusively
serving fresh, certified traceable Alaskan seafood.
As the first cruise line to earn the credential, it marks
Holland America’s special connection to Alaska and
coincides with the cruise line’s 150th anniversary.
hollandamerica.com
EXPLORE JAPANESE
CULINARY CULTURE
IMMERSE YOURSELF IN JAPANESE
CUISINE AND CULTURE WITH
OCEANIA CRUISES, THE
WORLD’S LEADING CULINARY-
FOCUSED CRUISE LINE.
From freshly made steamed udon noodles to
skilfully carved sashimi, traditional Japanese
food has long been lauded for its precision in
preparation and complexity of f lavour. Now,
a new, expertly curated Land of the Rising Sun
itinerary, from leading culinary-focused cruise line
Oceania Cruises, offers the chance to explore the
mastery of modern Japanese cuisine.
From Tokyo’s neon-filtered streets, where
you’ll find more Michelin-starred restaurants
WORDS CHARLOTTE WISHART (ON THE PASS). PHOTOGRAPHY RHIANNON HOPLEY (COYOACÁN SOCIAL) & EVE WILSON (SHIN KATO).
than anywhere else in the world, to Kyoto’s serene

Buddhist temples and famous pressed mackerel
When did you first learn how to cook? When I was a kid, both of
sushi, this 12-day sojourn focuses on the best of
my parents worked full-time jobs, so I had to learn how to make ancient and modern Japanese food and culture.
lunch and dinner for myself. But on the weekends, my parents Culinary highlights include Kofukuji Temple
would be at home so I took lessons from them and learned how in Nagasaki, with homemade food prepared in
to make our hometown’s signature dishes. My favourite is traditional fucha ryori style; the ritualistic Way
a soy-based soup called imoni in Japanese, which is made of the Tea ceremony at Tokaido Hiroshige Art
using local Yamagata beef and taro. Museum; freshly pressed, unpasteurised sake at
a sake museum in Osaka; and Kashi-no-Ichi,
You grew up in the Yamagata prefecture of Japan, do you have Shimizu’s famous fish market on the waterfront.
w i t h S H I N K ATO, I S H I Z U K A
any early food memories from your hometown? I have so many A day trip to Korea offers fresh seafood at Jagalchi
fond memories of the local food festival, which celebrated the Fish Market, and local street food from Gukje
imoni soup. The imoni would be made in a really enormous pot, Market, Korea’s largest traditional market.
about six metres wide, and there would be enough soup to
serve around 30,000 people. They even have to use specially
“THE BREADTH
adapted excavator machines to stir the soup. It’s really amazing.
OF CULINARY
AND CULTUR AL
Now in Australia, you’re the head chef at Ishizuka in EXPERIENCES ON
Melbourne; how would you describe the menu? As a Japanese THIS EXCEPTIONAL
chef working in Australia, my goal has been to incorporate 12-DAY CRUISE IS
a traditional Japanese style of cooking and flavours with native UNPAR ALLELED.”
O N T H E PA S S
Australian ingredients. So not quite traditional Japanese, but Jason Worth, Vice President Sales &
General Manager, Oceania Cruises
also not quite a fusion. At the moment I’m experimenting with
kangaroo tail, and I’m hoping to bring that to the menu. Travelling aboard the 1238-guest luxury ship
Riviera, the culinary highlights continue with
Have you had any difficulty adapting Australian produce to
beautifully crafted, regionally inspired epicurean
Japanese cuisine? Yes. The texture and size of produce can experiences, curated by some of the most
vary depending on a country’s environment, so I’ve had to adjust talented chefs from around the globe. Learn
to that. I’m really proud of everything that we have on the menu what's on offer for taste-focused travellers at
here at Ishizuka, and it’s been so rewarding to bring the two oceaniacruises.com/culinary.
cultures together.
ishizuka.com.au
Five of a kind
Miso
This fermented soybean and rice paste is
fundamental to Japanese cuisine. MERU MISO
SWEET WHITE SHIRO MISO
This shorter fermented style of shiro
miso is sweeter on the palate than
other varieties, almost reminiscent of
a hard cheese thanks to its acidity and
saltiness. This chunky miso can be
TEAM
GT strained after making a soup base;
FERMENSTATION
FA
or used straight up in salad dressings.
VOURI
ORGANIC CHILLI MISO
$11.69 for 350gm, harrisfarm.com.au
A subtle infusion of chilli brings out TE
the fruity sweetness of this small
batch paste. While the chilli addition
could pigeonhole this product, it instead KURA ORGANIC MISO PASTE
adds to its versatility, creating a complex This solid pantry staple possesses
base for marinades. Equally delicious a salty umami flavour and a smooth,
spread simply on hot toast with butter. even texture. Given its salt-forward
$25 for 240gm, fermenstation.com.au make up, it makes for an excellent
marinade, as it tenderises the protein
while delivering serious flavour.
RICE CULTURE ORGANIC MISO $5.29 for 200gm, harrisfarm.com.au
This textured, dense red miso paste is
unpasteurised and packs a punch with
a salty, malty umami flavour profile. The
Gold Coast-based fermenters have
been making misos for more than
a decade, originally inspired to make
their own miso with local ingredients,
after the Fukushima nuclear disaster
made them question the supply chain.
$11.80 for 220gm, riceculture.com.au
ENOKIDO MISO
Created by Japanese chef Shinji
Hiraoka, this brown rice miso has
become a favourite at market stalls in
WORDS JORDAN KRETCHMER. PHOTOGRAPHPY KRISTINA SOLJO. STYLING HOLLY DORAN.

Sydney and beyond. The brown rice
creates a stronger, more earthy taste.
Like all good unpasteurised miso,
it should be stored in the fridge to
prevent further fermentation.
$18 for 200gm, enokidomiso.com.au
A G o u r m e t Tr a v e l l e r r e a d e r e v e n t
TICKETS
ON SALE
NOW THE MENU
On Arrival
Arak Orchard Highball
Arak, gin, cucumber, all spice,
apple and pear soda
Entrée
AN EGYPTIAN Beef nayyeh, rhubarb,

black cardamom
Tuna, murri, Aleppo pepper
ADVENTURE Eggplant mes‘a’aha, spiced tomato

Khorasan pita
2021 Petit Couvent White,
Bekaa Valley
Join Gourmet Traveller editor Joanna Hunkin and
luxury travel specialists Abercrombie & Kent for an evening of Main
Lamb neck shawarma,
adventure and intrigue at Aalia in Sydney’s CBD. tarator, pickles, saida saj
Steamed coral trout,
A land of majestic ruins, temples and tombs, Egypt has long captivated travellers’ toum butter, burnt milk
imaginations. But there’s much more to this ancient land than just pyramids and Watercress salata, pomelo, sumac
Pharaohs. Join us as we learn more about this vibrant destination and the many delights Aged rice muammar
it holds in store – both old and new.
2021 Doluca DLC Kalecik Karasi,
For more than six decades, Abercrombie & Kent has set the standard for luxury
Ankara
travel, offering carefully curated itineraries designed to immerse you in Egypt’s ancient
history while ensuring your absolute comfort and pleasure. Dessert
Brik pastry, salted cashew,
We’ll be joined by Aalia’s executive chef Paul Farag, who will share his own Egyptian colocasia dulce
heritage through an elegant and exciting tasting menu of Levantine cuisine, exclusive to Tea & coffee
Gourmet Traveller readers. Highlights will include his signature lamb neck shawarma,
and eggplant mesa’a’ha with spiced tomato, served alongside a selection of fine wines,
handpicked by Aalia’s head sommelier Eleonore Wulf.
The name Aalia comes from the Arabic word for sublime and we have no doubt
this special evening will be just that. Invite your friends for a group adventure as we
explore the wonders of Egypt and beyond. Every guest will also receive a special gift
bag to take home.
VENUE: Aalia, 25 Martin Place, Sydney

Brought to you by Abercrombie & Kent
DATE: Tuesday, 6th June 2023
TIME: 6.30pm
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TO BOOK: visit gourmetreaderdinner.eventbrite.com.au
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SCAN THE QR CODE TO BOOK YOUR TICKETS AT GOURMETREADERDINNER.EVENTBRITE.COM.AU

Interview CHARLOTTE WISHART
D WIT
OR
H
QUI K W
NASHEN
C
M O O DL E Y
A
The director of the Sydney

Film Festival on learning to
cook from the heart, loving
cinema of all kinds and his
favourite place to eat in Tokyo.
I grew up in Durban, South Africa with Indian

heritage, so the food I was raised on was quite
diverse. Barbecue, or braai as it’s known locally,
is very popular in South Africa. It was one of my
favourite things to eat before I came to Australia
13 years ago. I love barbecuing here when I can
but it’s never quite the same. And of course the
same is true of South African Indian cuisine, like
Durban lamb curry or bunny chow, the taste of
which is quite different to traditional Indian food.
When I arrived in Australia. I really missed some

of the Indian food that I grew up with. So when
I would go back to South Africa, I’d be sure to
take lessons from my mum or from one of my
mum’s nine sisters, who are all very good cooks
with specialties in different things.
Memories
That’s the really wonderful

thing about cinema; how in
just 90 minutes, you can
see something that can
My mum and aunties would give me recipes lead to a profound change
to take back to Australia but their instructions in how you view things.
would say, “when it’s half-cooked, do this.”
And I’m thinking, “What? What does ‘half-cooked’
mean?” Or they’ll have written, “add enough of
these ingredients.” What is enough? In the
end, I applied a slightly more scientific method
to recreating their recipes by watching and
recording them cook, so that’s how I got there.
It’s a taste of home, just not quite as good.
When I’m travelling, I try to eat the food of the

local culture. At times, my go-to in many places
might be Italian food, because it seems to be I hate the phrase “guilty pleasure” but I love
so well represented and generally well done in sweets. Any kind of sweets. It’s not a good habit,
most countries. But I’m more interested in finding but I love them. When I go to a restaurant I always
intriguing restaurants that showcase the local look at the dessert menu first and then plan my
cuisine. Connecting with the food of that culture meal accordingly. If it’s something that brings you
in both a fine dining and a casual setting, is the joy, then it should be thoroughly enjoyed – just
real joy in travelling. like films.
Some of my favourite food experiences have Cinema can be such a vibrant and creative art
been in Tokyo. There’s an alley near Shibuya form and at Sydney Film Festival we want people
station called Drunkard’s Alley, mostly made up to see these films and to debate them. We want
of bars. Along that alley there’s a little place that to find films that are going to challenge people,
has just eight seats, run by one woman, Shisiro- and create a dialogue. That's the really wonderful
san, who makes really excellent food. She cooks thing about cinema; how in just 90 minutes, you
whatever she finds in the market that day, so it’s can see something that can lead to a profound
always different, but whatever it is, it’s always change in your life and how you view things,
fantastic. The first thing I do whenever I get to just based on the ideas that were presented
Japan is to try to get there as quickly as possible in that film.
and eat what she feeds me.
We’re not trying to find the one film that will
Food, like cinema, is a universal way to connect appeal to every single person. We want to find
with others. At Shisiro-san’s restaurant, there’s the most exciting and interesting films that are
a really comfortable and homey feel to it. It’s being made across the world today, and we also
such a tiny space but there is a little upstairs area want to showcase films from different parts of the
above where she cooks, but of course because world that might not be as well known. What we
it’s just her working, there’s no one serving these really try to do is to bring the entire world of
people. So they just shout down their orders, and cinema, in all its variety and diversity, to Sydney
Shisiro-san will cook it and then pass the plates over just 12 days. It’s a mammoth task, but it’s
to the people sitting at the bar to pass to those a worthwhile labour of love.
sitting above. Everyone feels very connected
and very warm. The Sydney Film Festival runs from June 7-18. sff.org.au
T CH EN GARD
K I EN
E ER
TH
Medlars
Historically, the butt of literary jokes, this strange
fruit is an acquired taste, writes SIMON RICKARD.
T
he medlar has been the butt of bawdy jokes for centuries.
It’s the smutty clown of the fruit world, which makes us
laugh at the absurdity of our own human frailties.
Jokes about medlars stem from two unusual features
of the fruit: their appearance, and their ripening habit. Medlar fruits
are hemispherical and, frankly, poo-brown. The blossom end of the
fruit is a little concave and puckered, reminiscent of… let’s just say
somewhere the sun doesn’t shine. Indeed, the French nickname
for the medlar is “cul de chien”: literally “dog’s bottom”.
Medlar fruits are too hard and astringent to be eaten straight
from the tree. They need to be placed in a basket and left indoors
for a couple of weeks until they become soft and translucent. This
process is known as “bletting”, from the French word “blet”,
meaning “overripe”. Once “bletted”, you can peel back the skin and
scoop out the soft flesh.
Though obscure today, medlars were once very well known. The
Persians, Greeks and Romans all mention them. Geoffrey Chaucer
used them as a metaphor for the irony of old men gaining wisdom
only as their bodies begin to fall apart, in his famous Canterbury
ILLUSTRATION GETTY IMAGES.
Grow your own
fruits hanging in the sinuous branches long after

What does a freshly bletted
the foliage has fallen.
medlar taste like? A slightly Only two varieties of medlar are commonly
musty, slightly gritty encountered, wide-spreading “Dutch” and upright
stewed apple. It’s certainly “Nottingham”. If you have a choice, get your tree
grafted onto quince, rather than a hawthorn
an acquired taste. rootstock, lest you end up with a spiky forest
of hawthorn suckers.
Finally, what does a freshly bletted medlar
taste like? The best approximation is a slightly
musty, slightly gritty stewed apple. It’s certainly
an acquired taste. But I have discovered that the
best way to acquire it is to enjoy a handful of
Tales. William Shakespeare makes four references medlars on a cheese platter, with a ripe blue
to medlars, including in Romeo and Juliet. If you cheese and a glass of port, set before a crackling
don’t remember it from school, it’s because the fire. A mellow way to spend an autumn evening,
Bard used the same medieval slang term for them with the absurd medlar reminding us not to take
as Chaucer did two centuries earlier, “open-arse”, ourselves too seriously.
a term which was later censored by high-minded
Victorian editors. In As You Like It, Rosalind notes
“for you’ll be rotten ere you be half ripe, and that’s
the right virtue of the medlar”. A contemporary
playwright of Shakespeare’s, Thomas Dekker,
noted that “woman are like medlars, no sooner
ripe but rotten” in one of his plays.
In addition to their ribald literary value,
medlars have several more civilised qualities.
Like their relative the quince, medlars were
used for making sweetmeats. In Victorian Britain
they were stewed with sugar and spices, and
reduced to a thick paste called “medlar cheese”.
Medlar cheese was set in dainty, ornamental
moulds and served at banquets. Persian recipes
frequently pair meats with fruits, including the
medlar, which is indigenous to that region.
You’ll never see this strange little fruit for
sale at the supermarket. If you want to try it,
you’ll have to grow your own. Medlars are native
to the Balkans, up through the Caucasus and
Iran, into Central Asia, so they thrive in most
parts of southern Australia and New Zealand.
Medlars make a superb four-seasons tree for
Simon is a small gardens. In spring they bear large, white
professional blossoms. In summer they are covered in
gardener, generous, dark greenery. In autumn, not only
author and
baroque
do they bear their unique fruits, but their foliage
bassoonist. turns brilliant shades of yellow, pink and red. In
@simon_rickard winter, the tree has a pleasing gnarled form, the
SARA
MANSOUR
Kylie Kwong celebrates the individuals
helping to grow a stronger community.
This month, we meet poet and lawyer Sara
Mansour of the Bankstown Poetry Slam.
I first met lawyer and poet

Sara Mansour through our
participation in the 22nd
Biennale of Sydney, “NIRIN”
exhibition (thanks to artistic
director Brook Andrew). Sara
invited me to Bankstown
Poetry Slam. Listening to the exceptional poets
on stage, opening their hearts in the very safe
S
space Sara has helped to create, I learnt so ara Mansour has the spotlight. Standing
much about the many challenges faced when against the dark backdrop, the silk hijab that
integrating into communities outside of frames her features catches the light. She
one’s homeland. Beyond this, the slam was approaches the microphone and the audience
a reminder of Western Sydney’s rich cultural braces. Because when this wordsmith has something
diversity, which overflows with creativity. to say, she compounds it into two minutes of pure,
spoken-word power.
The scene is the Bankstown Arts Centre. And
a crowd of 300 has gathered for the Bankstown Poetry
Slam, which Mansour co-founded in February 2013.
She speaks in verse, hitting each word of her My
Australia poem like a heartbeat right up to the big “It’s a safe space people can go to every
finish. “My Australia is Home When the rest of month, and just have that cathartic experience
the world says no.” The audience snaps (the slam of expressing themselves.” And Mansour says the
poetry preferred applause method). And so it goes, community needed it. “This was at a time where
we have an understanding. the Syrian war was starting to bubble up and
Mansour, 29, is a lawyer and poet who lives in there were ongoing conflicts in the Middle East,
Western Sydney. She grew up in Punchbowl in the particularly between Palestine and Israel. We
echoes of 9/11, the second Persian Gulf war and needed a place to talk.”
Sydney’s Cronulla riots, which were fuelled by Of course, with the act of speaking comes the
anti-Islam sentiment – not the most supportive era reciprocal action of being heard. “If someone says
for a visibly Muslim female to come of age. a great line, we all click. It creates a connection
That environment hit her hardest at 19, when between the artist and the community, braiding
she was a second-year law student at Western Sydney our energy together in a way that’s really impactful.”
University. She remembers being filled with Beyond the monthly poetry slams, Mansour
“teenage angst and frustration” at her place and the BPS committee run the Real Talk high
in the world at that time. That all changed in school poetry program, connecting with students
November 2012 when she discovered a video online over issues such as bullying, racism and gender.
of Palestinian-Canadian slam poet Rafeef Ziadah. Five years in, the program reached a new high in
Especially as Ziadah’s performance repeated the 2022 when nine schools held their own youth
lines “I am an Arab woman of poetry slam. “Some of the
colour and we come in all “It’s a safe space people finalists were refugees who
shades of anger.” Mansour felt couldn’t speak English a year
seen. “It gave me goosebumps,” can go to every month earlier. That tells you the power
she recalls. “At the time, I felt I and have that cathartic of spoken word poetry.”
didn’t have a voice and I didn’t experience of Not everyone understands
have anyone to represent me in the harmony or the catharsis
the media, or in politics. Then expressing themselves.” though. Take for instance New
there was Rafeef not just owning South Wales One Nation leader
her anger but expressing it creatively. Mark Latham who attacked the slam over Twitter
That was such a liberating moment for me.” as “Islamic political ranting”. This was back in
From there the revelations came in thick 2018 when he was a right-wing commentator.
and fast. “I thought, if she can do it, I can do Latham’s ranting was soon followed by a torrent of
it too.” By December that year Mansour was online death threats and abuse from his followers.
on stage performing in her first ever poetry slam, Some even commented on Mansour’s slam videos
and as the words started to flow, all stereotypes saying she “should be stoned”. She reflects,
WORDS ANNA MCCOOE (MAIN) & KYLIE KWONG (INTRO).
of the “subjugated Islamic woman” tumbled, “There will always be people who don’t want to
at least for her. see young, diverse people who are proud of who
Mansour says performing her words on stage they are and are proud to express themselves in
PHOTOGRAPHY MARK POKORNY (KWONG).
makes her feel like “a queen”. “It’s the thing that a way that is challenging to the norm. That just
makes me feel most alive,” she explains. “When reinforces the need for our existence.”
I hear clicks, and get that support from the crowd, Today, Mansour says Western Sydney can still
or when it’s silent and the audience is really feel undervalued but she is the ultimate advocate
listening, it’s incredibly empowering.” When she for life in her area. “The best thing about where
launched the Bankstown Poetry Slam (BPS) with I live is that it really is a community. If there is
friends as a not-for-profit charity, her first a crisis, so many efforts will be made to raise funds,”
motivation was to cut down on travel time for her she says. “Or if my car is broken down, 10 people
next rush. The by-product was gifting the power will stop to help. It’s home because it’s a place
of spoken word to her local community. where everyone can belong.” Snaps all round.
Komeyui,
Brisbane
p 39
Dining out
PHOTOGRAPHY MARKUS RAVIK
This month, we visit a stylish sake bar

in Carlton, Komeyui’s Brisbane outpost
and the Nilands’ new seafood joint in
Sydney’s north shore.
The dining room at
Léonie Upstairs.
Clockwise from right:
Léonie’s temaki sushi;
and sake.
CK LOO
UI
K
1, 15-17 Lincoln Sq
Carlton, Vic
leonieupstairs.com.au
CHEF
Hitoe Okada
OPENING HOURS
Dinner Thu-Mon
PRICE GUIDE $$
BOOKINGS
Recommended. custard generously punctuated with
VERDICT seafood and mushrooms. Or the
Japanese serenity in not-to-be-missed house-made
décor, food and sake.
tsukemono, (celery pickled with salted
Carlton,
kelp is crisp, salty and sensational) and
Vic boned-out chicken wings, stuffed with
chicken and tofu farce and deep-fried.
LÉONIE UPSTAIRS
There’s such attention to detail
and balance here that even an odd-ish
combination of tomato, risotto and
camembert stuffed into a tempura
zucchini flower may have you
This serene eatery is a lesson in temaki sushi and wondering why those ingredients
female-brewed sake, writes MICHAEL HARDEN. don’t get together more often.
You might also just come here
for the sake. For non-connoisseurs,
the world of the fermented rice
T
beverage can be intimidating but the
his charmingly chilled Japanese billing. Temaki is the looser, cone-
list here with its helpful groupings and
restaurant and sake bar shaped style of sushi, made to order
thoughtful tasting notes is accompanied
overlooking Carlton’s leafy so the nori arrives crisp and with less
by excellent service that might have
Lincoln Square is named after Léonie constrained ingredients than the more
you leaving feeling greater kinship
Gilmour, an American editor and familiar nigiri. There are 10-plus
with its sparkling, aged, chilled and
journalist who also happened to be the varieties on Léonie’s menu, including
unfiltered manifestations. It’s another
mother of Japanese-American artist a soft-shell crab number with a curry
reason to lodge serene and stylish
and furniture designer Isamu Noguchi. miso, a superb beef tataki and ponzu
Léonie on your radar.
For those who enjoy spotting themes, jelly version and a tuna and pickle
there’s plenty on offer at Léonie combo that’s guaranteed to put
Upstairs, from drool-worthy, nail-free a spring in your step. There’s
blond timber joinery and sculptural rice a make-your-own option too.
paper lightshades to a cleverly But it’s not just temaki and sake
annotated sake list highlighting women that make finding Léonie’s obscure
brewers and a menu featuring some entrance worth the effort (hint: take
glorious east-west fusion moments. the stairs behind the black metal door
Alternatively, you could just inside street-level ice-cream and bento
come here to soak in the serenity shop Hareruya Pantry).
while tucking into Melbourne’s best There’s saba pâté, for example,
selection of temaki sushi. a scintillating miso-simmered mackerel
Alongside the impressive sake pâté teamed with tangy dashi jelly
list – pay attention to the excellently served with flaky pie-crust batons. Or
curated flights – temaki sushi gets top a brilliant chawanmushi, the silky egg
Review
CK LOO
UI
K
191 Wharf St,
Spring Hill, Qld
komeyui.com.au/
brisbane-home
CHEFS
Motomu Kumano,
Minkyu Max Han and
Sho Tominaga
OPENING HOURS
Lunch and dinner
Tue-Sun
PRICE GUIDE $$$
BOOKINGS
Striploin with Recommended.
roasted broccolini VERDICT
and seaweed wasabi Upscale Japanese in
dressing. Right: spacious and tranquil
Komeyui’s façade. surrounds.
Spring Hill,
Qld
KO M E Y UI serene white orchid display and garden

