Q. What kind of food did you eat during your training in Osaka?

I tried Japanese, Korean, Italian, and Chinese. My main focus was Japanese food, but I didn't really like Japanese food at the time.

Besides, young people who have just graduated from high school in the countryside go to the city just out of curiosity and live in the city. I feel like I'm stuck.

So when I was 32, I moved to Okinawa. Skills can be acquired if you practice, but what is important for cooking is sensitivity or taste. I felt that Okinawa is very different, the music is unique, and there are many people with rich sensibilities. I think there is something important for me and my cooking.

As I continued to cook in Okinawa, I began to feel that I wanted to pursue Japanese cuisine even more, and that I wanted to cook Japanese cuisine with a reason, rather than ordinary Japanese cuisine. Because it's cooking. So I came back to Kochi.

 

Q. Is there anything you want your customers to receive through your cooking?

I want you to be healthy. I want you to think that you were able to come to eat and be refreshed, or that you were happy.

In general, eating out more often makes people unhealthy, so instead of eating out, I want to make food that makes us healthier. I don't use additives, and I incorporate a lot of vegetables and seasonal things. When you think about food balance and health, it's a course meal.

I conveyed my thoughts to the owner and he understood, and now I am in charge of the restaurant.

 

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Interviewer: Yuko Goda (Japakaru)