Japan Eats!

Our guest is Genki Ito, who founded the unique online sake shop Tippsy Sake in 2018.  He joined us in Episode #254 in February 2022 and discussed its innovative concept.  Tippsy Sake’s business has grown successfully, alongside a community of sake lovers, and in May 2026, Genki renamed it Palate Project https://palateproject.co/ to reflect the company’s new mission to make sake...

Our guest is Nick Rowan, author of Japanese Wine , a fantastic, comprehensive book on Japanese wine. The Japanese wine industry and culture have been developing very rapidly since the 1990s, and Nick’s book, which came out in 2025, is so timely.   The book covers 725 producers and 130 grape varieties—over 80 of which are unique to Japan—to showcase the uniqueness and diversity of Japanese win...

Our guest is Silvia Mella who is the owner of Sorate  in New York.  Sorate is a unique Japanese green tea company, which sells premium Japanese tea through online and operates beautiful tea houses in Manhattan.   Japanese tea has been gaining attention in the global markets, fueled by rising health consciousness and growing interest in Japanese food.  According t...

Our guest is Reverend Dr. Masaki Matsubara, who is an eighteenth-generation Zen priest in the Japanese Rinzai tradition. His career is unique and impressive. Following his Zen monastic training in Heirinji Monastery in Japan, he moved to the US in 1999 to study at Cornell University, where he eventually earned a PhD in Asian religions.  Since then, he has taught Buddhist studie...

Our guest is  Hideatsu Shibanuma  who is the 18th-generation president of Shibanuma Soy Sauce, which was founded in 1688. Shibanuma Soy Sauce has specialized in producing barrel-aged soy sauce in Ibaraki Prefecture for about 370 years.  Its products were so superior that they were served to Shoguns during the Edo period.  Like many other craftsmen-based...

Our guest is George Padilla who plays a key role in multiple exciting Japanese restaurant and hospitality businesses in New York, including Rule of Thirds ( https://www.thirdsbk.com/ ), Bin Bin Sake ( https://linktr.ee/bin.bin.sake ) and Teruko ( https://hotelchelsea.com/dining-and-bar/teruko ) at The Hotel Chelsea.    George’s passion for and profound understand...

Our guest is Gavin Whitelaw  https://rijs.fas.harvard.edu/gavin-h-whitelaw  who is the Executive Director of Edwin O. Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies at Harvard University.    Gavin has spent over a decade living and teaching in Japan. Before joining the Reischauer Institute in 2016, he was the Senior Associate Professor of Anthropology and Japan Studies at Intern...

Our guest is Brian Evans who is the Director of Bars at Sunday Hospitality Group  https://www.sundayhg.com/ , which operates 12 popular hospitality concepts in New York and London, including Japanese-inspired restaurants Rule of Thirds  https://www.thirdsbk.com/  in Brooklyn and Teruko  https://hotelchelsea.com/dining-and-bar/teruko  in Manhattan.    Brian’s tale...

Our guest is Tadashi Ono who is the executive chef at Teruko  https://hotelchelsea.com/dining-and-bar/teruko  at The Hotel Chelsea in New York.    Tadashi's career has been built through deliberate decisions along with his flexible, lighthearted approach to life.    When he arrived in Los Angeles in 1982, he started his culinary training and eventually proved his tale...

Our guest is Bruce Gutlove, who is an American-born winemaker based in Hokkaido, Japan.   The Japanese wine industry has been flourishing, particularly in the last two decades or so, thanks to the rapid increase in talented winemakers who are willing to conquer the challenges of the country’s unique terroir.    Bruce has greatly contributed to shaping the modern Japanese wine-making...

Our guest is Cheng Lin who is the chef/owner of Shota Omakase  https://shotaomakase.com/  in Brooklyn, New York.  After nearly three decades of studying and serving sushi at notable restaurants in New York City, including Sushi Seki, Blue Ribbon, and ITO Tribeca, he opened his Omakase-only sushi restaurant Shota Omakase in August 2023 and earned his first Michelin sta...