glimpses, is busy. Black-clad waitstaff
are plentiful, smiley and attentive. My
Melbourne’s Komeyui has a slick new Brisbane Shirataki Junmai sake is poured into
a massive wine glass – the better to
outpost and it’s bringing a little Zen interconnection enjoy its aroma – and served cold to
to the everyday, writes FIONA DONNELLY. accompany the starting sashimi.
It’s a pretty straight bat selection
of four jewel-fresh Australian species,
white or goldband snapper, some silver
skin still attached, yellowfin tuna,
I t took me three years to realise that

the rice is more important than the
fish.” Our white-jacketed sushi chef
places another perfectly formed piece
of nigiri sushi before me. He’s been
means rice and “yui” means knot, or “to
bring something together”. Just behind
the sushi counter, a traditional hagama
rice cooker with a timber lid sits in view.
This hagama is digitally timed, unlike
Tasmanian salmon and kingfish from
South Australia. The pieces arrive on
a hand-painted ceramic bowl,
garnished with a sliver of lime, a frilly
thatch of green tosaka seaweed and
studying how to perform this alchemy the centuries-old original. The resulting a watermelon radish slice, the only
since 2013, regularly putting in 16-hour grains, Yumepirika rice imported from other adornment is a splodge of wasabi.
days, and has picked up a trick or two. Hokkaido, are plump, well-seasoned, Ten pieces of nigiri follow, delivered
His satisfaction is palpable as we almost sweet, holding magically the instant they’re crafted. Toppings
admire the hapuka topping, a dab of together in all 10 pieces of nigiri and yet include Crystal Bay prawn, crudo
fiery chartreuse yuzukosho adding never feeling overly compacted. scallops with blobs of torched foie gras,
vibrancy to its lightly scored flesh. The omakase starts with an oyster eel, blow-torched soy-brushed salmon
I’m sitting at Komeyui’s sleek timber “boat”, an OTT treat of a single Smoky belly, toasted sesame-sprinkled tuna
counter, midway through a $150 Bay oyster topped with a pink curl of shoulder, caviar-topped tuna belly and
omakase (chef’s choice) menu. It’s raw ama ebi shrimp, fat orange salmon melt-in-the mouth fatty tuna “scrape”
brightly lit, in contrast to the moodier pearls and black caviar. scattered with chives.
dining room where well-spaced round There are several ways to tackle A ball of matcha ice-cream acts like
tables are arrayed beneath a charcoal- the menu. A five-course “chef an exclamation point, marking the end
PHOTOGRAPHY MARKUS RAVIK
hued ceiling. It’s part of the ceremony signature” menu offers foie gras of the omakase. It’s flanked by berries
of omakase to watch the chefs’ hand chawanmushi steamed custard and and drizzled in a salty caramel that’s
movements, who look like they’re char-grilled sirloin as well as nigiri and Vegemite-laced. It’s a perfect illustration
communing in secret sign language, as sashimi, while à la carte options cover of how the fusion of disparate elements
they deftly form rice balls for each nigiri. the gamut from sushi rolls to gyoza. is often greater than the sum of the
Our menu explains the meaning On a Sunday night this restrained parts, a philosophy that’s demonstrated
behind Komeyui’s name. “Kome” yet sharply detailed room, with its across Komeyui’s menu.
Clockwise from far left:
Josh and Julie Niland;
Jervis Bay mussels
with Tasmanian
CK LOO saffron. Opposite: hot
UI smoked Ulladulla blue
K
mackerel and
66 Chandos St, condiments.
St Leonards, NSW
petermen.com.au
CHEFS Josh Niland and
Joshua Osborne
OPENING HOURS cookbooks and also held brand
Brunch Sun; Lunch Sat; ambassadorships for Audi and Mumm.
Dinner Mon & Wed-Sat
Much like the couple’s Paddington
PRICE GUIDE $$$
flagship in its early days, this place has
BOOKINGS
Recommended.
the look and feel of a smart-casual
neighbourhood restaurant in
VERDICT
Quite the catch. a neighbourhood needing a bit more
St
Leonards, excitement. The tariff is à la carte,
NSW
comprising just seafood and
P ET E R M E N
vegetables. And in news that will be
music to the ears of countless
Sydneysiders, Sunday brunch is back
(with those unmissable sea-urchin
crumpets in tow). Yet, as they have
Fruits of the sea find a higher plane on Sydney’s
with each new project, the Nilands
lower north shore at the Nilands’ latest have also found ways to attract new
undertaking, writes MATTY HIRSCH. legions of fans.
Children, for instance, have their
own dedicated menu, which features
fish fingers and a side dish called
“Greens are good for you!” Grown-ups
F or some diners, the realisation

that very good things are going
on at Petermen will set in early.
It may strike when slender cuts of
salted King George whiting hit the
For me, the penny dropped
somewhere in between, when an
innocent-looking plate of raw bonito
arrived, dressed in a soy sauce
deepened by the fish’s roasted bones.
can do something never before seen at
a Niland Family Production: take a seat
at an unreserved high table by the bar
and order nothing more than a cracking
sake-enhanced Martini with a few aged
table, marinating in a citrusy gordal Each uniform piece didn’t so much Wapengo Rocks oysters. Sweet tooths
olive brine that knows better than to melt as it did vanish on my tongue, of all ages, meanwhile, can appreciate
PHOTOGRAPHY JOSH NILAND (FOOD) & ROB PALMER (PORTRAIT).

outshine the delicate sweetness of the leaving an unexpectedly smoky the breadth of Julie Niland’s knack for
flesh. Or when fat Jervis Bay mussels perfume in its wake. This is achieved pastry across five desserts.
follow, preserved in a pulpy, dusky by placing a hot chunk of charcoal All these moving parts and the
achiote vinaigrette with a pleasantly directly on the silvery skin and wiping absence of a defining “concept” might
bitter and earthy edge. the ashes off before slicing it. lead you to believe the sum total here
For others, the switch might flick It has been almost seven years is fragmented and unfocused, but that
later on, over a gargantuan green since Josh and Julie Niland opened couldn’t be further from the truth.
curry for two that makes a star out of Saint Peter, and a lot has happened Flavours, textures, techniques and
grilled Spanish mackerel, mined with since. That restaurant has garnered cross-cultural references may run up
muntries, pea shoots and barbecued near-universal acclaim, and its young and down the menu, but they come
cucumber. Then again, there’s a lot to co-owners have been credited with together with uncommon focus and
be said for the braised saltbush revolutionising the way we think about precision. If you suspect the Nilands
empanadas, too – crusty, herbaceous seafood. Together, they’ve opened might be fresh out of ideas, Petermen
and brightened by a piquant, tomatoey a suite of dining and retail businesses; will make you believe they’re just
Turkish ezme salad. he’s published two best-selling getting started.
Review
A G o ur m e t Tr av e lle r p r o m o t i o n
Pure brilliance
From a distillery in the Japan Alps mountain range comes
an amazing limited edition 2021 Japanese single malt whisky.
S
itting 800 metres above sea level in the Nagano Prefecture
in Japan, Mars Shinshu distillery is located near Mount
Komagatake at the peak of the Kiso mountain range. Bathed
in beautiful, clean mountain air, the whisky is made from
pure mineral water from the surrounding mountains in the traditional
artisan style of Japanese whisky craftsmanship. The short, hot summers
encourage maturation while long, cold winters give the whisky a
slow and gentle maturation. In this very limited 2021 edition, selected The palate shows
single malts aged in bourbon and sherry casks are blended to make
up the sophisticated expression, with a smooth and elegant finish.
sweetness of honey,
The palate shows sweetness of honey, melon and ripe persimmon melon and ripe
fruits, with notes of hazelnut character from the sherry cask. persimmon fruits.
AVAILABLE AT QUALITY LIQUOR MERCHANTS Find out more at dejavuwines.com.au

Noguchi Naohiko
Sake Institute
p 46
Kanpai!
Japan’s first brewery auberge, wine meets
vinyl in Melbourne, top Japanese drops
and life lessons from a sake master.
EAT, STAY, SAKE
There’s nothing like tasting sake in the place it was made, or staying
there for that matter. Onyado Fukuchiyo is the first sake brewery
auberge in Japan. The accommodation and restaurant is located in
a revamped 230-year-old merchant building in Saga prefecture on the
island of Kyushu. Rooms have access to an outdoor bath and guests can
tour the brewery, which is normally closed to the public. The inn’s master
is the creator of the local Nabeshima sake, which he pairs with the menu.
fukuchiyo.com/en
T ON
I GH
L
DRINKS NEWS
T
SPO
TOP DROPS, NEW OPENINGS, AND INSIDE TIPS FROM THE EXPERTS
M O U N TA I N H I G H
If there’s any day to raise a glass, it’s
20 May – World Whisky Day. Mark the
occasion with something special, such BHATIA DHEERAJ
as the new release Fuji Single Blended Director of wine, Arkhé, Adelaide
Whisky Masterpiece. Crafted at Mt. Fuji
Distillery, which looks out over the
majestic mountain after which it is At Arkhé, we don’t focus on verticals
named, it’s a rare and stunning drop, or the length of the wine list. Instead,
PHOTOGRAPHY WILLEM-DURK DU TOIT (BAHAMA GOLD) & MARVIN LEUVREY (DOM PÉRIGNON).
with just 300 bottles available in we emphasise the depth of choices
Australia. $1650 for 700ml, to spoil and excite winemakers,
vanguardluxurybrands.com.au sommeliers, and our loyal patrons.
We deliberately started with 90 labels
and have reached approximately 350.
My most precious Champagne

memory is pursuing education in the
region. Touching and feeling the soil,
visiting vineyards and villages, learning
from the experts, and breathing the air
in Champagne is something that I will
cherish all my life. These memories
AMAZING GRACE make me go back every year.
Roll out the red carpet, Henschke’s 2018 Single Vineyard On 17 May, Arkhé hosts a Champagne
Release wines make their debut on 3 May. The release dinner with special guest Rodolphe
includes the Henschke Hill of Roses, Mount Edelstone, Taittinger of luxury Champagne house
The Wheelwright, Cyril Henschke and the Hill of Peace, all Frerejean Frères. The six-course dinner
beautiful drops. The jewel in the crown, however, has to be will be accompanied by a Q & A hosted
the Henschke Hill of Grace Eden Valley Shiraz 2018, which by Vine & Bubble’s Sara Underdown.
marks 60 years since fifth-generation winemaker Stephen $400 per person.
Henschke’s father Cyril first created Hill of Grace back in
arkhe.com.au
1958. henschke.com.au
Drinks news
MIX MASTER
In her role as manager of cocktail bar Bomba and JUST THE TONIC
host of YouTube series Behind the Bar, Cara Devine When the savvy crew at
shares the wonders and flavours of mixology. Devine Bibendum Wine Co. noticed
recently added author to her arsenal of skills, with a gap in the market for a high
cocktail recipe book Strong, Sweet and Bitter quality, Australian-made and
(Hardie Grant Books, $36.99). A classy, informative -owned mixer range, they went
read full of inspiration. Go forth and mix up a storm. about doing it themselves with
Midnight Mixers. The latest
addition to the natural tonic
water line-up is Amber Tonic,
made with raw Andean cinchona
bark (quinine in its natural form)
and zero additives or nasties.
More than 18 months of trial and
WORTH THE WAIT error went into creating it. Amber
Tonic is a hit solo or as a mixer
Dom Pérignon Vintage 2013 has landed.
with tequila, rum or mezcal.
A stunning drop that reflects a year of $54 for case of 24,
weather extremes. Add a decade of midnightmixers.com.au
maturation to the mix and you’ve got an
elegant and tangible example of why patience
really is a virtue. $350, domperignon.com
HISTORICAL DEEP DIVE
Specialist wine auctioneer,
author and Master of Wine
Andrew Caillard has produced
a fully illustrated, three-volume
history of Australian wine, The
Australian Ark. The 1400-page
ON TREND
work covers the period from
Wine meets vinyl at intimate Brunswick East venue
1788 to the present. A must for
Bahama Gold, a new lo-fi bar and bottle shop run
history buffs and wine lovers.
by Almay Jordaan and Simon Denman, who also
Pre-orders available now.
founded Neighbourhood Wine and Old Palm Liquor.
australianark.com
The vibe here is fun with more than 500 bottles of
wine (from Denman’s personal collection) alongside
three chilled wines sold by the litre. Each one, by the
likes of small producers Koerner and Little Reddie,
is served in a glass bottle which can be returned to
be refilled. Music is a focus, too. More than $60,000
worth of sound equipment ensures the extensive
record collection hits all the right notes. In the kitchen,
head chef Jane Low prepares dishes influenced
by her Malaysian-Australian upbringing and
Mediterranean travels. Snack plates include
sambal schiacciata, with different toppings
showcased each week. bahama.gold
MEET THE MAKER
N O G U C H I N A O H I KO
Master brewer Noguchi Naohiko has been making sake since 1949.
In 2017, he founded the Noguchi Naohiko Sake Institute, where he
shares his wisdom and philosophies with a new generation of brewers.
What was your childhood like?

I was born in 1932 and experienced the Pacific War when I was in
elementary school. There, we practised evacuation drills in case of
air raids, dug air-raid shelters, and grew potatoes. I started working
at a sake brewery at the age of 16. Since food was in short supply
and I was working with rice, I thought it meant I would not have to
worry about eating.
What is your earliest memory of sake?

I am third generation toji (master brewer). When I was born, my
grandfather was so happy the Noguchi family had an heir who would
become a first-rate master brewer, he held me in his lap and would
not let go. My grandfather passed away when I was two years old, so
I don't remember him but I still seek his advice in my heart whenever
I hit a wall in brewing. I feel like he is always watching over me.
Why did you pursue sake as your life’s work?

I find it rewarding to make customers happy. When someone says,
“It tastes so good!” it makes me so happy I wish I could give them the
whole tank. These things deeply move me. This is why I can't quit
sake brewing. I retired three times and returned because I received
many letters from customers and that gave me the push I needed.
Why are you an advocate of the Yamahai-Jikomi brewing technique?

This old-fashioned production method uses natural lactic acid
bacteria suspended in the air. It takes about two weeks longer to
PHOTOGRAPHY YASUNORI SHIMOMURA (NOGUCHI NAOHIKO SAKE INSTITUTE).

make than the modern, fast brewing method, but the sake tends to
have a stronger flavour, better structure, a fuller body and a higher
alcohol content. It tends to be a sake that can withstand ageing.
Sake is on the rise outside of Japan. What is driving this trend?

Trade statistics show that both the volume and value of shipments are
growing. I wonder if the increase is driven by the number of Japanese
restaurants worldwide, the increase in tourists to Japan, and the
reputation of sake among people who have drunk sake in Japan.
What should we experience when visiting the Ishikawa prefecture?

Our sake brewery, Noguchi Naohiko Sake Institute, has an open
tasting room where you can compare my sake. There is also
Clockwise from left:
the sake brewery at an auberge [Eaufeu] next to the brewery where you can enjoy
Noguchi Naohiko delicious food made with local ingredients and an overnight stay
Sake Institute; the experience. The chef is as young as my grandson but he makes
façade of the brewery;
master brewer
truly delicious food.
Noguchi Naohiko
at work. noguchi-naohiko.co.jp
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JAPANESE
SAMANTHA PAYNE on the country that converted her into a whisky lover.
WHISKY
C
onfession: I’ve never been a massive whisky fan. items that speculators hoard and trade like commodities.
It took a well-known Scottish chef to sit me down We’re seeing really crazy retail and after-market prices for
one night post-service to explain the finer details Japanese whisky in Australia. And still, they get snapped
of it to me (while imbibing quite a few) before up quickly and willingly.”
I developed a professional appreciation for it. Even then, This demand led to a slew of “Japanese” presenting
it wasn’t my drink of choice, until recently. whiskies being released on the market, confusing
Enter the delicious world of Japanese whisky, with its consumers who sought the genuine article.
more delicate, approachable styles that took my breath away. So even though Japanese whisky is celebrating its 100th
And I’m not the only one; over the past decade demand for anniversary this year, it’s only recently that strict guidelines
Japanese whisky has outstripped supply. Some producers, and criteria for what constitutes Japanese whisky have been
such as master blender Jota Tanaka at Fuji, claim it would outlined. The jist of the new criteria is: production, ageing
take “close to another 10 years to meet the global demands”. and bottling must all occur in Japan and only Japanese
After drinking one of the seasonal Highballs (flavoured water can be used during distillation. This kind of
with spiced peach to enhance the spirit’s floral notes) at The clarification and definition of spirits has long been
Elysian Whisky Bar in Fitzroy, I can see what all the fuss is a comfort to Scotch whisky drinkers, who enjoy
about. The Elysian’s owner Yao Wong has seen a steady knowing the product in the bottle is what it says it is.
GLASSES FROM OSARA AUSTRALIA.
increase in people requesting to try Japanese whisky Multi-award-winning master blender Tanaka, in
“because they had heard about it from others – even those charge of whisky creation at the Fuji distillery, was
who are not whisky drinkers at all”. instrumental in helping create the new guidelines
But as often happens when something becomes popular, (alongside other distilleries such as Nikka and Mars
people acting in bad faith try to capitalise on it. Wong Distillery). He notes they didn’t want the classifications
explains, “Wonderful Japanese whiskies we used to drink to stifle innovation “but to provide integrity, high
daily 10 years ago have suddenly become insane collector’s quality and prove provenance of the spirit”. ➤
With its more delicate,
approachable styles, over
the past decade demand
WINE CASK STYLES
With the rise of Japanese-made wines
for Japanese whisky has
and many of the commercial distilleries outstripped supply.
owned by companies with global
winemaking brands in their portfolios,
the ability to age whisky in wine casks
is becoming more prevalent, adding
another dimension to the whiskies’
flavours. Mars Whisky Iwai Tradition BLENDED STYLES
Wine Cask Finish, $128 for 750ml (1), A blended whisky is mixed from a variety
is one to try. Mars was established in of grains and a variety of barrel ages in
1548 and is Japan’s highest whisky the name of balance and refinement.
distillery (nearly 800 metres above sea Blends are the norm in Japan but Fuji
level). A rich and opulent style with Whisky is the only distillery in the world
orange peel, dark chocolate and distilling different styles of grain whisky in
cardamom notes. dejavusake.com.au one blend. Each part of the blend is aged
separately, under Tanaka’s constant
watch. “Age is just a number, we value the
age of maturity and we value the
characteristics of each piece of the blend.”
For Japanese whisky newbies, Fuji
PEATED Whisky Single Blended, $173 for 700ml
These whiskies are flavoured by the peat (3), is an easy introduction with its pear
fires used to dry malted barley. These and pear blossom notes along with honey
are your leather couch-sitting, relaxing- melon and vanilla bean. fujiwhisky.com
with-a-good-book kind of whiskies.
Japanese peated styles tend to be more
delicate than their Scottish counterparts.
This style is not for the faint of heart but
for drinkers who appreciate intense
flavours such as robust elements of kelp, SINGLE MALT
smoke, and rich forest floor. Try Chichibu Scotland remains the benchmark
Ichiro’s The Peated 10th Anniversary, producer for distillers worldwide so it’s
$650 for 700ml (2). bibendum.com.au no surprise that single malts, from single
distilleries, are making a mark in Japan.
Lovers of Scottish whisky who want to
try something new should seek out
Nikka Yoichi Single Malt, $166 for
700ml (4), which balances smoky
PHOTOGRAPHY KRISTINA SOLJO. STYLING HOLLY DORAN.

elements with white floral and nectarine
notes. Meanwhile Suntory Whisky The 1
Yamazaki 12YO Single Malt, $470 for
700ml (5), from the country’s first
distillery, offers a taste of Japanese
whisky history (and well worth the price
tag). Sip and savour this one with its
vanilla, sea spray and ripe white
peaches and try to make it last.
nikka.com, danmurphys.com.au
4
Cocktail hour
W HI SKY H IGH BAL L

Ante’s House
M
irin might not be the first ingredient
people would think to add to a mixed Whisky Highball
drink, but the long-established
Combine 45ml Japanese whisky and
Ogasawara Brewery in Hekinan
15ml Ogasawara Isshi Soden mirin (see
doesn’t produce ordinary mirin. Naturally made
note) in a chilled highball glass. Fill the
by hand without any additives and aged for glass with ice and stir for 15 seconds to
a minimum of four years, it has a gentle sweetness integrate and dilute the ingredients. Top
that’s a far cry from the syrupy, saccharine stuff up with strong soda water and stir
usually found on supermarket shelves. gently to combine. To finish, twist a thin
“I’ve been using this mirin for years, mainly zest of lemon over the top of the glass
when cooking at home but it’s also super delicious to release the oils and discard.
to sip on its own,” says importer Matt Young, who Note Ogasawara Isshi Soden mirin
brings the umami-rich and amber-tinted flavour is available from selected stockists
enhancer into Australia under his Black Market and blackmarketsake.com.
Sake banner.
At Ante, the sake-focused listening bar Young
co-owns with chef and partner Jemma Whiteman
in Sydney’s Newtown, mirin features prominently
in the top-billed House Whisky Highball. The
decision to include the condiment may not have
been a calculated one but Young admits it has
paid dividends.
“Sometimes customers do a double-take when
they see it listed in the description,” he says, “but
using it in the recipe gives the drink a wonderful
depth and complexity that whisky on its own can’t
provide. It changes people’s perception, for sure.”
WORDS MATTY HIRSCH. PHOTOGRAPHY KRISTINA SOLJO. STYLING HOLLY DORAN.

