Cooking here now · Osaka · Oct 8–Nov 1

Japan

A sake brewery, Harita-san's onigiri and Tokyo ramen

April and May. Yunotsu in Shimane, then Fukuyama, Kagoshima and Tokyo. In Tokyo I made ramen broth and chashu with Chef Shun before service.

In Yunotsu, Harita-san took me foraging in the mountains, then made onigiri in her son's kitchen.

We cooked a pop-up in Yunotsu with WATOWA on April 12. Harita-san's onigiri is free below. Start with that one.

October 2026: a residency at Waldorf Astoria Osaka with Chef Keiji Tsutsumi.

I learned from ramen chefs, a wasabi grower and Harita-san in her mountain kitchen.

  • Japan
    I learned from ramen chefs, a wasabi grower and Harita-san in her mountain kitchen.    April–May 2026
  • Osaka, Japan
    I’m cooking at Jolie Brasserie, on the 29th floor of Waldorf Astoria Osaka, from 8 October to 1 November with its chef de cuisine, Keiji Tsutsumi.
    Book a table →    8 October–1 November 2026
Stories

From Japan

5:10
Japan

Why Japanese Oysters Are So Expensive

6:32
Japan

The Man Who Ate 3,000 Bowls of Ramen Took Me Here

3:32
Japan

How a Buddhist Monk Grows Real Wasabi in Japan

5:51
Japan

How a Japanese Grandmother Makes Onigiri in the Mountains

10:51
Japan

I Worked at Tokyo’s Viral Street Ramen Stall (50 Bowls an Hour)

20:10
Japan

I Found a 157-Year-Old Sake Brewery in a Town of 300 People

Shorts

Short clips from Japan

All Shorts on YouTube →

i met the man who ate 3,000 bowls of ramen

i got into a closed ramen shop in tokyo

i asked why ramen is $7 in tokyo and $30 in america

i learned onigiri from a grandmother in the mountains

i went out to an oyster farm on the seto inland sea

this sake has been made for seven generations

making pottery and eating wild boar in japan

i learned what kakiage actually means

The dinners

What I served in Japan.

Every dish I served. Where there’s a card in my notebook, it’s linked.

Coming up · Oct 2026

Jolie × Elizabeth Dinner

Amuse
  1. Bonito Mi-CuitBeetroot and shiso salad macédoine, pressed eggplant
First bite
  1. Cheez-ItParmesan, cheddar, chiliCard: Cheddar FinancierCard: Comté Mornay
Soup
  1. Matsutake Truffle SoupSoubise foam, seared matsutake, black truffleCard: Mushroom EssenceCard: Matsutake and Mushroom Soup
Fish
  1. Poached Kinmedai FishCardinal sauce, scallop boudin blanc
Main
  1. Charcoal Grilled Ezo DeerChoron, deer jus, pomme purée, pommes Anna, tomato petals, broccoliCard: Choron EmulsionCard: Deer Jus
Dessert
  1. Burnt Sudachi Meringue PieTorched meringue, sudachi zestCard: Meringue Pie CrustCard: Sudachi Curd
Coming up · Oct 2026

Jolie × Elizabeth Lunch

Amuse
  1. Bonito Mi-CuitBeetroot and shiso salad macédoine, pressed eggplant
First bite
  1. Cheez-ItParmesan, cheddar, chiliCard: Cheddar FinancierCard: Comté Mornay
Soup
  1. Matsutake Truffle SoupSoubise foam, seared matsutake, black truffleCard: Mushroom EssenceCard: Matsutake and Mushroom Soup
Main, choice of one
  1. Sea Bream GratinerYuzu pepper, shrimp bisque, carrot purée
  2. Duck FritesLightly smoked duck breast, truffle frites, béarnaiseCard: Duck MarinadeCard: Whole Duck
Dessert
  1. Burnt Sudachi Meringue PieTorched meringue, sudachi zestCard: Meringue Pie CrustCard: Sudachi Curd
Coming up · Oct 2026

Jolie × Elizabeth Celebration

Amuse
  1. Akashi Sea Bream CevicheLime, ají amarillo, coriander, toasted corn
First
  1. Persimmon, Kobe Bresaola, RocketMarinated persimmon, thinly sliced Kobe bresaola, toasted pine nuts, yuzu dressing
Second
  1. Spiny LobsterButter-poached spiny lobster, spicy crab broth
Third
  1. Braised Short RibCreamy polenta, porcini, Parmesan foam, crispy artichoke, black truffleCard: Braised Short Ribs
Fourth
  1. Autumn S'moresDark chocolate, chestnut, marshmallow, crisp hōjicha biscuit, tart apple and sudachi compote
Apr 2026

Yunotsu, Shimane

One
  1. Yuki-san Wasabiseaweed-cured fish, wasabi granité, horseradish flowersCard: Seaweed-Cured FishCard: Wasabi Granité
Two
  1. Brothtoasted rice broth, kombu, matcha, mushroom essenceCard: Toasted Rice Broth
Three
  1. Harita-san's Crispy Foraged Adventurecrispy potato-flaked rouget, pomme purée, grilled green onions, sauce laitueCard: Pommes PureeCard: Pomme Purée 2.0
Four
  1. Grandma's Fermented Gardenroasted monkfish tail, miso-cashew butterCard: Miso-Cashew Butter
Five
  1. Hop Marinated Wild Boar à la Masako-sanbeer-marinated wild boar, chili sesame mole, soba tortillas, rice wine vinegar picklesCard: Black Sesame MoleCard: Hop Marinade for Wild Boar
Six
  1. Yunotsu Sake Popsiclesake, lime, vanillaCard: Sake-Lime/Vanilla PopsicleCard: Plum-Sake Granité
Jun 2026

Waldorf Astoria Osaka, June Tasting

Canapés
  1. Truffle Cappuccino Soupcauliflower and potato, porcini powder, fresh grated truffle, chivesCard: Sweet Onion SoubiseCard: Cappuccino Base
  2. Cheez Itmini cheddar financier, cheddar mornayCard: Cheddar FinancierCard: Cheddar Mornay
  3. Kamo Nasu Tacoblack sesame mole, green onion crema, charred eggplant, cilantroCard: Black Sesame MoleCard: Green Onion Crema
  4. Yellowtail Escabechebrioche, saffron fennel relish, carrot butter, basilCard: Escabeche BrineCard: Carrot Butter
The Main
  1. Charcoal Grilled Ezo Deerpomme purée, Pommes Anna, choron emulsion, Hokkaido alpine leeks, soramame, mizunaCard: Charcoal Grilled Ezo DeerCard: Pommes Puree
Dessert
  1. Roasted Banana Baked Alaskalime meringue, lime sauce, Miyazaki mangoCard: Roasted Banana SemifreddoCard: Lime Meringue
Recipes

Cook Japan

All recipes →
Japanese · 25 min

Harita-san’s Hand-Pressed Onigiri

from Harita-san
Japanese · 15 min

Cold Soba, Lime, Shiso

from Harita-san
Japanese · 1 hr 15 min

Tokyo-Style Clear Shoyu Ramen

from Chef Shun
Japanese Fusion · 15 min

Kanzuri Mayonnaise

by Jason
Photos

On the road in Japan

67 photos
At the wasabi farm
At the potter’s wheel · Yunotsu
Inside the sake brewery
Filming in the mountains
Learning what grows here
Cooking together
Inside the pottery workshop
Along the coast
Lunch in the mountains
Around the dinner counter
At the goat farm
The tea factory

The rest of the road

ThailandIndiaIndonesiaChinaMexicoPeruSouth Africa