For weekly cocktail
inspiration, follow
us on Instagram
@gourmettraveller
KI
3ES TO
S
TR
EE WHI
White Oak Akashi NAS Suntory Kakubin Whisky Nikka Whisky from
HR
Single Malt Whisky First launched in 1937, the Barrel

T This malty and pleasantly Suntory’s unmistakeable A powerhouse blended
spiced small-batch whisky square bottle remains whisky, bottled at cask
from just west of Kobe is a perennial go-to for strength and pulsing with
Young’s weapon of choice its versatility and mild vanilla, pear, stone fruit and
for Highballs. honey sweetness. cereal grain flavours.
$120 for 500ml $79 for 700ml $90 for 500ml
kentstreetcellars.com.au danmurphys.com.au nicks.com.au
To p d r o p s
Made in Japan 2018 Lamy-Pillot Champs

de Morgeot Chassagne-
Montrachet, $80
The confluence between
Attention to detail and respect for provenance E Burgundy’s site-inflected
L
BT
define Japan’s standout wine culture, subtleties and the Japanese
RY & S U
spirit knows few limitations.
writes NED GOODWIN. Provenance binds the details,
VO U
from the silken weave of
SA
tannins to riffs on pickled
Japanese plum, this is pinot
noir from a single vineyard
that is savoury, understated
G
iven the focus of this issue, it is pertinent I draw and forceful all at once. Japan
on the 14 years I lived in Japan. In fact, I wrote brims with paradoxes and
my Master of Wine dissertation on Japanese here, in liquid form, they make
preferences for styles of wine by-the-glass at top for intrigue.
Tokyo restaurants. After amassing considerable data and
testing a litany of theories, my supposition that wines of 2021 Kusuda Riesling,
Ned Goodwin
nuance and delicacy would carry favour over bombast and Martinborough, $95
ELY & DRY

is a former
A Japanese lawyer who
sommelier, wine obvious fruit resonated. Wines that caress rather than
communicator and acquiesced to wine’s call.
Master of Wine
bludgeon, so to speak. After all, Japanese cuisine is said
Martinborough’s pinot noir
to reach a state of perfection when nothing more can be
ST E
at Langton’s. was the drawcard. Yet the
@nedgoodwinmw removed. Subtlety is of the essence. effects of climate change have
Yet in a wine culture with more accredited sommeliers drawn a brighter future for
than any other but for Italy, along with an underlying wines such as this, a shimmer
reverence for education, knowledge, authority and the of lime blossom and jasmine;
discipline required to achieve it, this is a culture that errs steely, taut and dry. The finest
towards deferral. In other words, Japanese customers are riesling of the antipodes.
comfortable asking for advice. This is a very different
dynamic to the cult of the individual that we are 2015 Koyama Mountford
accustomed to in the West. Vineyard Estate Pinot Noir,
In all, Japan remains one of the best places on earth Waipara, $60
to drink wine. While per capita consumption is relatively How I love these wines.
NE W WORLD
small, the wine drinking niche consists of the most Takahiro Koyama has
perspicacious drinkers on earth complemented by wines worked at some of the best
stored at the right temperatures and served in correct addresses on the planet. His
glassware. There is a maniacal attention to detail and comprehension of pinot noir’s
a love of provenance at its hearth. In Japan, wine is porcini underbelly of tannins
all about place! It is no wonder the country remains and its capacity for firework
the top consumer of premier and grand cru Burgundy aromas of cherry, violet and
wet forested scents, makes for
and grower and prestige cuvée Champagne alongside
one of the most compelling
the United States.
wines in the New World.
Here are some wines, deft of touch, that meander
effortlessly with the Japanese narrative. Amanoto Junmai Daiginjo
35 Sake, Japan, $110
buy “Junmai” means pure rice, or
o a style with no added alcohol
A R & C RI S P
t
or sugar. “Daiginjo” refers to

an
the nth degree to which the

rice used for this top-drawer
Sc
CLE
sake is polished. Expect scents

of miso, radish, parmesan and
chamomile, with the feel of
a mountain stream flowing
long, clear and crisp.
E X P E RT LY
C U R AT E D
& de livered to your door
Free delivery every 2 months Curated by experts Explore new styles
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M AY
From easy-to-prepare dishes for entertaining to simple

suppers, these everyday recipes keep things fast and fresh.
Photography ALICIA TAYLOR Styling LUCY BUSUTTIL

VEGETARIAN GLUTEN FREE DAIRY FREE
Recipes JESSICA BROOK
Crisp eggplant yasai itame
SERVES 4 // PREP TIME 15 MINS // COOK 20 MINS
35 gm (¼ cup) plain flour 1 Place flour in a bowl, season to taste and cook, stirring frequently, until starting
2 eggs, lightly beaten and mix to combine. Place eggs in to turn golden (4 minutes). Add cabbage,
75 gm (1 cup) panko crumbs a separate bowl. Place panko crumbs in spring onion, snow peas and cook,
2 eggplants (300gm each), cut a third bowl. Dust eggplant in flour. Dip stirring frequently until just tender
lengthways into 1.5cm-thick slices into egg and panko crumbs to coat. (2 minutes). Combine soy, oyster and
Vegetable oil, for shallow-frying 2 Heat 3cm oil in a large frying pan over barbecue sauce in a small bowl. Add half
Shichimi togarashi, sliced spring medium-high heat. In two batches, add to pan with 60ml water and cook until
onions and bean sprouts, to serve eggplant and cook, turning occasionally, just coated (2 minutes).
YASAI ITAME until golden and crisp (4-6 minutes). 4 Divide stir-fry between plates. Top
1 tbsp vegetable oil Drain on paper towel and repeat with with eggplant and drizzle with reserved
1 onion, cut into thin wedges remaining eggplant; keep warm. Drain sauce. Sprinkle with shichimi togarashi,
2 bunches of mixed Dutch carrots, excess oil from pan and wipe clean. spring onions and bean sprouts.
peeled and thinly sliced lengthways 3 For yasai itame, return pan to high
¼ Savoy cabbage (about 200gm), heat and add oil. Add onion and carrots
shredded
4 spring onions, trimmed and cut into
6cm lengths
250 gm snow peas, trimmed and halved
60 ml (¼ cup) soy sauce
60 ml (¼ cup) vegetarian oyster sauce
2 tbsp barbecue sauce
COOKING TIP
Yasai itame is a Japanese-style
stir-fry. You can use just about
any vegetable in your fridge,
as long as you remember not
to overcrowd the frying pan.
Everyday
Cabbage Square
handled spoon
from The DEA
Store. All other
props stylist’s own.
Roasted miso cabbage with sesame,

soy and tofu cream
2 3cm-thick slices red cabbage 1 Preheat oven to 220˚C (fan-forced). 4 Spoon tofu cream onto plates. Top
(200gm each) Place cabbage slices on a large lightly with cabbage and sprinkle with chilli,
2 tbsp mirin greased baking tray. sesame seeds and shiso. Drizzle with
1 tbsp each red miso, honey and 2 Combine mirin, miso, honey, sesame oil to serve. ➤
sesame oil oil and ginger in a small bowl. Season
1 tsp grated ginger with white pepper. Brush over each side
1 long red chilli, seeds removed of cabbage steaks. Roast until lightly
and finely chopped charred (10 minutes). Turn and brush with FLAVOUR TIP
1 tsp each black and white more miso glaze and roast until charred If you prefer a milder miso
sesame seeds and tender (8 minutes). flavour, try using white
Micro green shiso, to serve 3 For tofu cream, heat oil in a non-stick miso in place of red miso.
Olive oil, for drizzling frying pan over medium heat. Add leek
TOFU CREAM and garlic, season and cook, stirring
1 tbsp sesame oil occasionally, until softened (4 minutes).
1 leek, white part only, thinly sliced Place in a blender with tofu, tahini and
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped soy milk and blend until smooth. Place
300 gm silken tofu, chopped in a small saucepan and keep warm
1 tbsp tahini paste over low heat.
125 ml (½ cup) warm soy milk (we
use Happy Happy Soy Boy)
Everyday
Kare pan toasties

1 tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for

shallow-frying
1 golden shallot, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
150 gm butternut pumpkin, coarsely
grated
150 gm minced beef
1 tbsp each plain flour and Japanese
curry powder
2 tbsp each soy sauce and mirin
4 thick slices white bread
50 gm softened butter
20 gm finely grated parmesan cheese
75 gm (1 cup) panko crumbs
2 slices provolone
2 cups finely shaved green cabbage
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
Micro coriander and Kewpie
mayonnaise, to serve
1 Heat oil in a large non-stick frying pan

over medium heat. Add shallot, garlic
and cook, stirring occasionally until
softened (4 minutes). Add butternut and
minced beef and cook, breaking up
beef with back of a spoon until golden
(6 minutes). Add flour and curry powder
and stir to coat. Add soy, mirin and
125ml water, bring to a simmer, stirring
occasionally, and cook until thickened
slightly (2-3 minutes). Set aside to
cool slightly.
2 Brush outside of bread with butter.
Combine parmesan and panko on
a large plate. Press buttered side of
bread into crumb mixture and place
crumb-side down. Spread minced beef
over half the slices. Top with cheese
and sandwich with remaining bread,
crumb-side facing outwards.
3 Wipe out frying pan and return to
HISTORY medium heat. Add sandwiches and cook
Kare pan is a Japanese curry until golden and crisp (3 minutes). Turn
wrapped in bread dough, coated in and cook until golden (3 minutes).
panko crumbs and deep-fried. 4 Toss cabbage with vinegar in a bowl.
Toasties Gifu bowl Here, we’ve made a simple version Serve sandwiches with cabbage salad
and Bicla napkin for an easy weeknight meal. scattered with micro coriander and
from Provider Store. Kewpie mayonnaise.
Soba noodles with nori sesame butter
and sake grilled prawns
2tbsp sake 1 Combine sake, sugar, garlic, vinegar Place under grill and cook, turning
1tbsp caster sugar and soy sauce in a shallow bowl. Add occasionally, until prawns are just
2garlic cloves, crushed prawns and toss to coat. Set aside to cooked through, adding onions in the
1tsp each rice wine vinegar and marinade (5 minutes). last 2 minutes (8 minutes).
soy sauce 2 To make butter, tear nori and place in 4 Meanwhile, cook soba noodles in
8 large green king prawns a small food processor with a pinch of boiling salted water until just tender
(180gm each) salt. Process until finely chopped. (3-4 minutes). Place in a large bowl,
2 spring onions, trimmed and cut Combine butter, sesame oil and garlic add half butter; season to taste and
into 6cm lengths in a small saucepan over low heat. toss to combine.
200 gm dried green soba noodles Add nori and cook until melted and 5 Divide between bowls, top with
Mizuna leaves and micro purple warm (3 minutes). prawns, drizzle with remaining butter
shiso leaves, to serve 3 Preheat oven grill to high. Place and scatter with shiso, mizuna leaves
NORI SESAME BUTTER prawns, cut-side up on an oven tray. and salmon roe. ➤
1 nori sheet, toasted
50 gm unsalted butter, softened
2 tsp sesame oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
Salmon roe, to serve Noodles Elke
Lucas “Sgraffito”
serving dish from
The DEA Store.
MIX IT UP
You can use any
combination of your
favourite seafood here,
including crab, scallops,
squid or lobster.
Mirin-glazed pork belly, ginger rice and pickled
shiitake mushrooms
SERVES 4 // PREP TIME 15 MINS // COOK 45 MINS (PLUS SOAKING)
2 tsp dashi powder 1 Preheat oven to 220˚C (fan-forced). and cook until reduced slightly and
180 ml (2⁄3 cup) mirin Combine dashi, mirin, soy, and 80ml mushrooms are pickled (10 minutes).
1 tbsp sweet soy water in a small bowl and whisk to Set aside in pickling liquid to cool.
1.2 kg boneless pork belly (8 x 2cm-thick combine. Place pork in a high-sided 3 Place rice in a large saucepan, cover
slices), skin on flameproof roasting pan and pour over with 3 cups cold water and grated
Steamed snake beans, to serve marinade. Place over high heat and ginger. Bring to the boil over high heat,
SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS bring to a simmer (2 minutes). Roast reduce heat to low, cover and cook
100 gm dried shiitake mushrooms, until starting to colour and caramelise (12-14 minutes). Remove from heat and
soaked in boiling water for (20 minutes). Turn pork and cook until stand, covered to steam (5 minutes).
10 minutes sauce is slightly reduced, pork is 4 Heat oil in a small saucepan over high
1 tsp dashi powder caramelised and golden (20 minutes). heat. Add garlic and cook, until golden
2 tbsp mirin 2 Meanwhile, drain shiitake mushrooms, and crisp (1 minute). Drain, pour over rice,
60 ml (¼ cup) rice wine vinegar place in a small saucepan with remaining and gently toss to combine. Divide rice
CRISP GARLIC AND GINGER RICE ingredients, 1 tsp fine cooking salt and and pork between bowls. Serve with
400 gm (2 cups) sushi rice 80ml water. Place over medium heat, mushrooms, snake beans, and spoon
1 tbsp grated ginger bring to a simmer, reduce heat to low over pan juices.
60 ml peanut oil
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
SWAP IT OUT
Dashi powder is a seaweed
Pork Rinka oval
powdered stock. If you don’t have plate from
this, use vegetable stock. The DEA Store.
Everyday
Steak with caramelised

onion and ginger ponzu
SERVES 4-6 // PREP TIME 10 MINS // COOK 30 MINS
(PLUS RESTING)
1 tbsp sesame oil, plus extra for

brushing
1 white onion, thinly sliced into wedges
1 tbsp caster sugar
60 ml (¼ cup) mirin
2 tbsp tamari
Finely grated rind and juice of 1 lime
and 1 lemon
1 tsp grated ginger
2 T-bone steaks (450gm each), at
room temperature
2 bunches broccolini (350gm each),
trimmed, halved lengthways
1 Combine oil, onion and sugar in

a saucepan over medium heat. Cook,
stirring frequently, until onions are
starting to colour (8-10 minutes). Add
mirin and tamari, bring to a simmer, and
cook until slightly reduced (5 minutes).
Take off heat, stir in rind, juice, and
ginger; set aside.
2 Heat a lightly greased char-grill pan
or barbecue to high. Brush steak with oil
and season all over. Cook steaks until
charred (6 minutes). Turn and cook until
charred and cooked to medium-rare
(6 minutes). Set aside to rest (5 minutes).
3 Meanwhile, place the broccoli on the
grill and cook, turning until charred and
tender (6 minutes).
4 Serve steaks on a platter with
broccolini. Serve topped with
caramelised onion and ginger ponzu. ➤
Everyday
FLAVOUR TIP
For an added kick,
combine caster sugar and
finely grated lemon zest,
and toss doughnuts in
mixture as soon as they
come out of the deep fryer.
Sweet tofu doughnuts with

yuzu salted caramel
SERVES 4 // PREP TIME 10 MINS // COOK 20 MINS (PLUS RESTING)
300 gm silken tofu 1 For caramel, combine sugar and 50ml 3 Half fill a large saucepan with oil.
55 gm (¼ cup) caster sugar water in a saucepan over medium-high Place over medium heat until oil reaches
1 tsp vanilla bean paste heat until sugar dissolves; boil until dark 170°C on a deep-frying thermometer.
3 tsp baking powder caramel (7-8 minutes). Remove from 4 In two batches, using two lightly
150 gm (1 cup) plain flour heat, gradually whisk in cream (taking greased tablespoons, scoop batter and
Vegetable oil, for shallow-frying care as hot caramel will spit). Add 1 tsp carefully lower into oil. Cook until golden
Icing sugar mixture, for dusting sea salt flakes and yuzu and swirl to and cooked (4 minutes). Remove with
YUZU SALTED CARAMEL combine; cool to room temperature. a slotted spoon and drain on paper
110 gm (½ cup) caster sugar 2 To make donuts, pass tofu through towel. Repeat with remaining batter.
125 ml (½ cup) thickened cream a fine-meshed sieve into a large bowl. 5 Dust with icing sugar and serve
1 tbsp yuzu juice (see note) Add sugar and vanilla; mix until with caramel sauce.
combined. Combine baking powder and Note Yuzu juice is available from select
flour in a bowl; whisk to combine. Add to supermarkets and Asian grocers; if
tofu mixture and mix to a thick batter. unavailable, substitute lime juice.
Refrigerate batter until firm (30 minutes).
We use seafood from Notaras Fish Markets in the GT Test Kitchen and in all our photo shoots.
Come to the dark side.
Füri Pro Jet Black Knives.
Outperforms
10 of the
leading brands
of knives in
sharpness*
Precision crafted from X50CrMoV15 Japanese Stainless Steel. Finished with a

super fine 13° cutting edge on each side, for out-of-the-box sharpness. Ideal balance
between performance and durability. Matte-black oxidised finish gives a new feel to
the knife that pioneered the reverse-wedge handle. Furi. Cut Differently.
*Based on ICP & TCC independent tests conducted by CATRA

Okonomiyaki
Made with tempura flour, this grilled
pancake-like snack can be dressed up or
down with your favourite toppings.
Futagami brass
chopstick rests and
Tone oxidised
copper round tray,
both from The DEA
Store. All other
Masterclass
O
saka is often referred to as Japan’s kitchen, and okonomiyaki is
the street food turned culinary staple that has reverberated
COOKING TIPS
from the city across the world. Originating in the 1900s during
It can be tricky to flip your pancake if
the Taish and Sh wa periods, when wheat flour spread among
the batter is slightly runny. In step 5,
the general public, these days the grilled snack can be found in yokocho
cover batter with a lid to set batter then
(late-night dining allies) and restaurants alike. With “yaki” meaning grilled
flip to colour each side.
and “okonomi” meaning “as you like”, it can be filled or topped with
whatever you like, be it thin slices of fatty pork, squid, tempura flakes or
cooked prawns.
4 5 6
1 For teriyaki sauce, place 125ml mirin,
125ml soy sauce, 2 tbsp cooking
sake, 50gm caster sugar, 2 crushed garlic
4 Add cooled cabbage mixture with
3 small spring onions cut into 3cm
batons to batter; mix to combine.
7 Transfer pancakes to serving plates
and brush with teriyaki sauce.
Drizzle each with mayonnaise, and serve
cloves, and 20gm finely grated ginger in scattered with thinly sliced spring onion,
a saucepan over high heat and bring to
the boil. Reduce heat to medium, simmer 5 Heat a 20cm cast-iron or heavy-
based frying pan over high heat
pickled ginger, aonori and katsuobushi
and season with togarashi.
PHOTOGRAPHY JOHN PAUL URIZAR. STYLING OLIVIA BLACKMORE.
and reduce until syrupy (12-15 minutes); and add 2½ tbsp grapeseed oil. Add half
cool to room temperature, then strain. batter and using a large metal spoon
spread batter evenly over base of pan.
2 Meanwhile, for batter, mix 150gm

tempura flour with 220ml water in
a large bowl and set aside to rest in
Reduce heat to medium and cook until
light golden and set on base (3 minutes).
Note Aonori (dried, chopped
seaweed), katsuobushi (dried
bonito flakes) and shichimi
fridge (30 minutes).
6 Flip over and cook until light
golden and cooked through.
togarashi are available from
Japanese grocers. Teriyaki sauce
3 For cabbage filing, cut 280gm

white cabbage into 1cm pieces.
Heat a frying pan with 21⁄2 tbsp
(3 minutes). Increase heat to high and
cook each side for a further 1 minute,
adding extra oil if needed, until golden
can be stored in an airtight
container, refrgerated for up to
3 months.
grapeseed oil over medium-high heat. and crisp. Repeat with remaining batter.
Cook cabbage with 2 crushed garlic
cloves and 1⁄2 tsp shichimi togarashi,
tossing occasionally, until softened
(3-4 minutes). Set aside to cool.
Photography IRWIN WONG
Guided by a local ramen head,

ALEXANDRA CARLTON hits the streets
of Tokyo in pursuit of the best bowls.
SECRETS
C
ody Mizuno is excited about one of the Japanese capital’s
emerging ramen trends: fresh fish-based ramen. The one
we’re about to visit is called Madai Ramen Mengyo, which
translates to “fresh fish”, and the soup here is made with
luxurious fresh snapper or sea bream (the two names are used
interchangeably in Japan), rather than the usual dried fish, or dashi,
that characterises most Japanese fish-based broths.
We duck inside a small shop lined with a narrow wooden counter Clockwise from top left: oyster-based
along one side, punch in our orders on the push-button machine and ramen at Mukan; the counter at
Ramen Break Beats; and Ramen
are soon presented with a fragrant – verging on pungent – bowl of Guide Japan’s Cody Mizuno.
glistening, slightly opaque snapper soup, filled with textured Opposite: the entrance of Ramen
handmade noodles and topped with blush-pink folds of pork. The Break Beats.
chewy noodles and featherlight pork are delicious but the soup’s
fishiness is a little overwhelming to me, though a few curls of pickled
ginger help to cut through the intensity. “It’s a strong flavour but it’s
very nostalgic for Japanese people because it’s something we grew up
eating at New Year,” explains Mizuno. Would I have chosen to eat it
if I’d been searching out ramen shops myself? Perhaps not. But what
a delight to be trying the full rainbow of ramen options with
someone who knows it better than almost anyone.
Mizuno runs the website Ramen Guide Japan, as well as ramen
tours around Tokyo, and the guy knows his noodles. He first became
interested in ramen in 2018 when he made a pledge to try every one
of the top 100 ramen shops listed on Tabelog, Japan’s famous
restaurant-ranking website. “I started in August and by December
I’d cleared all 100,” he says with a laugh. A friend who’d joined him
on the mission bowed out (“He found the ramen he enjoyed so he
felt he was done”) but Mizuno was hooked. “It was this way of going
to these places around Japan that I’d never otherwise explore and
experiencing them via ramen,” he says.
Now, he estimates he’s visited around 900 ramen shops and eaten
more than 1000 bowls of ramen since mid-2018. A typical day might
involve ramen for both lunch and dinner. On weekends he often heads
to Tokyo’s outskirts to chase bowls that have caught his interest. ➤
“If I’m paying 2000 yen for a train fare then it makes
sense to hit as many shops as possible, so those are the
days I might do three or four bowls,” he says.
What does Mizuno believe makes the perfect ramen?
“It’s all about the balance of the bowl,” he says. “You
don’t want it to be too salty or too sweet or too umami-
enriched. You also want harmony between the soup, the
noodles and the toppings.” For example, he says, a rich,
creamy tonkotsu-style ramen needs a thick, robust noodle
that won’t get lost in the intensity of the soup. A lighter
chicken-based soup is better paired with a thinner, more
delicate noodle. “There’s also no reason to be putting A5 from a soup base, and of course there’s endless tussling
wagyu toppings on your ramen if you’re not using beef over the validity of what might be called the “novelty
bone broth. The delicate flavours of the wagyu would be ramens”, such as an infamous ramen made with
overwhelmed by a creamy pork soup,” he says. “It’s about pineapple, and a blue ramen. “I don’t like to speak down
being able to make sure the customer enjoys the whole on it because the master is very sensitive to criticism,”
bowl, not just its individual components.” says Mizuno diplomatically of the blue ramen, whose
As with so many things in Japan, ramen is so much soup is the rather unsettling colour of blue jelly beans,
more than just a food. For true ramen heads it’s a whole purportedly from spirulina. “Psychologically, in my head,
world, and you could spend the rest of your life digging I kept thinking of Blue Hawaii syrup, which threw my
into its variants and subcultures. There are the “machi palate right off. I didn’t really enjoy that bowl.”
chuka” fans, who are dedicated to visiting old-school But whether it’s bone-based, balanced or even blue,
Chinese-style ramen houses that have been run by the Mizuno doesn’t predict a day when he’ll ever lose that
same family for 50 or 60 years (Japanese ramen was rush of excitement when he lifts his spoon to a brand new
essentially adapted from Chinese noodle dishes from bowl he hasn’t tried before. To mix things up he’s tried
the early 20th century). There are the “Jirorians” who ploughing his way through Tokyo’s top burgers, top unagi
see themselves as the unofficial behaviour gatekeepers restaurants and top curry spots and while he’s had some
of the capital’s famous “Jiro” ramen shops, which have good times, ramen has his heart. “Ramen’s great because
complicated etiquette guidelines designed to encourage it’s so accessible and so cheap,” Mizuno says. “But more
their customers to eat their ramen quickly and in silence importantly – I just really, really love ramen.”
to maximise turnover.
Fierce debate rages over whether ramen is authentic
if the master doesn’t make their own soup in-house, but
rather buys it from a central soup kitchen or makes it
Clockwise from left: shoyu

ramen at Ramen Break Beats;
intimate dining at Mukan; the
signage at Menson Rage.
Opposite, from top left: the
busy kitchen and dining room
at Ramen Break Beats; shoyu
ramen at Menson Rage.
FIVE MUST-
V I S I T T O KYO
RAMEN SHOPS
RAMEN BREAK BEATS

DJ-turned-ramen chef, Yanase-
san is producing some of the
most sought-after bowls in Tokyo,
so much so that you’ll need to
show up as early as 8am to get
your name on their sign-up sheet.
Both the shoyu (soy-based) and
shio (salt-based) versions are
phenomenal, but the shio is the
favourite among regulars.
MUKAN
RAMEN-YA TOYBOX Mukan is one of the newest ramen
For an out-of-this-world shoyu shops in Tokyo, but has created
ramen experience make your way quite the buzz with its oyster
to Toy Box out in the Minowa broth-based ramen. Serving only
district of Tokyo, which uses the four guests in 30-minute dining
Mizudori method for its broth, slots, it’s great for an intimate
meaning it’s only made of chicken dinner. Reservations are only
and water. That’s then combined available the night before on the
with a decadent “chiyu” (rendered restaurant’s Twitter account.
chicken oil) and a vibrant shoyu airrsv.net/mukan/calendar
tare (sauce) for one of the most
delicious soups you’ll have TSUKEMEN MICHI
in the city. Tsukemen, if you’ve never had it
before, is what Mizuno likes to call
MENSON RAGE “deconstructed ramen”, where the
Michelin-recognised as Bib noodles and soup are served
Gourmand, Menson Rage is separately. It was invented in
a popular shoyu ramen shop the early ’70s and has since
out towards West Tokyo. The become a staple ramen style.
shoyu offering uses “Shamo”, For a comforting, rich and creamy
a breed of chicken known tsukemen, look no further than
primarily for cock fighting in Michi. Tsukemen soup can be
Southeast Asia, but which actually a bit intense so the idea is to
produces incredibly flavourful adjust the strength of the flavour
broths. If you’re looking to try varying how long you dip your
something unique, try its “Maze noodles in the soup. Be sure to
Soba” which is a decadent bowl grab its crème brûlée as well for
of soupless ramen. a delicious dessert.
How to host a
HIBACHI
PARTY
Fire up the coals and put the playlist on repeat.
Backyard get-togethers are taking on a Japanese
flavour and LEE TRAN LAM has the prep sorted.
PHOTOGRAPHY KRISTINA SOLJO. STYLING OLIVIA BLACKMORE.

This page: Hibachi grill from
Knives and Stones. Opposite,
clockwise from top left: premium
charcoal chimney and cedar
cooking sheets from Chef’s
Armoury. Premium binchotan
from Knives and Stones. All other
Party kit Precision tongs in
Stealth Black, arrow point
skewers, and Oigen
Karabana cast-iron trivet, all
from Chef’s Armoury.
Round dishes from Robert
Gordon. All other props
stylist’s own.
S
o you want to throw a hibachi party? First a barbecue are low-key but fun ways to keep
you’d think it would involve a literal everyone fed while socialising outdoors.
hibachi – but that’s not entirely true. The Tokiwa took a similar approach with friends in
original hibachi is a “fire bowl” that dates Kagoshima, for one of the “best” hibachi parties
back to Japan’s Heian period (794-1185 AD) and he’s been to. They packed the shichirin in the back
was used to heat rooms and warm hands. Cooking of the car, along with food and fireworks, and
wasn’t their original purpose. Today, though, the drove to the location at night. “I thought that was
word “hibachi” has been mistranslated by pretty romantic, with the sparklers,” he says. They
Westerners to mean any type of Japanese barbecue dressed up in traditional summer-friendly clothing
– whether the cooking is done with a konro, irori (yukata for women, jinbei for men) and hit the
or shichirin grill. “It can be a bit confusing,” says beach. For similar fun, replicating their exact
Kei Tokiwa from Sydney’s Amuro sake bar. wardrobe isn’t totally necessary – any lightweight
The term “hibachi party” can cause head- clothing that goes over swimwear will do the trick.
scratching, too (especially with Americans using Saori Tsuya, from Kazuki’s restaurant in
it to describe private teppanyaki gatherings), but, Melbourne, grew up in Fukuoka and recalls
semantics aside, it essentially involves cooking over outdoor hibachi parties in summer, while winter
coal in a highly social way. And that’s something versions took place in her dad’s shed. “I vividly
Australians can get on board with. remember the time we grilled oysters from
“In summer, back at my hometown in Nagasaki over the fire,” she says. “I thought it
Okayama, we’d always have a yakiniku party on the was the best thing I’d ever tasted!”
hibachi, inviting friends, neighbours and relatives Her husband Kazuki lived in snowy Akita,
close by,” says Meg Tanaka from Melbourne’s Cibi. so his hibachi-party equivalent involved a warm,
In springtime, they’d sit under cherry blossom open-hearth irori that people sat around: they’d
trees at night and grill a yakitori or yakiniku feast. enjoy simmering hotpots, such as nabe with
“What a celebration!” miso-glazed kiritanpo (rice sticks).
Although Tanaka describes cooking with The couple’s contrasting experiences reflect
a hibachi, she clarifies that she means a shichirin, how flexible the format can be. “It is as broad as
a portable charcoal stove that’s also sold at her putting on a barbecue,” says Tsuya. A hibachi party
Japanese café and store. Charring yakitori-style on a tiny balcony can work for roommates. “Or it
skewers or thin yakiniku-like cuts of meat over can be a bigger version with friends or family.”
Just up the amount of food accordingly. Her Hibachi
party tips
preference is for seafood (“prawns, oysters, scallops,
clams”) and vegetables (“shiitake mushrooms, Lighting and decorations
shishito peppers”) charred over coal. Got prep can help set the scene.
time? Tokiwa recommends soy-marinaded chicken For a playful outdoor party,
wings and foil-wrapped garlic-butter corn as “colourful lanterns in the
low-stress dishes that pay off over the grill. backyard might be cute,”
And music-wise? He suggests city pop (which says Saori Tsuya.
hit Japan in the 1970s and 1980s) or the relaxing
sounds of the three-stringed shamisen. “I’d usually “By the end of the party, the
listen to J-pop for both summer and winter, so that fire can be often at its peak,”
we could sing along to it,” says Mitomo Somehara, says Meg Tanaka. So you’ll
who is from Kyoto and runs various Japanese venues want to start it early, so it’s
in Sydney with Tin Jung Shea and Chris Wu going strong once you’re
(including Yakitori Yurippi featured on page 90). If ready to cook (and not when
he was DJing your hibachi party, he’d probably drop the night is finished).
some Radwimps, famous for their soundtrack to
blockbuster anime hit, Your Name, or the J-pop “You’ll want to do it in an
stylings of Back Number and Mr. Children. open area, not a closed
Should you bust out the karaoke for a hibachi area, unless you’re happy
party? Tsuya thinks if you’re set on some (sake- with all that smoke,” adds
fuelled) singing, plan it for later on. “Karaoke Kei Tokiwa. For cold
demands the audience to participate in the activity, weather, you could follow
like dancing, clapping, swaying, cheering – even if Kazuki’s lead and have an
they are not singing. So people can’t be too busy indoor hotpot cooked over
with cooking and eating when karaoke is a hearth.
happening.” On the plus side, you won’t need
a smoke machine for atmosphere – you’ve already
got a fire.
A
COOKING
CLASS
From venues hidden deep in city backstreets, to rural epicurean

delights, taking a carefully selected cooking class or food tour
can unearth the unexpected, writes KATIE SPAIN.
OF ITS OWN
E
ating one’s way through faraway Saeki started his home cooking classes in
places is one of life’s ultimate 2010. “Before international tourism became
pleasures but I’ve never been a fan big in Japan,” he says. “Previously, I worked
of cooking schools or food tours. as a hotel manager and always received lots
That was, until a close encounter with of requests for tips on things to do in Kyoto.
a Japanese home cook changed things. Back then, people visited temples and shrines
It happened in Kyoto’s Shimogamo but had little else to do activity-wise. So,
district; the relaxed residential neighbourhood I decided to invite people over to my house
home to Taro Saeki, his wife Yoshiko and to do some cooking.”
their two young daughters. There, in their It just made sense. “I’m not a professional
two-storey home, Saeki runs Haru Cooking chef but I cook 350 days a year,” he says.
Class, a business devoted to teaching visitors “I wanted to make it more like a half day
about Japanese life and home cooking. The homestay to introduce Japanese life to people.”
intimate classes cater for a maximum of eight What started as a hobby is now Saeki’s
people at a time and focus as much on culture full-time job. “I love it,” he says. “At first, my
as they do on ingredients. wife was surprised that I was bringing people
There’s no flashy website, big marketing into our house. Now she helps a lot during
dollars or social media campaigns behind it. classes. She says I spend too much time talking
ILLUSTRATIONS HOLLY DORAN & CREATIVE MARKET.
Like most great, grassroots food experiences with my guests but I enjoy that part.”
and clandestine Japanese treasures, Haru Saeki grew up in Yokohama, a Japanese
Cooking Class relies on word-of-mouth city south of Tokyo. His father worked for
recommendations. That’s how we discovered a Japanese shipping company and the family
this hidden gem back in 2018. In the years moved to the US when Saeki was young.
since, business slowed during Covid There, he was exposed to global food habits,
restrictions, but demand for unique food which gave him a greater appreciation for the
experiences is returning. customs of his homeland. “People in America
“People are travelling again so I host three didn’t know much about Japan, especially in
classes a week now,” Saeki says. “It’s coming the ’90s,” he says. “They barely knew sushi ➤
back to where it was.” and even anime wasn’t as popular at the time.
Now, people are more interested in Japan so
I wanted to take advantage of that and explain
more to them. I want them to see who we are,
what we do, and what we eat.”
He does so in an endearing, immersive
and genuine way. His chosen gateway is
dashi, a Japanese stock made with care and
patience. Traditionally made with kombu
(dried kelp) and katsuobushi (dried bonito
flakes), dashi highlights umami flavours in
myriad Japanese dishes including miso soup,
udon soup, tempura dipping sauce, takoyaki
and okonomiyaki. Then there’s the delicate and deliberate
“Without dashi, you can’t really cook art of making tamagoyaki, a Japanese omelette
Japanese home cuisine,” Taro says. “It’s what made by gently rolling several layers of eggs.
makes Japanese food different from Chinese The sense of fulfilment after perfecting the
food and Korean food.” technique is euphoric. It all happens in
Dashi forms the base of the four-hour a rectangular pan called a tamagoyaki-nabe.
cooking class, which kicks off with basics such All of this is consumed at the Saeki family
as miso soup, and Japanese rice preparation. kitchen table, along with explanations about
“Japanese cooking is focused around rice and etiquette, condiments and tableware.
in our home, rice is cooked by 6.50am every “I want to be as honest and open as
day. Then, we think about what to have with possible,” Saeki says. “That’s most important
the rice. Maybe a little egg dish, a vegetable to me. I don’t want to be pretentious. I want
dish, a meat dish, and a fish dish. That’s why people to feel that they’ve learned more just
you see rice and four or five other little things by being here for three or four hours than
in a Japanese bento box.” they would elsewhere.”
Dishes vary, depending on the day but The quiet-spoken host is as generous with
a typical class includes the likes of oyakodon, his local tips as he is with his living space.
a comfort food favourite made from chicken, “There’s a food market near my house
onion and egg served over rice; aemono which is not as big as Nishiki Market, which
(Japanese pickled salad), tempura sauce, is in the city centre but it’s less touristy,” he
citrus-based ponzu sauce, and wagyu beef says. “It’s quarter the size and maybe not as
which comes with a masterclass on marbling. lively but there’s a dried goods store there
that’s very good. It’s where the locals go
so, you’ll hear less English spoken but the
store owner is very open minded and when
I introduced my guests, he is very supportive.”
It all harks back to word-of-mouth
recommendations and a personal touch.
There’s a degree of trust involved in opening
one’s home to strangers and guests leave with
hearts and stomachs full. As the Saeki family
waves goodbye, you can’t help but feel more
connected to Japan than you were just four
hours ago.
kyoto-cooking-class.com
ALSO TRY
OI S H II TO U R S , TOKYO, KYOTO, C O O K IN G STU D IO
OSAKA AND KANAZAWA KANAZAWA SALO N
Prefer eating to cooking? I usually A four-hour class that puts a spotlight
prefer to explore a city based on my on koji as a key ingredient in place
own internal compass but booked of salt. Locally brewed sake and beer
a private Oishii Food Tour with co- is served while you learn to make
founder Meg Sakuma after a glowing sushi, vegan ramen or the traditional
recommendation from a trusted friend. Ishikawa dish Jibuni (duck, chicken or
The tour of Tokyo’s Toyosu Market was tofu simmered in a thick soy-based
no ordinary taste-and-walk jaunt. At broth). cookingkanazawa.com
7.30am, Sakuma led my travel partner
and I through the mammoth wholesale HANDS-ON WAGASHI
fish and produce market, disguised in WOR K SH O P
baseball caps and flannelette shirts in A one-hour class on how to use
order to look like fishmonger locals. wasanbon (sugar traditionally
What unfolded was an unforgettable made in the Shikoku prefectures of
and personal introduction to top- Tokushima and Kagawa) to make tiny
quality tuna vendors. The experience sugar sweets. The class takes place
was so impressive we booked three in master woodworker Yoshihiro
more tours during our three-week Ichihara’s workshop in downtown
holiday. These included the Yanaka Takamatsu. There, his English-speaking
Tour, which ventures into one of the daughter uses her father’s wooden
few remaining Shitamachi (“lower city”) moulds to create the delicate works
neighbourhoods that survived the of edible art that are later served with
Great Kantō earthquake in 1923, and green tea. mamehana-kasikigata.com
the Izakaya Nightlife Tour; a tasty toe-
dip into the food and beverage haunts L E AR N TO C O O K WI T H
of Ebisu. The off-the-beaten track LOCAL GRANNIES
adventures unearthed secret bars and A translator is on hand when you join
restaurants we’d otherwise never have elderly residents from the tiny village
accessed with such a warm welcome. of Sasahara. The knowledge-packed
Largely because Sakuma is an utter locals share their wisdom as you make
delight. oishiitours.com local dishes: choose from recipes such
as agar cake or rustic mochi (Japanese
RYU GO N rice cake). It all takes places in the rural
This accommodation is set in an town at the foothills of the Yatsugatake
ancient Ryugon temple in Japan’s Mountains. chinotabi.jp
Niigata snow region and offers two
cooking classes. Learn to make
a traditional Niigata winter hot pot
or kenchin jiru (vegetable soup) with
a local then bathe in the hot springs
when you’re done. ryugon.co.jp
T H E full
SQUID
Pipit chef Ben Devlin takes his closed-loop approach from ocean
to table, and then to the walls, via the Japanese art of gyotaku.
Photography ELISE HASSEY
Clockwise from above: grilling the
squid tube; scoring for texture; chef
Ben Devlin plates up; the whole raw
squid; and the final dish, bamboo
shoots, grilled squid marinated in
sake with brown butter, squid garum
and salted preserved yuzu, finished
with squid garum jellies. Opposite:
Ben Devlin and Yen Trinh at Pipit.
“When I first saw this Japanese style of art, it

grabbed me, inspiring me to get involved.”
I
n Pottsville, Pipit chef Ben Devlin is putting
the “closed-loop philosophy” of his restaurant
into action. And it’s a beautiful thing.
Working in the Pipit dining room (though
he usually makes art in the kitchen when the
restaurant is closed), his muse for the day is a locally
sourced squid, which stars as both the subject and
medium in his gyotaku practice.
Gyotaku is an ancient Japanese art form where
sea creatures are used as “printing plates” to create
squid ink impressions on rice paper. At Pipit, which
Devlin and his wife Yen Trinh own together, the art
form dresses the walls and is sold on the website as
an extension of the restaurant’s sustainable ethos.
First the squid is cleaned, then the ink is
harvested. To make the print Devlin covers the
squid in its ink and presses it with rice paper then
uses the ink and a calligraphy brush to paint in the
eyes and fine details. This is the point where the art
form usually stops but Devlin takes it further,
cleaning the squid again, breaking it down, and
using the parts to make a delicate dish of bamboo
shoots, sake marinated squid, yuzu and squid garum.
Devlin says, “As a chef I had access to the ingredients,
this felt like a wonderful way to honour them.” ➤
“I liked taking the whole product – the raw
product if not the live product – then using it
to make something beautiful so it can live on.”
Clockwise from above: Devlin prints
the rice paper; Pipit recipe book
on display; offcuts used to make
garum; squid body finely sliced into
“noodles”; Devlin in action; preparing
the ink. Opposite, clockwise from left:
Devlin’s Calamari and its Ink print in
Pipit’s dining room; Devlin glazes the
squid with garum before grilling; and
prepares the whole squid for printing.
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M AY
Oishii eats
The Yakitori Yurippi team share their street food
secrets, washoku and the art of traditional
feasting, plus a lesson in sandoitchi.
Washoku in
motion
p98
PHOTOGRAPHY JAMES MOFFATT.
Words ANNA McCOOE Styling STEVE PEARCE
Photography BEN DEARNLEY Food preparation JESSICA BROOK
EDO ON
TIN JUNG SHEA of Sydney’s Yakitori Yurippi shares the
secrets to mastering this favourite Japanese street food snack.
A STICK
I
s this the moment Japanese food As Shea puts it, “Yakitori is street
in Australia gets rowdy? Tin Jung food. It’s meant to be fast and cheerful;
Shea thinks so. And he is stating it’s food for the people.” And while
his case loudly and clearly at his yakitori literally means “grilled bird”
Crows Nest yakitori bar, Yakitori the term is shorthand for a relaxed style
Yurippi. The sizzling, snacky, boozy den of eating delicious snacks on sticks.
of Japanese street energy is a throwback Shea and friend Mitomo Somehara
to Shea’s exchange student era. This was got their yakitori start at the Crows Nest
spent studying engineering at Sapporo Markets before opening Yurippi in 2015.
University by day and cramming into Last year Chris Wu came to the hibachi
yakitori bars by night, ordering skewer party and the Hatena Group was
after delicious skewer and tasty sides. formed. The Japanese hospitality group
There’s artistry here. Take for now has four venues, all with the same
instance the dice-sized pieces of chicken litmus test. Shea explains, “We say
all in a row or the never-ending tare, when the Japanese stop coming to
which is replenished each night. Yet the eat we’ve done something wrong.”
mood is more casual than cloistered. yurippi.com.au
Yakitori Hechimon
Shigaraki Lotus Leaf
dish with Legs and
Ceramic-Ai Ceramic
Curry Deep dish (leaf
plate) from Kakumei.
All other props
stylist’s own.
Yakitori negima
p 92
YAKITORI NEGIMA
Chicken and spring
onion skewers
MAKES 10 // PREP TIME 25 MINS // COOK 10 MINS
(PLUS RESTING)
“You want perfect 3 to 4cm cubes

for the chicken. Too small and the
chicken dries up. Too big and it won’t
cook through,” says Tin Jung Shea.
“And it’s important there are no gaps
between the chicken and shallot
to trap heat and juices.”
Pictured p91
600 gm chicken thigh fillets, skin on,

cut into 3-4cm cubes
3 thick spring onions, cut into 4cm lengths
Tare, for brushing (see recipe p95)
Char-grilled corn cobs, to serve
1 Preheat a charcoal barbecue (hibachi)

or gas barbecue to medium-high.
2 Meanwhile, thread 4 chicken pieces
onto bamboo skewers (soak skewers for
30 minutes in water to minimise burning),
alternating with spring onion. Brush with
tare, then grill, turning and brushing
occasionally, until the outside is charred
slightly and cooked through (8-10
minutes). Rest for 5 minutes then serve
drizzled with extra tare and charred corn
cobs on the side.
Miso glaze
MAKES 400ML // PREP TIME 5 MINS // COOK 5 MINS
(PLUS COOLING)
“This tasty glaze pairs beautifully with

vegetables or chicken,” says Shea.
“At home, brush it on towards the end
of cooking or the skewer might burn.”
50 ml sake
50 ml mirin
100 gm caster sugar
200 gm aka (red) miso
1 Combine sake, mirin and caster sugar

in a small saucepan over low heat. Cook,
stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves
(3-5 minutes). Transfer to a bowl with Zucchini Fukui Craft
sake cup in Green
miso and stir to combine. Cool, then store
and Brown 50cc from
in an airtight container in the fridge for Kakumei. All other
up to 2 months. props stylist’s own.
Onigiri
(PLUS COOLING, REFRIGERATING)
460 gm (2 cups) glutinous rice

Miso glaze, for brushing (see
recipe p92)
2 toasted nori sheets, cut into
6cm-squares
Freshly grated wasabi, to serve
1 Cook rice according to packet

instructions. Once cooked, spread
Zucchini skewers out on a tray and stand until cool
MAKES 10 // PREP TIME 5 MINS // COOK 5 MINS enough to handle (20 minutes).
2 Preheat a charcoal barbecue
2 zucchini (250gm each), cut into (hibachi) or gas barbecue to high.
2cm rounds 3 Using wet hands, shape sticky
Miso glaze, for brushing (see rice into 12 balls (110gm each), applying
recipe p92) pressure with your palms and fingers
Pickled cucumber, to serve until a firm ball is created. Place on
a tray lined with baking paper and slightly
1 Preheat a charcoal barbecue (hibachi) press to flatten and shape into a triangle.
or gas barbecue to high. Cover loosely with baking paper and
2 Meanwhile, thread 2 pieces of refrigerate for 30 minutes to firm up.
zucchini onto bamboo skewers (soak 4 Grill onigiri, turning occasionally,
skewers for 30 minutes in water to until lightly charred each side
minimise burning). (7-8 minutes). Brush with miso glaze
3 Grill, turning frequently until starting and cook until charred and crisp
to colour (2-3 minutes). Brush with miso (2 minutes). Place squares of toasted
glaze; grill for a further 1 minute or until nori on serving plates and top with
charred. Serve brushed with extra miso onigiri. Brush with miso glaze and
glaze and pickled cucumber on the side. serve with freshly grated wasabi. ➤
HOTATE
Scallops in half shell
12 large scallops in the half shell,

roe removed
Melted salted butter, for drizzling
12 purple shiso leaves
Shio kombu (see note), to serve

or gas barbecue to high.
2 Remove scallops from shells and rinse
shells. Grill scallops until golden (30
seconds each side). Return scallops to
shells, drizzle with melted salted butter.
Place shells on barbecue and cook until
butter simmers (1-2 minutes). Transfer to
a serving platter and place a purple shiso
leaf under each scallop. Scatter with shio
kombu; serve immediately.
Note Shio kombu is kelp cooked in soy
sauce, mirin and sugar, then dried and
cut into small pieces. It is available from
Japanese and Asian supermarkets.
Okra with ponzu and

bonito flakes
12 okra, trimmed, halved lengthways Tare

Bonito flakes (see note), MAKES 400ML // PREP TIME 5 MINS // COOK 10 MINS
for scattering (PLUS COOLING)
PONZU SAUCE
100 ml soy sauce “At Yurippi our tare, used as
60 ml (¼ cup) lemon juice a multipurpose glaze and dipping sauce,
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar is always evolving. We just keep adding
to it with drippings and leftovers from
1 Preheat a charcoal barbecue (hibachi) the night before,” says Shea. “Some
or gas barbecue to high. of our secret additions include minced
2 For ponzu sauce, combine ingredients ginger and garlic, leek and corn.”
and set aside at room temperature. Store
leftovers in an airtight container in the 250 ml (1 cup) soy sauce
refrigerator for up to 2 months. 125 ml (½ cup) mirin
3 Thread 4 pieces of okra widthways 125 ml (½ cup) sake
onto bamboo skewers (soak skewers for 110 gm (½ cup) brown sugar
30 minutes in water to minimise burning).
Grill, turning frequently, until charred and 1 Place ingredients in a saucepan and
tender (3-4 minutes). Serve scattered bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and
with bonito flakes and ponzu sauce on reduce, stirring occasionally, until slightly
the side. thickened (10-12 minutes). Cool, store in
Note Bonito flakes (katsuobushi) are an airtight container in the refrigerator
available from Japanese grocers. for up to 2 months. ➤
Pork shiso skewers
(PLUS SETTING, RESTING)
“Leave some fat – the flavour comes

from oil dripping on coals,” says Shea.
1.2 kg thin piece skinless pork belly,

fat trimmed
15 purple shiso leaves, stalks removed
Edamame and umeboshi (see note),
to serve

or gas barbecue to medium.
2 Place pork skin-side down on a work
surface and evenly place shiso leaves
slightly overlapping over pork. Roll up
pork lengthways, then tightly wrap in
plastic wrap; freeze for 30 minutes to set.
Slice pork widthways into 12, 2cm-thick
slices. Using two skewers, horizontally
skewer two rolled pork slices.
3 Grill skewers, turning frequently, until
beginning to colour. Brush with tare and
continue to grill, turning frequently, until
charred and cooked (8-10 minutes). Rest
for 5 minutes. Serve drizzled with extra
tare and with edamame and umeboshi.
Note Umeboshi (preserved Japanese
plums) are available from Japanese and
Asian grocers.
Cabbage salad
SERVES 4-6 // PREP TIME 10 MINS
400 gm coarsely chopped white cabbage

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tsp sesame seeds, toasted, plus extra
to serve
Shio kombu and shichimi togarashi
(see note), for scattering
1 Place ingredients in a bowl, season and

toss to combine. Transfer to a serving
bowl and scatter with extra sesame seeds,
shio kombu and shichimi togarashi.
Note Shio kombu and shichimi togarashi
are available from Japanese grocers.
TSUKUNE
Chicken meatball Potato salad
skewers SERVES 4-6 // PREP TIME 15 MINS // COOK 30 MINS

(PLUS REFRIGERATING) 700 gm Desiree potatoes, peeled, halved
1 large Lebanese cucumber, halved
“The tsukune is one of Yurippi’s original lengthways, seeds removed,
recipes. It evolved over the years finely chopped
through input from staff and it pairs 75 gm Kewpie (Japanese) mayonnaise
well with beer or our Suntory Toki Mentaiko (see note), for scattering
Highballs,” says Shea. Begin this recipe
a day ahead. 1 Place potato in a saucepan and add
enough cold water to cover; boil over
1small onion, finely chopped medium heat until tender (25-30
1tsp finely grated ginger minutes); drain then mash. Cool slightly.
1garlic clove, finely grated 2 Combine potato, cucumber and
3spring onions, green part only, mayonnaise in a bowl; season to taste
finely chopped and cool to room temperature. Divide
1 egg, lightly beaten among serving plates and top with
600 gm skinless chicken thigh fillets, mentaiko, to serve.
pulsed in food processor until Note Mentaiko, salted cod roe, is
finely chopped available from select Japanese and
200 gm minced chicken Asian grocers.
Vegetable oil, for cooking
1 Place ingredients, except tare in

a bowl; mix until well combined. Cover
and refrigerate overnight for flavours
to develop.
or gas barbecue to medium-high.
3 Meanwhile, using damp hands,
divide mixture into 12 and shape into
oblong meatballs.
4 Heat a large frying pan with a little
vegetable oil over medium heat. Cook
meatballs, in batches if necessary,
turning frequently, until lightly browned Pork shiso Hechimon
and just cooked (6-8 minutes). Shigaraki Ceramic Sasa
Leaf plate and Satsuma
5 Push meatballs onto bamboo skewers Kiriko Whisky glass in
(soak skewers for 30 minutes in water to Green, Edo Kiriko, from
minimise burning) and brush with tare. Kakumei. Potato salad
Hechimon Shigaraki
Grill, brushing and rotating skewers with
Green Leaf bowl from
more tare until lightly charred (5-6 Kakumei. All other props
minutes). Serve drizzled with extra tare. stylist’s own.
WASHOKU
Japan’s traditional food, known as washoku, is equal
parts philosophy and heritage. The concept combines
gratitude with harmony and skill with seasonal eating.
Here, we have created a modern washoku menu.
IN
Grilled salmon
tataki with lime
and jalapeño
ponzu
p 103
MOTION
Photography JAMES MOFFATT
Styling OLIVIA BLACKMORE
Recipes TAMIKA O’NEILL
Drinks suggestions SAMANTHA PAYNE
Pickled radish Small

black dish (with wasabi)
from Robert Gordon.
Salmon Sadaaki Kido
Shino sake cup from
Pickled radish Provider Store. All other
and cabbage with props stylist’s own.
shio koji
p 107
Crisp pork and ginger gyozas with sesame rayu
MAKES 30 // PREP TIME 30 MINS // COOK 20 MINS (PLUS COOLING)
Crisp on the outside, juicy on the inside, these pan-fried parcels are pure joy to eat. But it’s the ritual of
preparation; the communal folding, pinching and pleating, that takes this dish to its appreciative peak.
125 gm (2 cups) shredded Chinese 1 For sesame rayu, heat oil, onion, the edge 5 times. Fold over to enclose
cabbage garlic and ginger in a small saucepan the filling. Place on a tray and repeat with
400 gm minced pork over low heat until small bubbles rise remaining mixture and wrappers.
4 dried shiitake mushrooms, to the surface (8-10 minutes). Meanwhile, 4 Heat peanut oil in a large frying pan
rehydrated, finely diced combine remaining ingredients, except over medium-high heat. In batches,
2 tsp each finely grated ginger, sesame seeds, in a small, heatproof space gyozas out over the base of the
soy sauce and shiro (white) miso bowl. Pour hot oil mixture over chilli frying pan. Cook until the base is crisp
¼ tsp ground white pepper mixture and combine. Set aside for and golden (3 minutes). Pour in ¼ cup
½ cup finely chopped coriander 1 hour to cool. Strain through a sieve water and cook covered until gyozas are
leaves and stems and discard solids. Add sesame seeds just cooked and water has evaporated
30 round gyoza wrappers to oil and set aside until required. (4-5 minutes). Remove lid and cook until
2 tsp peanut oil 2 For filling, place cabbage in base is crisp (2 minutes). Repeat with
SESAME RAYU a colander. Sprinkle with 1 tsp fine remaining gyoza. Serve with sesame rayu.
250 ml (1 cup) vegetable oil cooking salt and set aside for 10
2 spring onions, cut into 3cm batons minutes. Squeeze out excess moisture Drink suggestion Dewazakura Seijo
6 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped and transfer to a large bowl with pork, Karakuchi, Yamagata prefecture. ➤
15 gm ginger, thinly sliced mushrooms, ginger, soy, miso, pepper
2 tbsp chilli flakes and coriander. Mix until combined.
1 tbsp togarashi 3 To make gyozas, spoon a heaped
1 tsp chilli powder teaspoon of mixture onto the centre of
3 star anise the wrapper. Brush the edge with a little
2 tsp toasted sesame seeds water and using your fingertips, pleat
Mushroom miso soup
Miso soup is the linchpin of teishoku, which is rice, miso soup, pickles and three side
dishes. With the addition of mushrooms it becomes a home-style meal in its own right.
10 gm dashi powder 1 Combine dashi powder with 1.5 litres Note Furikake is a Japanese seasoning
¼ cup each shiro (white) miso and water in a saucepan over high heat. that contains roasted sesame seeds,
wakame seaweed Bring to the boil, reduce temperature nori, bonito flakes, salt and sugar. It can
1 tsp finely grated ginger to medium and simmer for 4 minutes. also contain egg, shiso, wasabi,
1 strip lemon peel Whisk in miso until dissolved. powdered miso, freeze-dried salmon,
100 gm oyster mushrooms 2 Add wakame, ginger, lemon peel and cod roe, and controversially, MSG. It is
100 gm enoki mushrooms, tips reserved mushrooms. Simmer for 2 minutes. available from Japanese grocers and
100 gm dried shiitake mushrooms, Remove from heat. select supermarkets.
rehydrated 3 To serve, divide tofu among four
200 gm silken tofu, cut into 2cm cubes bowls. Ladle 1½ cups miso soup over Drink suggestion Amanoto Tenkuro
2 spring onions, thinly sliced tofu. Sprinkle with reserved enoki Junmai Genshu, Akita prefecture.
1 tsp furikake (see note) mushrooms tips, spring onion, furikake,
Micro tatsoi and purple shiso, tatsoi and shiso. Serve immediately.
to serve
Grilled salmon tataki with lime
and jalapeño ponzu
SERVES 4 // PREP TIME 10 MINS // COOK 5 MINS (PLUS RESTING)
The searing kiss of heat and aromatic sesame gives sashimi-grade salmon extra oomph. In
washoku, tataki is served as a first course known as o-tsukuri, meaning to create, or arrange.
Salmon Sadaaki Kido Shino
sake cup and wooden
chopstick rest, both from 600 gm sashimi-grade salmon, skin 1 For ponzu, place ingredients, except
Provider Store. Mushroom removed and pin-boned jalapeño, in a small bowl and stir until
miso Bamboo ladle from 1 tsp sesame oil sugar dissolves.
Provider Store. All other
½ Lebanese cucumber, seeds removed, 2 Preheat a frying pan over high heat.
finely chopped Drizzle salmon with sesame oil. Cook
1 tsp each lime zest and chilli oil salmon for 30 seconds each side or until
Micro nasturtium leaves, to serve the flesh is slightly opaque. Transfer to
LIME AND JALAPEÑO PONZU a chopping board and rest for 5 minutes
60 ml (¼ cup) soy sauce before slicing into thin pieces.
2 tbsp lime juice 3 Arrange salmon on a platter. Add
1 tsp each caster sugar and rice jalapeño to ponzu and drizzle over
wine vinegar salmon. Top with, cucumber, zest,
1 small jalapeño chilli, thinly sliced chilli oil and micro nasturtium leaves.
Drink suggestion Yoshinogawa

Hiyanama, Niigata prefecture.
Teriyaki beef Cafe
tray in Brown from
Provider Store.
All other props
stylist’s own.
Slow-cooked teriyaki beef ribs

SERVES 6 // PREP TIME 15 MINS // COOK 4 HRS 15 MINS
Cooked in the oven until the meat falls away from the bone then finished on the
barbecue for a delicious char, these ribs are bound to promote gratitude all round.
Before the meal, it’s traditional to say “itadakimasu”, meaning “I humbly receive”.
2.8 kg rack of beef ribs 1 For spice rub, combine ingredients,

1 bunch spring onions, trimmed plus 1 tsp sea salt flakes, in a small bowl.
Sesame oil, for brushing 2 Pat ribs dry with paper towel. Peel
Toasted sesame seeds and steamed away thin membrane on the bone side.
rice, to serve Rub spice mix all over ribs to completely
Trio of Japanese pickles, to serve cover then place on a roasting tray.
(see recipe p107) 3 Preheat oven to 160˚C. Combine
SPICE RUB teriyaki sauce ingredients and 125ml
2 tbsp sweet paprika water in a jug; pour into tray. then cover
75 gm (1⁄3 cup) brown sugar with foil. Bake for 4 hours or until meat
1 tsp each ground ginger, is tender and pulls away from the bone.
garlic powder 4 Preheat a barbecue or char-grill pan
½ tsp ground white pepper on medium-high heat. Lightly brush
TERIYAKI SAUCE spring onions with oil, then barbecue,
80 ml (1⁄3 cup) each soy sauce, turning occasionally, until charred
sake and mirin (2-3 minutes).
2 tbsp sriracha 5 Spoon teriyaki sauce from the pan
over ribs to coat. Barbecue, turning
frequently and basting occasionally,
until charred and caramelised. Transfer
to a large platter with barbecued spring
onions and drizzle with remaining
teriyaki. Scatter with toasted sesame
seeds and serve with rice and pickles.
Drink suggestion Fukuju Junmai Ginjo,

Nada, Hyogo prefecture. ➤
Black sesame crème
brûlée
(PLUS CHILLING)
Nutty black sesame takes this decadent

French classic on a Japanese side trip.
2 tbsp each black sesame seeds Pear and green apple

and honey winter slaw
5 egg yolks
SERVES 4 // PREP TIME 5 MINS
1 tsp vanilla extract
75 gm (1⁄3 cup) caster sugar, plus extra
With fine slithers of apple and pear this
for scattering
punchy side is a balancing force on the
500 ml (2 cups) thickened cream
washoku table.
1 Preheat oven to 160°C or 140°C 1 each green apple, Packham pear and
fan-forced. Toast sesame seeds for 15 nashi, cut into julienne and sliced
seconds. Transfer to a spice grinder and 50 gm shredded daikon
grind to a fine powder. Mix powder with 30 gm mizuna
honey to form a paste. Purple shiso, to serve
2 Whisk together egg yolks, vanilla and YUZU KOSHU AND SESAME VINAIGRETTE
sugar in a bowl until dissolved. 2 tbsp lemon juice
3 Place sesame paste and cream in a 1 tbsp soy sauce
small saucepan over low heat; whisk to 1 tsp each sesame oil
combine. Cook, stirring occasionally until 1 tsp yuzu kosho (see note)
just beginning to simmer (10 minutes). Pour
60ml of heated cream into egg mixture to 1 For vinaigrette, place ingredients
temper then continue gradually adding in a bowl, season to taste and whisk
heated cream, whisking, to combine. to combine.
4 Divide mixture among four 300ml 2 To serve, combine apple, pear, nashi,
ramekins. Place ramekins in a roasting daikon, mizuna and shiso in bowl;
pan. Add enough boiling water to reach drizzle over dressing.
halfway up the sides; bake until set but Note Yuzu kosho is a Japanese
with a slight wobble in the middle (30-35 condiment made from fresh chillies
minutes). Remove ramekins from water; (usually green) combined with the rind
cool for 30 minutes. Cover with plastic and juice of the fragrantly tart yuzu, then
wrap and chill for 4 hours or until set. fermented. Available from Japanese
5 Sprinkle brûlées evenly with extra grocers and select supermarkets.
sugar. Caramelise with a blowtorch,
stand for 5 minute or until caramelised Drink suggestion Heiwa Shuzo Yuzushu,
sugar is crisp. Wakayama prefecture.
Drink suggestion Hombo Shuzo Joto

Chiran-Cha Umeshu, Kagoshima
prefecture.
Trio of Japanese pickles
SERVES 4-6 // PREP TIME 15 MINS // COOK 10 MINS (PLUS PICKLING, COOLING)
Pictured p99
CUCUMBER AND SESAME GINGER IN PLUM VINEGAR 3 For ginger in plum vinegar, bring
125 ml (½ cup) rice wine vinegar 100 gm young ginger, thinly sliced a saucepan of water to the boil. Blanch
1 tbsp caster sugar 125 ml (½ cup) ume (see note) ginger until softened slightly
1 tsp sesame oil 125 ml (½ cup) mirin (2-3 minutes). Drain and spread out
1 garlic clove, crushed 2½ tbsp caster sugar onto paper towel, stand until dried
2 Lebanese cucumbers, thinly sliced 1-2 drops red food colouring (4-5 minutes). Combine ume, mirin,
sugar, 1 tsp sea salt flakes and food
RADISH AND CABBAGE WITH SHIO KOJI 1 For cucumber pickle, in a bowl whisk colouring in a small bowl. Add ginger
60 ml (¼ cup) mirin together vinegar, sugar, oil and garlic. and pickle for 15 minutes before serving.
1 tbsp sesame oil Add cucumbers and toss to coat. Pickle Note Ume (plum vinegar) is available
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar for 15 minutes before serving. Drain. from Japanese grocers. If unavailable,
1 bunch watermelon radish, 2 For radish and cabbage, combine mirin, substitute red wine vinegar. Shio koji
thinly sliced sesame oil and vinegar in a small bowl. (koji salt) is available from Japanese
1 tsp shio koji (see note) Reserve half of the dressing. Add radish; grocers. If unavailable, substitute
2 tsp toasted sesame seeds pickle for 10 minutes. Combine shio koji, chicken stock powder.
2 tsp sesame oil sesame seeds and oil, and garlic in
1 garlic clove, crushed a large bowl. Using your hands, rub Drink suggestion Kidoizumi
350 gm white cabbage, washed, mixture over cabbage to coat. Transfer Shuzo Shizenmai Sparkling,
coarsely chopped to a dish and top with pickled radish and Chiba prefecture.
drizzle with reserved dressing.
Hokkaido
scallop
katsu and
green
onion nori
p 112
SUPER SANDO
In his new book Cult Sando, chef JIMMY CALLAWAY shares
the Japanese art of the perfectly pressed sandoitchi.
Agedashi
tofu with
tsuyu sauce
p 112
I
n Japan, sando are everywhere:
on convenience store shelves,
Shinkansen menus and even in
vending machines. Their rising
popularity in the West over the past
decade means sandos now appear on
the menus of high-end restaurants and
hipster pop-ups everywhere.
Perhaps the popularity of sando is
due to their seemingly simple design.
As with all great inventions, however,
sando are not always as they seem.
They are a culinary example of the
Japanese pursuit of perfection, but
what makes sando unique among
sandwiches is that they are wrapped
and pressed. This unites the filling
and bread so that, when cut, they
make a beautiful cross-section. They
are usually served chilled or at room
temperature, but almost never hot,
even with a katsu filling.
Sando falls into the culinary food
group of yoshoku, which roughly
translates to “Western food”. The
Japanese version uses a bread called
shokupan. This sweet, light milk bread
is as ubiquitous in Japan as katsu,
gyoza, udon and ramen.
Pork cutlet, tonkatsu
sauce and white
cabbage
MAKES 2 // PREP/COOK TIME 40 MINS // PRESS TIME
15 MINS
“Behold, the most famous katsu! The

secret is a triple threat of fatty high-
quality pork, nama panko, and a sweet,
tangy tonkatsu sauce,” says Callaway.
4 slices shokupan eggwash. Repeat flour and eggwash, remaining slices of shokupan.
1 litre canola oil, for frying then finish by covering thoroughly with 9 Wrap in plastic wrap and press for
150 gm (1 cup) plain flour nama panko. 15 minutes.
3 eggs, whisked 5 Gently place pork katsu in deep fryer 10 To serve, trim crusts and cut into
250 gm (4 cups) nama panko (see note) for 4 minutes (crumb should be light thirds widthways.
2 x 180 gm pork cutlets, sliced 2cm thick, blonde in colour). Remove from fryer and Note Nama panko are fresh
then cut into 10cm x 10cm pieces place on a wire rack. Set fryer to 170°C. breadcrumbs made from shokupan.
60 gm white cabbage, finely shredded Once at temperature, fry katsu for a They are typically used in the top katsu
80 gm salted butter, softened further 1 minute. Surface should now be restaurants in Japan because, once fried,
100 ml tonkatsu sauce golden brown and very crisp. the result is an exceptionally crisp
6 Place on a wire rack, standing upright, coating. To make nama panko, remove
1 Put oil in deep fryer and set to 90°C. to drain for 6 minutes. Once rested, lay the crusts from a loaf of shokupan.
PHOTOGRAPHY ALAN BENSON.
2 To set up a crumbing station, in three flat and drizzle half the tonkatsu sauce Shred the remaining bread into bite-
consecutive trays, place plain flour first, over the two pieces. sized pieces. If you prefer a finer crumb,
eggs second and nama panko third. 7 Evenly spread the butter across four once shredded, you can place in a food
3 With a skewer, thoroughly prick slices of shokupan. Divide shredded processor and blitz. Store in an airtight
the surface of the pork (this will aid cabbage across bottom slices of bread. container until needed. ➤
the cooking). 8 Lay pork katsu on cabbage, sauce
4 Lightly dust pork on all surfaces with side down, and drizzle over the
flour, removing the excess. Coat in remaining tonkatsu sauce. Top with
Agedashi tofu with tsuyu sauce
MAKES 2 // PREP/COOK TIME 20 MINS // PRESS TIME 20 MINS
“Based on the popular starter, this surprisingly satisfying sando reworks the traditional flavour
combination of salty soy and smoky, savoury benito flakes,” says Callaway. Pictured p109
4 slices shokupan 2 Once boiled, remove from the heat Place spring onion on top of daikon.
300 gm silken tofu and use immediately, or store in an Take fried tofu and place on one side,
3 litre canola oil, for frying airtight container and serve cold at a with 1 tsp sauce on top. Cover with
380 gm (2 cups) potato starch later time. benito flakes, then top with remaining
50 gm daikon, peeled and 3 Cut the tofu lengthways and place slices of shokupan.
coarsely grated both halves between several layers of 7 Wrap in plastic wrap and press for
1 spring onion stalk, finely diced paper towel to drain for 15 minutes. 20 minutes.
1 packet (2gm) benito flakes 4 Put oil in deep fryer and set to 175°C. 8 To serve, trim crusts and cut
TSUYU GLAZE 5 Meanwhile, place potato starch on a lengthways. Garnish with leftover
100 ml dashi stock (see note) plate. Once tofu is dry, gently dust in benito flakes.
25 ml shoyu (soy sauce) potato starch. Deep-fry until crispy, about Note Dashi stock can be found
25 ml mirin 3 minutes. Place onto a wire rack and at Japanese grocers.
allow excess oil to drain for 2 minutes.
1 For tsuyu glaze, in a small saucepan, 6 To assemble, spread 1 tbsp tsuyu
place dashi, shoyu and mirin, and bring glaze evenly across two slices of
to the boil over medium heat. shokupan. Evenly distribute daikon over.
Hokkaido scallop katsu and green onion nori

MAKES 2 // PREP/COOK TIME 40 MINS (PLUS DRYING) // PRESS TIME 3 MINS
A sando of individually fried scallop katsu nestled in aromatic fried spring onion,
sesame oil and nori mayo. Pictured p108
4 slices shokupan mayo, sesame oil and powdered nori. 6 Remove scallops from panko and
3 litre canola oil, for frying Whisk together until completely gently place in deep fryer. Cook until
2 tbsp sesame oil combined. To store, place a small piece golden brown, about 1 minute.
2 spring onions, green part only, of plastic wrap directly on top of mayo 7 When ready, remove and drain on
finely diced to prevent a skin forming. Store in a cool paper towels. Evenly spread nori mayo
2 cups dried panko crumbs place, ready for later use. over two slices of shokupan and place
2 tbsp rice flour 2 Put canola oil in deep fryer and set spring onion on the remaining slices.
150 gm (1 cup) plain flour to 180°C. 8 Place six scallops over the spring
2 eggs, whisked 3 Heat sesame oil in a small saucepan onions. Top with remaining shokupan
8 large whole scallops, cleaned and over medium heat for 1 minute. Add slices, nori mayo side down.
dried between paper towels for spring onions and stir for 20 seconds. 9 Wrap in plastic wrap and press for
6 hours in the refrigerator Remove from heat and allow to cool. 3 minutes. To serve, trim crusts and cut
NORI MAYO 4 Combine panko and rice flour. Set up in thirds widthways.
½ sheet nori, toasted (see note) a crumbing station: in three consecutive Note To toast nori, take one corner of
60 gm (1⁄4 cup) Japanese mayo trays, place plain flour first, eggs second a nori sheet and gently fan over a low
1-2 ml sesame oil and panko mixture third. to medium flame or charcoal embers
5 Remove scallops from fridge and roll until it becomes aromatic and crisp.
1 For nori mayo, tear toasted nori into in plain flour, followed by eggwash and Do not rush, because nori burns quite
small pieces and place in a blender. Blitz then panko mixture. Allow to sit in panko easily. Use immediately.
on high until it resembles a fine powder, mixture for 4 minutes, ensuring each
about 90 seconds. In a small bowl, add scallop is completely covered.
This extract from Cult Sando
by Jimmy Callaway (Harper
By Design, $27.99) has been
Black sesame ice-cream with red bean reproduced with minor
GT style edits.
MAKES 2 // PREP/COOK TIME 1 HR (PLUS FREEZING) // PRESS TIME 1 HR
“These flavours are as synonymous with Asian cooking as rice and soy sauce,” says
Callaway. “Black sesame, with its earthy nuttiness, pairs beautifully with the smooth
sweetness of red bean.”
4 slices shokupan sesame seeds, stirring continuously, peaks form. Pour evenly into the lined
150 gm (½ cup) red bean paste and toast until aromatic. While still warm, tin (give it a few light taps). Freeze for
BLACK SESAME ICE-CREAM place in a high-speed food processor 6 hours.
½ cup black sesame seeds with the honey. Blitz until paste is 5 To assemble, spread red bean paste
1 tbsp pure honey completely smooth. evenly across four slices of shokupan.
340 ml thickened cream 3 Place 100ml thickened cream, glucose 6 Remove ice-cream from mould and
80 ml (1⁄3 cup) double cream and black sesame paste into a saucepan, cut in half widthways. Place on two slices
6 tbsp glucose and over medium-high heat bring to a of shokupan. Top with remaining slices,
100 ml skim condensed milk simmer for 90 seconds. Set aside to bean paste side down.
cool completely. 7 Wrap in plastic wrap and press for
1 Grease and line a 20cm x 12cm loaf tin 4 Combine remaining 240ml thickened 1 hour in the freezer.
with plastic wrap. cream, double cream and skim 8 To serve, trim crusts and cut
2 For the black sesame ice-cream, in condensed milk with the cooled black lengthways.
a frying pan over low-medium heat, add sesame mixture. Slowly whisk until soft
tokyotokyo.jp
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M AY
Tokyo,
Japan
p 124
Hidden gems
Discovering Kyoto’s new generation, four perfect foodie
PHOTOGRAPHY IRWIN WONG.
days in Tokyo, a chef’s tour of Hiroshima, checking into

Kimpton Shinjuku, and heading off the beaten path.
N
E
W
FASHIONED
Photography LUKE BURGESS
Temples. Tea ceremonies. Geisha. These are all reasons why Kyoto,
is celebrated as Japan’s wellspring of tradition. A new generation,
however, wants to change the story, writes MAX VEENHUYZEN.
L
ast time I checked, pizza wasn’t part of
a traditional kaiseki meal. And yet, as
dinner at Monk crescendos with elegant
wood-fired pies freighting fresh nori, the
herbal mountain plant fukinoto and other seasonal
Japanese ingredients, it feels like the most natural
thing in the world.
News that Italy’s most famous flatbread has
infiltrated Japan’s most traditional meal is
shocking enough. That this is happening in the
country’s cultural ground zero is another level
of scandalous again. But while the purists rage,
others are excited about this new direction.
“Kyoto is the best place to open up
a restaurant,” says Yoshihiro Imai, Monk’s chef-
patron. A former pizza chef in Nagano, Imai
relocated to Kyoto and opened Monk in 2015
where he serves highly seasonal, highly delicious
modern kaiseki menus. “It has culture, it’s close
to nature and locals are interested in new things.
I could see that there was a new wave being driven
by people that came here from other parts of Japan
and wanted to be part of it.”
Although Kyoto is rich in culture, history
and enlightenment – for more than a millennium,
it was the Japanese capital – the city has always
harboured a progressive bent. Kyoto bamboo
helped Thomas Edison create the world’s first
light bulb. The Kyoto Electric Railway company
operated Japan’s first streetcar. Nintendo was born
here. Tourists might flock to Kyoto for temples,
tea ceremonies and cherry blossoms, but beyond
the surface is a city that values the future as much
as it does the past.
“Kyoto is dynamic, it’s moving” says Zenbu
Tours’ Jane Lawson, a former cookbook publisher
that moved to Kyoto in 2009 and now runs small
group tours around Japan. “It’s a city of contrasts
but it’s more obvious because there’s this amazing
ancient culture and traditional buildings and
gardens. We’re seeing a real effort to level up the
experience and give visitors a deeper experience
and understanding of Kyoto.”
From maverick restaurants to contemporary
new hotels, these are some of the players helping
define the new Kyoto. ➤
E AT
Thick slices of kingfish, heady with smoke from the

wood-fired oven. Charry knobs of sunchoke contrasted
against luscious tufts of mozzarella. A shared bowl of
carrots, blushing pink radishes and other organic Kyoto
veg – bought every morning from the hara farmers’
market – simply roasted and sharpened with salt. The
aforementioned new-school pizza. All ways in which
Yoshihiro Imai celebrates the season at Monk, his cosy
14-seat restaurant next to the Philosopher’s Path. Factor
in a star turn on Netflix’s Chef’s Table and it’s not hard
to understand why Monk is one of the old capital’s most
in-demand tables. An essential if unexpected meal for the
Kyoto-bound.
Also from the department of I-didn’t-see-that-coming is
suburban deli, Salsiccia. During the week, Naoya Suzuki
makes traditional and not-so-traditional fresh sausages (pork
snags buzzing with sansho pepper, anyone?). On Saturdays
and Sundays, he stays open for dinner and cooks the
restaurant’s namesake alongside lasagne, trippa alla Romana
and other Italian favourites while pouring vino naturale.
New-wave cafés and bakeries are also actively unifying
east and west. Instagram-friendly Ha Ra is as likable for its
cosy aesthetic as it is a tight edit of polished brunch dishes
including comforting eggplant lasagne and a meticulously
built BLT. Hefty breakfast rolls crammed with thick bacon
and a fluffy scrambled egg help explain the constant
queues at fresh-faced new bakery, . For those happy
to travel for their daily bread, take the one-hour, two-train
journey to Otokoyama where Camphora Kitchen awaits.
In a past life, owner Rihito Maruhashi made croissants at
Tokyo’s legendary Path and worked at London’s Lyle’s and
E5 Bakehouse. Nowadays, he’s turning out sourdough,
canelés and lemon tarts for clued-up eaters.
Elsewhere, second-generation owners are proving you
can teach old restaurants new tricks. At Taiho, Toshihiro
and Satiko Watanabe have been serving high definition,
nuanced Chinese food for almost half a century. While
patriarch Toshihiro continues to hold it down in the
kitchen, son Kouki manages the family’s organic farm in
nearby Ayabe where he raises pigs and grows produce for the
mothership. (Taiho’s slow-cooked pork with mustard leaves
and black bean, plus crazy good dandan noodles, speak to
Kouki’s interests in both provenance and Sichuan cookery.)
Daughter Hiroko is a cheery presence on the floor and Clockwise from top
manages Taiho’s mighty natural wine list. Sobatsuru, left: serving sake at
a homely soba joint in the Sakyo neighbourhood, is another Sobatsuru; toasted
PHOTOGRAPHY YUKA YANAZUME. MONK: LIGHT AND SHADOW ON THE
ginko at Sobatsuru.
PHILOSOPHER’S PATH BY YOSHIHIRO IMAI IS PUBLISHED BY PHAIDON.
must. After taking over from their late parents, brothers Opposite, clockwise
Shigeto and Hideo Isada and sister Masako have bolstered from top: a dish at
Sobatsuru’s soba offering with otsumami (drinking snacks) Monk; its exterior;
its wood-fire oven.
of real finesse. Think roasted gingko nuts, slices of karasumi
(dried mullet roe) sandwiched between clouds of grilled
mochi, and tempura-fried uni. ➤
Getting
DO there
Pro-tip: hire a bicycle. Flat, laid out in a grid and cyclist- From within Japan,
friendly – even the one-way streets have bike lanes in both Kyoto is best
accessed via bullet
directions – Kyoto is a terrific city to ride around. Bike hire train (Shinkansen).
is cheap and lets you see more of the city faster while also The journey is just
earning all-important food and drink credits. Drop into over two hours from
Tokyo or 15 minutes
Kurasu to buy coffee equipment plus a bike map detailing from Osaka.
the city’s cafés of note. The success of the recent Andy jrailpass.com
Warhol retrospective at the Kyocera Museum of Art
underscores the value of art to Kyoto (and, indeed, Japan
as a whole) while the collection at the National Museum
of Modern Art includes key Japanese and foreign pieces.
The Kyoto International Manga Museum is your chance
to go deep into this modern-day Japanese phenomenon.
Ethelvine is your best bet for tracking down hard-to-find
local and European natural wines, while the shopping
arcades on Shinkyogoku and Teramachi streets and their
surrounds cover everything from top-dollar designer
fashion to sticker shops.
Clockwise from above: Kurasu; coffee at

Kurasu; bike-friendly streets of Kyoto; Ace
Hotel Kyoto’s lobby; and suite. Opposite,
from top: Hachi Record Shop and Bar; Wife
& Husband café.
DRINK
Kyoto might be synonymous with tea, but the city
takes its coffee seriously. Opened in 2005 by Ayumi
and Masahiro Kaneko, Weekenders Coffee was one
of the prefecture’s third-wave coffee pioneers. Today,
the Kanekos run their own roastery plus a charming café
in a converted machiya (traditional wooden townhouse)
complete with beautiful niwa (Japanese garden) and
machiai (waiting bench). An unexpected location behind
a parking lot adds to Weekenders’ must-do reputation.
Coffee at Wife & Husband is another unhurried
pleasure, both in the way it’s made as well
as how it’s enjoyed. In addition to relaxing in the snug,
converted house, guests can also hire picnic baskets,
chairs and tables to spend the morning picnicking at
the nearby Kamo River.
Traditionally, sake is meant to be an unobtrusive
accompaniment to food. Yoram Ofer, owner of sake
A DJ spins rare Indonesian bar Yoramu, wants to detonate that idea, as proven
funk-rock while drinkers by his selection of bold sakes that are anything but
lay waste to beer and retiring. From outré styles bottled by tiny breweries
to Ofer’s own cellared sake experiments, Yoramu
nigori sake. A picture that celebrates the diversity and potential of rice, water,
captured the pleasures of yeast and koji. Otherwise, the banks of the Takase
modern-day Kyoto. River canal remain a bar-hopper’s paradise. Barnacled
by decades of gig posters and cigarette smoke, Jazz in
Rokudenashi is the divey, late-night jazz bar of your
whisky highball and Blue Note LP dreams. It might
be a more recent arrival, but Hachi Record Shop and
Bar is underpinned by a similar love of music. On
S TAY
the night we visit, a Japanese-Balinese DJ spins rare
Indonesian funk-rock while drinkers lay waste to local
Located near popular Nishiki Market, 213-room Ace Hotel craft beer and ochoko cups of cloudy nigori sake.
Kyoto (rooms start from $479) embodies the city’s optimism It was a picture that captured the pleasures and
and cosmopolitan spirit. Fabrics have been designed possibilities of modern-day Kyoto.
exclusively for the hotel by Tokyo fashion label Minä
Perhonen; handsome timber furnishings are a recurring
feature and in-room turntables plus colourful pieces from
centenarian folk artist Samiro Yunoki come standard-issue.
In classic Ace style, the communal lobby boasting textiles,
twinkling copper lights and Japan’s first Stumptown Coffee
Roasters outpost is the hotel’s hub and heart. While service
exemplifies the Japanese ethos of omotenashi – my memory
of a staff member stopping vacuuming so I could wait for
the elevator in silence one afternoon won’t be soon
forgotten – the hotel’s F&B leans into Ace’s American
heritage. Los Angeleno Wes Avila of Guerrilla Tacos fame
is behind mezzanine lounge and taco bar Piopiko, while Mr
Maurice’s Italian – a project from Philadelphian chef Marc
Vetri – deals in chicken saltimbocca, biscuity pizzas and
red-sauce hits.
The art of…
making the
practical perfect
No other nation takes the packed lunch as seriously as Japan.

ANNA HART recalls the lunchbox that changed her life.
The art of travel
T
he first time I was awed by another result of centuries of careful refinement; during
nation’s food was the moment I saw the Edo period, from 1600, bento boxes became
Naoko’s lunchbox. I was an Irish an art form, and the word “bento” (derived from
eight-year-old at an international school “convenience”) was attached to the container itself,
in Singapore, and before I ate lunch with Naoko, some crafted in lacquered wood, others in utilitarian
my new friend from Tokyo, I was happy with my shiny tin. Japanese people have been working on
wholemeal bread sandwiches, wedged alongside their lunchbox game for centuries, and against
an apple inside a rectangular Friends of the Earth bento culture, my sandwiches didn’t stand a chance.
lunchbox. I unwrapped my squashed sandwiches When I finally visited Kyoto and Osaka, I was
from their foil, and Naoko deftly unclipped the lid tickled to discover the koraku bento, an array of
of her Hello Kitty lunchbox, revealing various onigiri and makizushi intended to be shared among
perfectly proportioned compartments containing a few diners. This challenged me, as I’ve always
tiny immaculately presented portions of food: associated bento with fierce individualism, fenced-in
steamed rice, tuna, cooked vegetables, purple and food that is mine, all mine. Bento offered a blessed
yellow pickles. A matching pair of pink chopsticks respite from the runaway popularity of sharing
slotted neatly into the lid of the box. I’d never seen plates, which sometimes triggers a Neanderthal
such state-of-the-art lunchbox technology. I’d never panic and gluttony in me. But it was a good lesson
seen a lunchbox aspire to such soaring aesthetic to be urged to share a bento, for once.
heights of pink cuteness. I’d also never seen such People far, far cleverer than me have delved into
meticulous compartmentalisation, such nutritional bento culture, examining what it says about the
neatness, the box deftly nation as a whole. The critic
wrangling food into order. Roland Barthes was struck by
Packed lunches, in my world,
I decided Japanese the lack of a “centrepiece” in
were always a bit of a mess. lunchboxes were bento, compared to Western
A tasty, eagerly anticipated the finest in the cuisines where meat tends to
mess, but a mess, all the same. world, the sort that be the star of the show. Barthes
I decided Japanese lunchboxes argued that the contents of a
were the finest in the world, would be issued bento box all work together in
the sort of highly functional to astronauts. harmony, exalting each other.
lunchboxes that would be issued The Japanese writer O-Young
to astronauts on space missions. Lee, meanwhile, used bento as a metaphor to deride
My parents humoured me and bought me the reductionism he saw in Japanese culture, where
a Japanese lunchbox of my own, which my peanut everything has to be compartmentalised and
butter sandwiches didn’t entirely fit into. But this minimised within a fixed structure. All I know is
was my first crush on another culture, and they were that I still consider Japanese lunchboxes to be the
sweet to encourage me. best lunchboxes in the world, even when pitched
It would be years before I visited Japan, but my against tiffin tins in Indonesia.
interest in its culture grew far beyond my lunchbox, And in times of flux, chaos or confusion,
and led me to love Kurosawa and Studio Ghibli I still cling to Japanese food like a life raft. Sushi is
movies, novels by Haruki Murakami and Hiromi my go-to airport meal, appropriate for breakfast
Kawakami and too many street fashion blogs and (airports exist outside timezones) or at 3am, reliably
Instagram accounts to mention. As a student in fresh, nourishing and uncomplicated. Ramen is
Glasgow, the first ever dinner party I hosted was a what comforts me, what I reach for when I’m
sushi feast, mainly because I felt I could always rely hungover, or unwell, or going through some sort
on Japanese cooking to bring order to chaos. My of emotional upheaval.
ILLUSTRATION GETTY IMAGES.
student flat might have been a mess, but the dining When I feel like I can’t look after myself, I can
Anna is a travel table was a serene oasis of simple, nutritious, pretty trust a bento box to do so; all the right decisions
and lifestyle sushi. This is all because of Naoko’s lunchbox. have been made for me, and I am presented with
journalist, and When I was first dazzled by that Hello Kitty an assortment of delicious yet portion-controlled
author of the
container, of course I didn’t realise that bento boxes and nutritionally balanced treats. Life is always
travel memoir
Departures. had been an integral part of Japanese culture since better after lunch, and perhaps this is why the
@annadothart the 12th century. Naoko’s school lunch was the Japanese felt lunch was worth perfecting.
A
TASTE
OF
TOKYO
PAUL EWART eats and drinks his way
around Japan’s largest city in four days.
G O U R M E T T R AV E L L E R
Left: scallops grilled
over coals on the
streets of Kōenji.
Opposite: casual
dining on Kōenji’s
“Yakitori street”.
YOKOCHO DINING
“My favourite of all Tokyo’s yokocho

alleys is Yurakucho Sanchoku
Inshokugai,” says Chantel Furbert,
a local expert with Inside Japan Tours.
Close to the Ginza district, this alley is
a collection of atmospheric hole-in-the-
wall restaurants, with each specialising
in a different regional cuisine from
across Japan, which means you can
sample dishes from Kyoto, Osaka,
Kyushu and even Okinawa, as you
sip on a cold beer or sake and watch
the walls rattle as the bullet trains
whizz overhead.
Our first stop is a tiny venue with
D A Y O N E street seating where we taste
“atsuage”, a thick slice of fried tofu,
I’m in K enji – the city’s youth subcultural centre. A one-time punk garnished with green onions, ginger
neighbourhood, now home to vinyl shops and hipster-filled coffee shops. and dried bonito fish flakes. “It’s a
Here, you can jostle at crowded counters as you work your way through classic of the Kanto region that
Japanese snack food staples. surrounds Tokyo,” she explains.
It’s while ambling in the bustling neighbourhood that the smell of Moving on we travel to Yanbaru
burning charcoal combined with roasting meat hits me – an aroma that Diner for a taste of the tropical islands
can only mean one thing: yakitori. of Okinawa, including the American-
I allow my nose to lead and soon find myself on K enji’s “Yakitori fusion favourite “taco rice”. Before
street”, on the west side of K enji Station. heading on to Osaka. “For a taste of
This is where I watch as an attentive chef continuously rotates Osaka, I love the tako-sembei,” she
negima skewers over a charcoal grill, while basting them in a sweet soy explains as we jostle for space at a
sauce and mirin mix. crowded bar. “It’s a takoyaki
Also, on K enji “Yakitori street” a queue of hungry-looking sandwiched in a thin, octopus-shrimp-
salarymen (all in their navy suit uniforms) are seated alongside a vendor flavoured rice cracker. Drizzled with lots
patiently waiting for their takoyaki. of mayo and takoyaki sauce.”
Joining the queue, I’m soon served a little wooden boat of the tasty Asking for tips on what to drink
octopus and batter morsels, brushed with a sweet sauce, drizzled with while yokocho-hopping, Furbert is quick
Kewpie mayo and topped with seaweed and freshly shaved bonito flakes. to reply: “Hoppy! It’s a sparkling
At the other end of Tokyo’s culinary scale is kaiseki – considered beer-like drink that can be enjoyed
Japan’s version of haute cuisine. straight, or mixed with shōchū, the local
Seated in a private dining room, in the unnamed basement spirit of choice in many yokocho.”
PHOTOGRAPHY IRWIN WONG.
restaurant at the Hoshinoya Tokyo hotel, I am treated to a fish-focused Tightly packed with a maximum
menu by chef Noriyuki Hamada (the youngest chef to win Japan’s capacity of four to 10 people in most
Bocuse d’Or International Gastronomic competition). Over three hours yokocho, be prepared to get cosy with
and multiple courses, French techniques are combined with Japanese your bar neighbours – chances are, you
seasonal produce in a memorable meal that is almost too pretty to eat. won’t end the night drinking alone! ➤
D A Y T W O
Rising early, I head to the original “outer market” of Tsukiji,
the source of much of Japan’s premium fish.
While the crowds queue up around the block before dawn for
a seating at Sushi Dai, a more local option is the compact, nine-seater
Tsukiji Koromo Sushi on the outer rim of the market. Here, nigiri
takes centre stage as the crowd either go à la carte or let the chef
take control.
My day-long sushi exploration continues with an omakase dinner
at Sushi Wakon where two-Michelin-starred chef Rei Masuda serves
traditional “Edomae” sushi – a style that dates back to the 1820s.
Pulling up a chair at the coveted counter – where only four other
guests join my partner and I – we watch in awe as a chef deftly slices
ruby-red bluefin tuna with a marble-hilted knife (one that bears
a resemblance to a samurai sword) and hand grates wasabi, all the
while dealing with a barrage of our collective questions.
As appetisers, including horsehair crab with caviar, appear in
front of me, I learn it takes a decade to become a sushi master.
Time well spent, as this is the best sashimi I’ve ever tasted.
D A Y T H R E E
In Yanaka, Nezu and Sendagi (collectively known as Yanesen) narrow winding
streets are peppered with senbei (rice crackers) and sake shops.
The area is also a hub for creative young Japanese, including third wave coffee
pioneers. One of these is helmed by a Japanese husband-and-wife duo who have
brought their Melbourne concept café to the streets of Yanaka. At Cibi you can
expect a killer flat white, alongside the best avo on toast you’ll find in town.
At the main shopping street, Yanaka Ginza, I spy a vendor selling tempura,
which reminds me this fried favourite is still unchecked on my Tokyo eating list.
First introduced to Japan in the 16th century, there are now an estimated
4000 tempura eateries in Tokyo alone. I take my cue from a local friend and take
a 20-minute train ride to Taito to visit Sansada, reported to be the oldest tempura
PHOTOGRAPHY BENITO MARTIN & IRWIN WONG.
restaurant in Japan. Sansada has been operating for 180 years and still maintains
its Edo-era origins, using sesame oil for frying.
Opting for a seasonal tempura platter of white fish, rape blossoms and tiger
prawns and squid, I season with salt and a dipping sauce of tentsuyu with grated
daikon radish.
Come dinnertime, I’m feeling brave enough to tackle the fearsome fugu.
Fugu, or puffer fish, can be deadly if served incorrectly thanks to a neurotoxin
in the liver (chefs must obtain a licence to serve fugu, proving their skill).
I’m in safe hands at the Yamadaya’s Tokyo outlet, a two-Michelin-starred
restaurant serving paper-thin slices of blowfish sashimi – fugu in its purest form.
Clockwise from right: kinmedai
osso bucco at The Jade Room;
and its dining room. Opposite,
clockwise from bottom: Cibi;
produce at the “outer market”
of Tsukiji; and one of its vendors.
E AT
Tsukiji Koromo Sush

koromosushi.therestaurant.jp
Sushi Wakon sushiwakon-tokyo.com
Sansada tempura-sansada.co.jp
Yamadaya usukifugu-yamadaya.jp
Dashinsoan dashinsoan.jp D A Y F O U R
The Jade Room Feeling the need to make my next big meal a nourishing one,
thejaderoomgardenterrace.com soba noodles, revered for health-giving properties, come next.
Yanbaru Diner yanbarudiner.com The soba experience at Dashinsoan in Shimokitazawa takes
place in a traditional house fronted by a small Japanese garden.
Choose from a range of staples and seasonal soba, served
S TAY
both hot and cold, but if you want to go as unadulterated as
possible, opt for zaru and seiro soba, which are served cold
Hoshinoya Tokyo Tokyo’s first luxury with a dipping sauce.
ryokan, Hoshinoya Tokyo is the only I dunk them in a dipping sauce, raise them to my mouth
hotel in central Tokyo with access to with chopsticks and savour them with the ultimate sign of
a natural hot spring. hoshinoya.com appreciation, a long and satisfied slurp.
For my final meal in Tokyo, I look to the stars. The city is the
The Peninsula A plush five-star world’s Michelin-starred capital with more than 260 restaurants
property with a 20-metre pool, jacuzzi holding the culinary accolade. One of the newest is The Jade
and terrace that takes in vistas across Room, the first Asian restaurant by British celebrity chef, Tom
the gardens of the Imperial Palace. Aikens – who currently holds a Michelin star for his London
peninsula.com eatery, Muse. At The Jade room, the Japanese-meets-Western
menu has already won over local tastemakers.
Working my way through the signature seven-course tasting
menu, Aiken’s culinary prowess takes the form of bright,
sumptuous dishes, including the wood-roasted celeriac carpaccio
with truffle shavings, the Aomori duck, smoked beetroot
and red cabbage, and a surprising hit of onion custard, bread
miso, grains and Hokkaido cheese, paired with Japanese wines
(yes, wines).
Delicious dining aside, the adjoining alfresco terrace is worth
the booking alone for its stellar skyline, making it the perfect spot
to reflect on four days that have been well spent.
GUTTER CREDIT
H
onolulu is fortunate enough to be famous for more than just
one bloody day; the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7,
1941. But Hiroshima is a city that will always be synonymous
with one devastating date.
It is impossible to visit this bustling, modern city – the eleventh largest
in Japan, with a population of 1.1 million – without considering its painful
place in history, as the location of the most shocking, truly unprecedented
crime against humanity, the dropping of an atomic bomb on a civilian
population, an attack that killed as many as 100,000 people on August 6,
1945, with at least another 80,000 dying more slowly by the end of that year,
from burns, injuries and radiation poisoning. ➤
Exploring
STEPHEN CORBY goes from devastation to delight with chef Ben Shewry.
It also completely flattened, or torched, 70 per cent
Clockwise from above: the of all the buildings in Hiroshima, as its vast fireball burned
quiet streets of Miyajima; a chef to almost 4000 degrees Celsius. Pretty much everything
prepares okonomiyaki; Attica you see in the city, then, is much younger than the rest
chef Ben Shewry; a ferry ride
to Miyajima. PREVIOUS PAGES of Japan. Even the beautiful Hiroshima Castle, originally
Left: Hiroshima Castle. Right: built in the 1590s, was painstakingly rebuilt to look like
a wild deer wanders in front of its former glory, back in the 1950s.
the giant torii gate at Miyajima.
Among the many incredible things you are reminded
of in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum – a place
you really must visit and one dedicated, most obviously,
to ridding the modern world of nuclear weapons – is that
the unfeasible, inhuman toll of the atomic bomb was not
enough to scare the Japanese into ending the war.
Three days later, the US dropped another fire storm of
fission on Nagasaki but it took another six days after that
for Emperor Hirohito to announce Japan’s surrender.
I ask our guide, Nobu, whose father was an atomic bomb
survivor, if the Japanese people were angry about that, or
more so with the US, but she has no fury to offer. “There is
no anger, we just want to learn the lessons of history, and for
this never to happen again.”
Hiroshima’s approach to remembering is right there
in the name of its moving museum – other countries would
call it a War Memorial, but theirs is one of Peace.
Nobu is keen to change the subject to another the locals
are passionate about, food, and in particular the local
specialty that was a surprising side effect of the bombing –
Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki.
“After the war, as people were rebuilding, there wasn’t
much food, or much to cook on, so this way of putting
whatever they could find together and making it as
a pancake was born – ‘okonomi’ means ‘whatever you
want’ and ‘yaki’ means ‘grilled’,” she explains.
You could think of it as a kind of Japanese bubble and
squeak, a suggestion that amuses Nobu, who reveals that
local English speakers also call it “economy-yaki”.
The dish is everywhere in the city – indeed our travelling
companion, Attica chef-owner Ben Shewry, manages to find
one five-floor-high food court selling almost nothing else.
The multi-layered dish of noodles, egg, pork (or
calamari), thick brown and luscious Peking-duck-like
okonomiyaki sauce with a vast choice of toppings, is
generally served on a hot plate so you can keep it warm
while slicing and dicing it. For the ultimate immersion,
though, we visit the Otafuku’s Okosta Okonomiyaki
Experience at Hiroshima Station, which promises
“Borderless Happiness”. “After the war, there wasn’t
Shewry looks delighted as we are dressed in gaudy
orange aprons and chef’s hats and gather around a vast grill much food, or much to
plate to be taken through the various, and necessarily cook on, so this way of
dexterous steps of making our own okonomiyaki. putting whatever they
Definitely more of a generous soul than a show-off,
Shewry decides to make two at once so that our could find together as
photographer doesn’t miss out on lunch, and makes it a pancake was born.”
look both easy and tidy (his obsession with keeping his
workspace clean is obvious, as is his ability to touch
hot things without seeming to feel any pain), while certain
journalists who shall remain nameless turn their first
pancake attempts into something chapati-like.
I’m happy to report that my okonomiyaki tasted better
than its ragged looks, as it combined a multi-storey
combination of flavours into something rich and filling. ➤
Slug
Clearly taken by getting his hands dirty, if only very

briefly, Shewry is keen to further explore the single-minded
devotion to perfection of Japanese chefs. As he points out,
it’s far less common to find a restaurant serving a full menu
of native dishes in Hiroshima, where small – and I mean
quite often standing room only, with elbows tight to your
sides – venues specialise in just one thing.
“I love Japanese food and what I admire about Japanese
cooks is their ability to focus on one thing and do it just
so incredibly well,” Shewry enthuses as we wander along
streets packed on either side with windows proferring plastic
versions of their food offerings.
“In western society, we don’t really have that laser-like
Clockwise from above: a Mazda focus to submit completely to being excellent at just one
CX60 at the Mazda Hofu plant; thing, whether it be cooking rice, sushi, okonomiyaki, just
a chef prepares sushi; sushi at
dedicating your life to be elite at that one thing.
Mazda plant. Opposite, from
top: Ben Shewry behind the “So you can go to a restaurant that just does yakitori, or
wheel; dinner at Mitakiso. just sushi, and you’ll know they’ve been working to perfect
that dish. Another thing you notice is that they respect their
ingredients immensely.”
Eventually we settle on Sushi-Rindo, a restaurant slightly
smaller than a mini-van and with just six seats at the bar,
where Shewry somehow manages to talk the non-English-
speaking chef and owner, Mr Ito (who explains through our
interpreter that he had to do a three-year apprenticeship
before he was allowed to make sushi) into letting us make
our own dinner.
Rolling the rice ball in your fingers, like a spin bowler, is
even harder than it looks and can lead to dropping some on
the floor, unless you’re a chef and just naturally good at that
kind of thing.
The next day we head to stand inside a postcard on
Hiroshima’s Miyajima island, a day trip that every visitor
must take to let their eyes drink in “one of the top three
iconic scenic spots in Japan” as you’re told on the ferry.
Brushed with forest and adorned with temples and
very tame wild deer, the island’s torii gate draws all eyes
and cameras, particularly when the tide is in and it seems
to float, part of the ocean itself and truly majestic. Miyajima
is also famous for its oysters, but you may have to queue to
get the most popular ones. It’s an apt preamble to our
kaiseki dinner at top-notch restaurant, Mitakiso, where
seafood is the star.
Our final stop is a slightly unusual one, also linked to
the city’s bombing. Jujiro Matsuda, the founder of Mazda,
was born on August 6 and had just driven away after having
a haircut for his 70th birthday when the bomb dropped,
obliterating the barber shop and hurling him from his car.
Getting
there
The easiest way to
travel to Hiroshima is
by high-speed bullet
train. The journey is
approximately four
hours from Tokyo or
one hour and 40
minutes from Kyoto.
He survived, as did most of his factory – it was protected

by a mountain – and just four months after his city was
flattened, Mazda production was back up and running.
Today, one in 10 Hiroshima residents work in the car
industry, and it’s very much a one-brand town. Shewry was
keen to visit the Mazda Museum, which is filled with
vehicles that make you realise how old you are, because you
may have learned to drive in a model that’s now considered
worthy of preservation.
The museum saves its best surprise until last, however,
when you are invited to visit and walk above the company’s
final assembly line – a true taste of local life. Far from
the robot-filled factory you’re expecting, what is truly
mesmerising to watch are all the humans at work in
a show of “mass craftmanship”.
We stare for quite some time at one worker as he leaps
from one kind of car to another performing different
bolt-tightening, part-attaching tasks, all with incredible
speed and concentration.
Whenever you visit Japan it’s impossible not to marvel
at their dedication to task, whether it’s cooking, creating
art or producing incredibly complex modern cars.
They’re also a calmly optimistic people, who really
hope that one day the rest of the world will work out how
to run a train system that’s fast, clean and always on time. Whenever you visit Japan
In front of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum it’s impossible not to
there is a Flame of Peace, cupped by a sculpture of two marvel at their dedication
hands, that’s been burning since 1964. It will only be
extinguished when the rest of the world, like Japan, to task, whether it’s
reaches the point of having no nuclear weapons. It’s cooking or creating art.”
still burning right now.
CHECKING IN
Kimpton Shinjuku, Tokyo

We take the guesswork out of travel with our tips on where
to stay, eat, drink and play. This month, GT heads to Tokyo.
Shinjuku,
To k y o
Quick
look
Where
3 Chome-4-7,
Nishishinjuku,
Famous for its bright lights, buzzing bars and neon-lit skyscrapers, Shinjuku is one of Tokyo’s most Shinjuku City, Tokyo
vibrant areas to visit. But Kimpton Shinjuku manages to create an oasis of calm for guests, whisking Facilities
them high above the action and into a world of clean, modern serenity. Each of the hotel’s 151 rooms is Prices start from
complete with yoga mats and rain showers and most rooms include deep soaking baths. Inspired by $695 per night.
New York’s art and fashion scene, you’ll find all manner of quirky, colourful touches throughout the hotel’s Gym Yes
common areas – including an ever-changing roster of art installations and retail pop-ups. In the lobby, Restaurant Yes
S T A Y
The Jones Cafe and Bar keeps guests hydrated throughout the day, offering complimentary takeaway Bar Yes
coffee in the morning and complimentary wine during the daily social hour, a prime opportunity to meet Free WiFi Yes
fellow guests, including those of the four-legged variety thanks to the hotel’s popular pet-friendly policy.
kimptonshinjuku.com
Checking in
The colourful chaos of Shibuya Crossing has become a symbol of

Tokyo but it’s far from the only side to this multi-dimensional city.
A morning walk through Yoyogi Park to Meiji Jingu – a Shinto
shrine dedicated to the Emperor Meiji and his wife Empress
V I S I T
Shōken – is a welcome tonic to the frenzy of surrounding Shibuya
City. Set in 70-hectares of parkland, you’ll find locals and tourists
alike soaking in the silent serenity of the shrine, as well as
admiring the surrounding Meiji Memorial Picture Gallery,
which features a collection of 80 large-scale murals.
Clockwise from above: Sake barrels at the entrance

to Meiji Jingu Shrine; Omoide Yokochō, a maze of
food stalls near Kimpton Shinjuku at night; the
ultimate “fashion plate” at Gucci Osteria. Opposite:
inside District brasserie at Kimpton Shinjuku.
E X P E R I E N C E
If you don’t attempt karaoke in Tokyo, did you even visit the Japanese
capital? There are dozens of ways to take part in Japan’s favourite
pastime in this city – from solo booths to on-stage performances
backed by a live band. You’ll find plenty of private rooms in and around
WIORDS JOANNA HUNKIN. PHOTOGRAPHY YUBI RENTAL (KIMPTON SHINJUKU). GETTY IMAGES.
Shinjuku and Shibuya but you’ll need to head to Ginza for the solid-gold
entertainment that Karat provides. Whether you’re brave enough to take
the stage or not, a visit here will convert even the most reluctant observer
into a super fan, as singers step into the spotlight to unleash their inner
rock star with total abandon. Audience participation is compulsory,
whether you speak Japanese or not, and joyful hilarity is guaranteed.
Brunch Dinner Drinks

In the tradition of Manhattan’s Ginza’s Gucci Osteria was one of Just next door at the Park Hyatt,
classic hotels, the Kimpton’s 21 new entries to Tokyo’s Michelin you can recreate your own Lost in
District brasserie offers sleek Guide in 2022, earning its first Translation moment at New York
all-day dining, blending western Michelin star. The Massimo Bar, where sweeping views of the
favourites with Japanese specials, Bottura-led collab is easily one city are served up alongside
including teppan grilled scallops, of the most stylish dining classic cocktails and live jazz.
Murakami sausage and sakura experiences around, while head Celebrity spotting is possible but
(cherry blossom) cheesecake. chef Antonio Iacoviello combines not guaranteed. Alternatively,
Otherwise, you can grab something his Italian heritage with his love of you’ll find Prohibition-era cocktails
E A T
quick from The Jones, where the Japan to create unique and playful at the Kimpton’s own penthouse
signature blend cold brew draws dishes, such as “The Parmigiana bar, 86, located on the 17th floor,
coffee lovers from across the city. that wants to be a Ramen”. complete with an alfresco terrace.
After Tokyo and Osaka, these lesser-known destinations will
lead your Japanese odyssey into unexplored territory.
Road less travelled
FUKUOKA
THE MULTICULTURALIST
Not too big, not too small, Fukuoka is the most populous city on Kyushu Island and the
gateway to southern Japan. Located closer to Seoul than it is to Tokyo, and also counting
Shanghai and Taipei as near-flung neighbours, the city is no stranger to cultural cross-pollination.
Fukuoka’s population of 1.5 million people includes a healthy number of students, giving rise
to a cosmopolitan destination with plenty to offer hungry and thirsty travellers.
STOP IN SEE
Coffee Hanasaka. A tiny coffee shop on the Fukuoka Art Museum. Diversity is a key tenet
fifth floor of a cookie-cutter building in the of this institution. Part of serene Japanese
trendy Daimyo neighbourhood, this is the kind garden Ohori Park, the museum is home
of place that could only exist in Japan. Vintage to a dynamic collection of modern and
movie and art posters beautify the timber-clad contemporary pieces from Japanese, Asian
space; the soundtrack is record-based; coffees and international artists. Come to admire
are meticulously and carefully made and the works from Salvador Dalí, Andy Warhol and
house-baked cheesecake is finished with salt Joan Miró while discovering lesser-known An artwork at
for maximum savour. An absolute pleasure. names such as Japanese avant-garde photo Fukuoka Art Museum.
Opposite: blooming
Closer to ground level, Ecru serves excellent collagist, Toshiko Okanoue and her partner, cosmos in Ochi
coffee by day before slowly morphing into surrealist painter Kazutomo Fujino. town, Kochi.
a natural wine bar after dark.
Part of serene Japanese garden

Ohori Park, the museum is home
to a dynamic collection.
WORDS & PHOTOGRAPHY MAX VEENHUYZEN.
EAT
Warayaki Mikan. Diners flock to this izakaya
near Naka River to watch smiley chef Takurou
Sueyasu play with fire. Beyond its signature
straw-grilled (wara means straw, yaki means
grilled) fish, this boisterous hotspot knocks
them over with artisan sake, seasonal seafood
and thick slabs of house-made mentaiko
– Fukuoka’s famous salted pollock roe.
DRINK Above: chef Takurou

Sueyasu at Warayaki
Tasogare. Half the fun of drinking here is Mikan. Right: Cape
finding this bijou natural wine bar hidden Ashizuri, Kochi.
inside an apartment block. (Hint: when you
get to the Yamazaki Daily convenience store,
head into the lobby around the corner, take
the steps up to the first floor and walk towards
the end of the green corridor). The other half
is owner Nagisa Teshima’s warm welcome and KO C H I
her thoughtful edit of organically farmed wines LA ISLA BONITA
from Japanese vignerons, plus the European When Japan’s transportation network extended to Shikoku Island,
cuvees that inspired them. just 35 years ago, the “formality” memo presumably missed the train
to Kochi. Located along the far-eastern, coastal fringe of the island’s
QUEUE FOR treacherous mountain spine, this relaxed prefecture languishes in
Mendo Hanamokoshi. Fukuoka might be a subtropical microculture, perfumed with yuzu blossom, sea spray
synonymous with tonkotsu, but the city’s and bonito barbecue.
ramen game goes beyond gutsy pork bone
soups. Here regulars patiently queue for their
chance to admire Norihiro Hirohata’s strong LOCAL HERO
DIY ethos. The house special is the noko Hatayama Tosa Jiro. Cross-legged on the tatami, farmer-chef Seiichi
torisoba: a mass of springy handmade noodles Komatsu silently wields his chopsticks over our binchotan-fuelled hibachi
and shockingly tender chicken char siu in with the focus of a monk gently relocating a mosquito. Japan’s Jidori
a thick, shampoo-like broth. It’s limited to (humanely raised local chicken) story speaks of legendary flavour, but
around 20 serves a day and fans know to consuming Kochi’s rare-breed Tosa Jiro is deeply visceral. Savour
begin lining up ahead of the shop’s 11.45am buttery, raw liver as each element of pristine fowl, from cockscomb and
opening to make sure they score a bowl. sperm-sac to plump breast slivers are precision-grilled for tenderness.
A repeat sequence, taken further, encourages extended mastication
SIDE TRIP – essential in noting the altering umami. Essence of Tosa Jiro bones and
Itoshima. An easy one-hour drive from marigold-coloured yolks grace an ethereal Oyakodon (mother-and-child
Fukuoka City, this seaside town is an ideal day rice bowl), perfectly concluding the sensory meditation.
trip. Among the area’s edible attractions: the
cutesy bakery, Domu no Mori (get the fried VISIT
curry bread); pots of salted custard served Kure Taishomachi market. Everyday, fishmonger Tanaka-san hauls his
with ocean vistas at seaside salt factory, morning catch onto the lunch menu in rustic Kure Taishomachi market.
Shinzaburo Shoten; and emerging sake Katsuo (bonito) sashimi is accompanied by raw garlic slices, wasabi and
producer, Shiraito. On the way home, drop in shiso and Katsuo-no-tataki, seared over open-flame, is seasoned with
at Ito Sai Sai, a local farmers’ market carrying sundried seasalt and spritzed with yuzu. This soulful, life-affirming
soft cream (the Japanese word for soft-serve fish food industry almost singlehandedly sustains the township.
ice-cream), local seafood and rice. No katsuobushi (smoked, dried and fermented bonito), no dashi.
Kochi languishes in a subtropical
microculture, perfumed with yuzu blossom,
sea spray and bonito barbecue.
SIDE TRIP PERUSE

Umaji village. Less than 2 hours’ drive along Marche Yusuhara. Architect Kengo Kuma’s
cedar-lined Yuzu Road from Kochi city, the intimate relationship with one-time logging
enchanting village of Umaji is an alpine village Yusuhara, culminated in six brilliantly
community charged with nurturing the cream contemporary, yet appropriately woodsy,
of Japan’s yuzu crop. The most famous of community facilities. Most impressive is the
Kochi’s 60-plus citrus varieties include elegant library, an inviting forest of timber cross beams
Sudachi (lime), Buntan (pomelo variety), and nooks. Or you can stay overnight in his
sweet-sour Konatsu and brightly acidic remarkable, thatch-walled Marche Yusuhara
Naoshichi. Michi-no-eki (road-stations) and – a food hall – which offers comfortable
farmstands en route promise ambrosial accommodation, perched above a glorious
sustenance such as yuzu-honey aisukurin food market.
(sherbet) and vibrantly hued Inaka-zushi
(countryside sushi prepared with yuzu juice DO
and exquisitely preserved vegetables) while Sunday strolling. Kochi city thrives on
souvenir-worthy condiments include yuzu connection. Its 300-year-old Sunday Market,
kosho (chilli paste) and ponzu. a charming open-air promenade showcasing
culinary spoils alongside antique tableware
DRINK and handicrafts, is a favoured destination for
55th Avenue. Kochi City proudly exhibits meeting friends over molten imoten (sweet
a robust drinking culture that locals usually potato fritters). That’s the Kochi way.
pair with food and friends. Hirome Market’s
covered food stall maze, atmospheric 55th
Avenue (gojuugoban gai) izakaya or open-air
yatai (food carts) are key destinations for
relaxed evening gatherings. Annually in
March, week-long festival Tosa no Okyaku
celebrates a tipsy deity with seasonal sawachi
(oversized share-plates of abundance),
famously dry, full-bodied nihonshu (sake)
selected from the prefecture’s 18 acclaimed
breweries and, inevitably, dancing.
The more the merrier.
WORDS JANE LAWSON. PHOTOGRAPHY GETTY IMAGES.
KINOSAKI
THE SOAK STAR
With its lush mountain valley backdrop and willow tree-lined river, Kinosaki Onsen is the stuff
of storybook fantasy. Still under the radar for foreigners, this tiny town – only 2.5 hours from
Kyoto and Osaka – has lured Japanese wellness-seekers for more than 1300 years. This is
thanks to Kinosaki’s collection of renowned “onsen”, a blanket term for both hot springs
and the various bathing facilities that utilise them. Beyond healing hot springs, expect
to find fine dining and historical check-ins.
SOAK SAMPLE
Kinosaki’s seven onsen. The quintessential Snow crab. Every region in Japan has its own
Kinosaki activity is onsen-hopping. First local gourmet specialties, and Kinosaki Onsen’s
discovered by a Buddhist priest in 720 AD, pride is the matsuba-gani, or snow crab.
the ancient waters of Kinosaki Onsen were A local delicacy caught in the waters just north
put on the map after a former Emperor hailed of Kinosaki, the crab – only available during
their healing abilities. Now, there’s a public winter – is said to be some of the country’s
onsen for every day of the week — and that’s very best. Many of Kinosaki’s top ryokans will
in addition to private baths within the many have it on the menu during this time, including
ryokans (traditional Japanese inns). Each the gorgeous Nishimuraya Shogetsutei.
onsen bath has purported health benefits,
and each has a different mood to soak up. EAT
Sanpou Nishimuraya Honten. Kinosaki’s
STAY newest dining experience is a true
Kobayashiya. For travellers searching for paddock-to-plate journey. Focused on
WORDS PAUL EWART. PHOTOGRAPHY MASATOSHI MORI (KAI HAKONE) & GETTY IMAGES.
a cultural immersion that extends to their “iriori” cooking (a traditional sunken fire-pit
accommodation, then a stay in a ryokan is surrounded by stone), Sanpou Nishimuraya
essential. And the most historic in Kinosaki is Honten is committed to keeping this style of
Kobayashiya. Dating back 300-plus years, cooking alive. Chefs cook in the open hearth
Kobayashiya is fresh from its first major “kitchen” while diners are seated around it
renovation in more than 100 years, the to take in the theatre in all its ancient glory.
property has re-opened its doors with sleek
new private hot spring baths, a cosy library, an SIDE TRIP
exclusive penthouse suite that comes with its Hachigoro Toshima Wetlands and Izushi.
own “tea room”, and an in-house restaurant Beaches, wildlife and castles can be found
focusing on kyodo ryori (local cuisine). And nearby. Cycle along the Maruyama River and
like any local ryokan, overnight guests are you’ll hit the Toshima Wetlands, where you can
granted access all seven onsen for free. spot the Oriental White Stork, which is being
repopulated in the area through a breeding
program. Further afield (a 30-minute drive
away) is the castle town of Izushi. Another
Cherry blossoms at Kinosaki historical hotspot, here you can visit the
Onsen. Above: Sanpou region’s oldest working kabuki theatre, sake
Nishimuraya Honten.
Opposite, from top: dining at cellars, pottery producers, and sample local
Kai Sengokuhara; Mount Fuji specialty “sara” soba noodles, for lunch.
views from Shizuoka.
H A KO N E A N D S H I Z UO KA
T H E NAT U R A L B E AU T Y
Lying in the shadows of Mount Fuji and a mere 90 minutes from bustling Tokyo, the
regions of Hakone and Shizuoka (both in the Kanagawa prefecture) offer a shift in pace
from the frenetic city. With a rich heritage, perfect produce, and natural attractions, the
area has long been a traditional honeymoon destination for Tokyoites.
SEE
Mount Fuji. Given their location in the STAY
Fuji-Hakone-Izu national park, both Hakone Kai Hakone and Kai Sengokuhara.
and Shizuoka offer ample vantage points One of the most authentic ryokan experiences
from which to view this iconic snow-capped can be found at Kai Hakone, where guests are
mountain. Shizuoka’s Fuji Speedway Hotel, greeted with traditional tatami mats and
which offers Mount Fuji glimpses from half supplied kimono. A stay here is a direct line
of its 120 rooms, is well located for those to the days when ryokan were built to
seeking a room with a view. The hotel is also accommodate nomadic samurai. For a more
a vantage point for the UNESCO-recognised updated ryokan experience, Kai Sengokuhara
Shiraito Falls, one of the most beautiful falls pairs old-world charm with contemporary art.
in the country.
SIP
Amasake Chaya. Located on the ancient
Tokaido trade route between Tokyo and
Nagoya, Hakone’s 400-year-old Amasake
Chaya has been reviving weary travellers for
centuries with its amasake, a sweet rice drink.
Currently run by the 13th generation of the
Yamamoto family (with the 14th generation
on the way) this unique structure with its
original thatched roof, pressed earth floor and
open cooking fire-pit, offers visitors a true
glimpse into ancient rural Japan.
VISIT
Getting
there Shizuoka. This is the birthplace of the
cultivation of one of the country’s most famous
Japan’s largest
exports, wasabi. See (and taste) the local
airline, All Nippon
Airways (ANA), delicacies on a gourmet cycle tour with Crank
currently offers daily tours who pair foodie experiences with history
flights departing and stellar scenery, all from two wheels.
from Sydney to
Tokyo with ANA’s
Perth-Tokyo services INDULGE
set to return later in Arai Ryokan. There’s more soaking to be had
the year. ana.co.jp
in Hakone and Shizuoka, which boast the
To get around, arm highest concentration of hot springs anywhere
yourself with a Japan in the country. Shuzenji, on the Izu peninsula,
Rail Pass (or JR is the area’s the oldest onsen town, dating
pass). Klook offers
back to the 1870s. Here, Arai Ryokan is
seven- to 21-day JR
passes that can be a highlight; with 31 traditional guest rooms
pre-purchased and bathing facilities located across the
before you travel. property’s 10,000 square metres.
klook.com
A G o ur m e t Tr av e lle r p r o m o t i o n
Gourmet shopping
They’re the flavours of the month, so put these items at the top of your wish list.
1 2 3
RSL Art Union Your passport to a world of Oceania Cruises Enjoy a 12-day voyage Curatif Cooler months call for warmer
opportunity awaits in Draw 405. There’s a aboard Oceania Cruises’ Riviera, departing drinks, and what could be nicer than a
$6.6 million, five-level apartment complex Tokyo March 20, 2024, and visiting Kyoto, margarita made spicier? The world’s best
to be won, as well as $500,000 in gold to and Nagasaki, among other ports. Book by cocktail makers, Curatif, have done it
spend or save for the future as you see fit. April 30 for free shore excursions, beverage again with their incredible Spicy Margarita.
rslartunion.com.au/prizes/draw405 package and more. oceaniacruises.com/ Four cocktails for $45. curatif.com
4 5 6
Feline Natural provides rich nourishment The Greek Providore sources artisanal Spicers The Tamarind, Sum Yung Guys,
for a happy, healthy cat. Crafted with food and liquor products from Greece, Rice Boi and Spirit House join forces for
New Zealand wholefood ingredients, their like Kastra Elion, a sipping vodka distilled the fifth Sunshine Coast Asian Food Festival
pouches are available in a convenient from the fi nest Greek olives, blended with in Maleny in August. Includes food, drinks
multipack with 12 single serves. RRP $39.99, curated grains and natural spring water. and more, from $135 per adult and $95
felinenatural.com/collections/pouches RRP $129, thegreekprovidore.com.au per child. spicersretreats.com/events/
7 8 9
Tourism Noosa Nilla’s Pantry has a fresh, Flight Centre Trafalgar offers a wide Frontier Pets Made from free-range protein
organic salad bar, grab-and-go meals, range of guided tours through Europe and certified organic produce sourced from
pre-prepared fridge and freezer meals, and beyond, providing travellers with Aussie farmers, Frontier Pets is good for your
and other goodies to take home – now unique experiences, expert guides and pet and the planet. The Trial Pack includes a
at VanillaFood, 8 Lanyana Way, Noosa convenience. flightcentre.com.au/deals/ sample of each protein. Start making smart
Heads. vanillafood.com.au europe-uk-tours#trafalgar choices today. RRP $49, frontierpets.com.au
Gourmet Traveller Marketplace
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View 2024 Tours at lutèceculinary.tours

[email protected]
Pack free walking in Italy

It’s time to get your boots on and hit the trails exploring some Italy’s most
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Peninsula in northern Puglia, hills and villages of Chianti, the vineyards of
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app. For full details of our fully-supported, pack-free walks go to our
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HOLIDAY, ACCOMMODATION, FOOD & ART
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Karen Barnes 2022
Acrylic on Belgian linen
91 x 76cm

HOME . FASHION . BEAUTY
Curated living
Minimalist interiors, hints
of grown-up Harajuku chic,
self-care for body and hair,
and picture-perfect cameras.
STYLING HANNAH BLACKMORE. PHOTOGRAPHY KRISTINA SOLJO.
Home
ART OF SIMPLICITY 1
Explore the Japanese concept of “kanso” (purity)

where less is more and calm is of the essence.
10
PHOTOGRAPHY RORY GARDINER.
11
8
9
1 Lampe de Marseille wall light, $1638, Nook Collections. 2 Saskia Folk platter, $235, Tigmi Trading. 3 Betsy armchair in Unique Blue, $3840, Fenton
& Fenton. 4 Travertine Marco bowl, $250, Fenton & Fenton. 5 HK Living Ceramic jar, $99, House Of Orange. 6 Fritz Hansen basket in Ash Lacquer
Veneer, $425, Cult Design. 7 Cityscape cushion in Night Indigo $88, Shibori. 8 Tatami Natural rug, $3170, Cult Design. 9 Nau Nami Round coffee table,
$2559, Cult Design. 10 Chef Ceramics mug in Rustic Blue, $17.95, HK Living. 11 Chunky Box angora and merino wool throw in Wheat, $539, Bemboka.
ABOVE 8 Yard House designed by Studio Bright.
2
5
4
9
10
11
12
13 14
1 Smeg 600mm Classic Pyrolytic oven in Matte Black, $1690, Harvey Norman. 2 Elle Block Square side table, $1800, Globe West. 3 Herman Miller Nelson
Saucer Bubble pendant, $925, Living Edge. 4 HK Living Reactive Brown Ceramic sculpture, POA, House Of Orange. 5 Resin Skipping Stone Round vase
in Malachite, $105, Dinosaur Designs. 6 Tom Dixon Fat dining chair, $2685, Living Edge. 7 Gubi 9602 floor lamp, $1960, Cult Design. 8 August dining
table, $5940, Jardan. 9 Mortel Noir eau de parfum, $375, Trudon. 10 Garden to Table salad servers, $39.95, Robert Gordon. 11 Walter Knoll Jaan 780
sofa, POA, Living Edge. 12 Herman Miller Comma counter stool, $1965, Living Edge. 13 Tom Dixon Tank whiskey glasses, $149, Living Edge. 13 Origin
Solitude bowl, $109.95, Robert Gordon. OPPOSITE PAGE Courtyard House by Ha Architecture.
Home
WABI SABI
From traditional Japanese aesthetics to
modern architecture, natural materials
prove to be perfectly imperfect.
E IN
OM
H
SP
I R ATI
O
N
PHOTOGRAPHY TOM ROSS.
13
12
2
11
Inspired
by
3
The Tokyo Edition

Toranomon, Japan
Tokyo drift
Colour and grown-up sparkle take
Tokyo dressing to the max.
10
PHOTOGRAPHY NIKOLAS KOENIG (TOKYO EDITION). MERCHANDISING HOLLY DORAN.

4
6
1 Monica Chain Link midi dress in Forest
Green, $695, Aje. 2 J12 Cybernetic
38mm watch, $22,000, Chanel.
3 Sacai multi-print fringed wrap skirt,
$954, Farfetch. 4 Yohji Yamamoto
round-frame optical glasses, $988,
Farfetch. 5 Comme des Garçons
sleeveless wool coat, $2353, Farfetch.
6 Comme des Garçons single-breasted
floral-print blazer, $2235, Farfetch.
5
9 7 Bao Bao Issey Miyake prism tote bag,
$1802, Farfetch. 8 Vlogo Signature
earrings, $3000, Valentino. 9 Electra
boots, $329.95, Alias Mae. 10 Sacai
metal-panel metallic wallet, $661,
Farfetch. 11 Yohji Yamamoto asymmetric
hem blazer, $3137, Farfetch. 12 Guardian
pant, $475, Alémais. 13 Sacai two-tone
buttoned coat, $2720, Farfetch.
8
7
First class
Spot on There’s anticipation in an ellipsis: the dot dot dot that

tells us there’s more to come. And with Japanese artist
Yayoi Kusama, fairy godmother of the statement spot,
there’s always something new to be said. The art-world
Louis Vuitton and Yayoi Kusama’s latest darling first teamed up with Louis Vuitton a decade ago,
when Marc Jacobs was creative director. In 2023 she
love child is destined for cult status. and the French luxury house are collaborating again.
This time her endlessly dotty motifs symbolise infinity
(a fitting statement for the pairing of two icons) and they
are emblazoned across the Maison’s creations under
the moniker LV x YK. At GT our eyes are firmly fixed on
the Speedy Bandoulière 20, a compact handbag,
serigraph-printed with Kusama’s signature spots. Swung
over the shoulder from the removable strap or tucked in
as an in-flight “personal item”, it’s a first-class vessel for
a Tokyo state of mind... To be continued.
WORDS ANNA McCOOE. PHOTOGRAPHY KRISTINA SOLJO. STYLING JACQUI TRIGGS.
LV x YK Speedy Bandoulière 20, $5150, Louis Vuitton.
Beauty
GENT E
LI
DI
L
INTE
T
H E
T
BODY OF WORK
We’ve found the best products to care for skin from the neck down.
Because in matters of self-care, the body keeps the score.
1 KIT SOAP SLAB
2
Anyone who remembers the body gel
charge of the 2000s might be surprised
by bar soap’s return. And still, new wave
deluxe iterations have made a clean and
green comeback. This one is triple
milled for purity and enriched with
macadamia oil so it won’t dry out skin.
$16, mecca.com.au
COCO MADEMOISELLE THE BODY OIL

Scent meets skincare. This nourishing
body oil spray absorbs quickly for
3
a non-greasy finish with trails of Chanel’s
iconic amber fragrance. $110, chanel.com
NÉCESSAIRE THE BODY SERUM

Power plumper hyaluronic acid and
WORRDS ANNA McCOOE. PHOTOGRAPHY KRISTINA SOLJO. STYLING & MERCHANDISING HANNAH BLACKMORE.
super smoother niacinamide have
probably already made their way onto
your face in recent years but this body
serum takes their benefits below the
neckline. $75, mecca.com.au
CELLULAR ENERGISING MIST
4
La Prairie is leading the scented mist
movement. The new category pairs
fragrance (in this case ruby red grapefruit,
cardamom and verbena) with a burst of
hydration, resulting in a ritualistic and
nurturing swap for alcohol-based scents.
$245, laprairie.com
5
FRESH MILK BODY LOTION
Red and scaly skin will love this
plant-based milky solution, which
strengthens the skin barrier.
$58, sephora.com.au
ROSE BODY OIL
6
Jurlique aficionados already know that
their rose scent smells exactly like
a cottage garden after the rain. Now
fans can luxuriate in natural rose via
this silky body oil. $68, jurlique.com.au
Tress tested
Everything you need to restore brittle,
lacklustre locks to high-gloss glory. 3
GT team
favourite
5
1
1 A five-minute health boost for damaged tresses. Hair by Sam McKnight Deeper Love Intense Treatment Mask, $91, Mecca. 2 Comb a couple of pumps
through wet or dry hair for softness and hydration. Ouai Leave In Conditioner, $50, Sephora. 3 A fatty acid salve for softer strands. Bread Beauty Supply
Macadamia Oil For Hair & Body, $46, Sephora. 4 This four-piece collection, including shampoo, conditioner, comb and this nurturing Finishing Serum has
your mane game sorted. Iles Formula Signature Collection, $206.50, Rogue Beauty. 5 The secret ingredient in this everyday conditioner is baobab protein,
which increases hair elasticity while the baobab’s oil adds moisture. Arkive All Day Everyday Conditioner, $24, Mecca. 6 Glides through hair to detangle or
distribute conditioner. Iles Formula comb, as before as part of collection. 7 For shine and heat protection. Kerasilk Multi-Benefit Hair Oil, $48, Oz Hair and
Beauty. 8 A keratin kick for fragile hair. Oribe Signature Moisture Masque, $92, Rogue Beauty.
Objects of desire
In focus
Put down your phone! These travel companions
will capture – and keep you in – the moment.
PHOTOGRAPHY KRISTINA SOLJO. MERCHANDISING CHARLOTTE WISHART. STYLING JACQUI TRIGGS.
Clockwise from top left: Instax Mini 12 in Mint Green, $119, Fujifilm. Nikon Z fc Mirrorless Camera in Midnight Grey, $2049, Harvey Norman.
Canon Powershot G7 X Mark III, $948, Harvey Norman. Instax Mini LiPlay in Blush Gold, $239, Fujifilm. Sony ZV-1F Vlogging Camera in White,
$849, Harvey Norman.

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Food

EDO ON A STICK SUPER SANDO

Chicken and spring onion Pork cutlet, tonkatsu sauce

Crisp pork and ginger gyozas

THE FULL SQUID

Drinks 80 Ben Devlin embraces the Japanese art of gyotaku

43 DRINKS NEWS New openings and expert tips.

13 UPFRONT Editor’s letter and news.

66 MASTERCLASS Okonomiyaki. EXPLORING HIROSHIMA

BEST OF THE ITALIAN LAKES NORTHERN SPAIN

TRAVEL EXPERTS 131 600

IRISH EXPERIENCE BOHEMIAN HIGHLIGHTS

MONTHS INTEREST FREE

Deputy Editor Anna McCooe

Marketing, Research & Circulation

It took me nearly 40 years to make my way to Japan

Wüsthof Classic Colour Series Tudor Royal

Mount Fuji, Japan

Marriott Momi Bay Resort, Fiji

Promenade Bondi Beach, Sydney a’Mare, Sydney

guests at Purple Palm can order small

watching his family prepare freshly

Recommended for koicha (a stronger, thicker

than anywhere else in the world, to Kyoto’s serene

WORDS JORDAN KRETCHMER. PHOTOGRAPHPY KRISTINA SOLJO. STYLING HOLLY DORAN.

AN EGYPTIAN Beef nayyeh, rhubarb,

ADVENTURE Eggplant mes‘a’aha, spiced tomato

VENUE: Aalia, 25 Martin Place, Sydney

SCAN THE QR CODE TO BOOK YOUR TICKETS AT GOURMETREADERDINNER.EVENTBRITE.COM.AU

The director of the Sydney

I grew up in Durban, South Africa with Indian

When I arrived in Australia. I really missed some

That’s the really wonderful

When I’m travelling, I try to eat the food of the

fruits hanging in the sinuous branches long after

I ﬁrst met lawyer and poet

This month, we visit a stylish sake bar

KO M E Y UI serene white orchid display and garden

I t took me three years to realise that

F or some diners, the realisation

PHOTOGRAPHY JOSH NILAND (FOOD) & ROB PALMER (PORTRAIT).

AVAILABLE AT QUALITY LIQUOR MERCHANTS Find out more at dejavuwines.com.au

My most precious Champagne

What was your childhood like?

What is your earliest memory of sake?

Why did you pursue sake as your life’s work?

Why are you an advocate of the Yamahai-Jikomi brewing technique?

PHOTOGRAPHY YASUNORI SHIMOMURA (NOGUCHI NAOHIKO SAKE INSTITUTE).

Sake is on the rise outside of Japan. What is driving this trend?

What should we experience when visiting the Ishikawa prefecture?

AVAILABLE AT COLES, AMAZON, SELECTED INDEPENDENT GROCERS AND CAFES.

FOR THE MIXOLOGIST MUM

PHOTOGRAPHY KRISTINA SOLJO. STYLING HOLLY DORAN.

W HI SKY H IGH BAL L

WORDS MATTY HIRSCH. PHOTOGRAPHY KRISTINA SOLJO. STYLING HOLLY DORAN.

Single Malt Whisky First launched in 1937, the Barrel

Made in Japan 2018 Lamy-Pillot Champs

ELY & DRY

or sugar. “Daiginjo” refers to

the nth degree to which the