Our guests are Mayumi Uejima-Carr and Debra Samuels. Mayumi is the President of TABLE FOR TWO USA  https://usa.tablefor2.org/  and Debra leads the program content and curriculum development of TABLE FOR TWO USA’s Japanese-inspired food education program.    TABLE FOR TWO is a not-for-profit organization founded in Japan in 2007, initiated by the World Economic Forum's Youn...

Our guest is Andrew Tsui who is the founder and president of The Ike Jime Federation  https://ikejimefederation.com/  based in Maryland.    Ikejime is a unique, traditional Japanese technique to treat fish right after it is caught.  Ikejime dramatically reduces fish’s suffering and extends its freshness.  The results are much better taste and flavor, as well...

Our guest is Nozomi Mori who is the chef/owner of the sushi bar Mori Nozomi  https://www.morinozomi.com/  in Los Angeles, which opened in 2024. She got into the world of sushi in 2017, only 8 years ago, and her sushi bar already earned notable accolades, such as a Michelin star and was included in the New York Times’ 50 best restaurant list in 2025.    In this episode, we will...

Our guest is Timothy Sullivan who has over 17 years of experience teaching about sake.  In 2007, he was awarded the prestigious title of Sake Samurai by the Japan Sake Brewers Association. Since 2013, Tim has served as the Global Brand Ambassador for the 100-year-old Hakkaisan Sake Brewery  https://www.hakkaisan.com/ . Now also as the Director of Education at Sake Studies Center&nbs...

Our guests are Yusuke Fukuzaki and Ryo Yamazaki, co-owners of SSAW  www.ssawbrooklyn.com/  in Brooklyn, New York.  The duo opened SSAW in November 2024 to serve “a refined ‘New Japanese’ dining experience, where traditional craftsmanship meets contemporary innovation,” according to its website.       Yusuke has worked at top restaurants in Japan, includ...

Our guest is Reverend Dr. Masaki Matsubara who is an eighteenth-generation Zen priest in the Japanese Rinzai tradition. His career is unique and impressive. Following his Zen monastic training in Heirinji Monastery in Japan, he moved to the US in 1999 to study at Cornell University where he eventually earned a PhD in Asian religions.  Since then, he has taug...

Our guest is Joshua Walker who is the President and CEO of Japan Society  https://japansociety.org/   in New York.  Joshua has a very intriguing background.  He was raised in Japan and spent his formative years in Hokkaido, northern Japan.    Since Joshua left Japan at the age of 18, he has been working in global affairs and is known as a perpetual brid...

Our guest is Gento Torigata   https://gentotorigata.com/   who is the owner and mixologist of Waltz  https://waltzbar.uk/  in East London.  After diverse culinary and bartending experiences in Japan, Australia and Singapore, Gento moved to London and opened Waltz in April 2024. Waltz is truly a unique place.  With his traditional Japanese mindset o...

My guest today is Tim Fronzek who is a co-founder of Nosh.bio  https://www.nosh.bio/  based in Berlin, Germany.    Plant-based protein has been gaining attention, particularly since the 2010s for our growing health and environmental concerns. However, various products in the market may not be as ideal as it was thought to be. Some are not so environmentally friendly in their ma...

Our guest is Takashi Sato who is the 8th generation family member of Sanjirushi Jozo in Mie Prefecture and the president of San-J International  https://san-j.com/  in the state of Virginia.    Sanjirushi Jozo has been making soy sauce and miso since 1804, and in 1978, the company decided to expand its business to the U.S.  Now, San-J is one of the most familiar...

https://yamatozakura.com/ 　 https://www.thespiritofjapan.com/   Our guests are Stephen Lyman and Joseph Overbey who have produced the documentary  The Spirit of Japan .  It is the story of the Wakamatsu family, who have been making the traditional Japanese distilled spirit, shochu, at their Yamatozakura Distillery in Kagoshima Prefecture since the 1850s.   The duo follows...

Our guest is Kyle Connaughton, who is the chef/owner of SingleThread  https://singlethreadfarms.com/  in California. SingleThread is a very unique farm, restaurant, and inn, which has earned numerous accolades since its opening in 2016, including three Michelin stars, three Michelin keys and a Michelin Green Star, which recognizes the outstanding sustainability at the farm...

Our guest is Takahiro Sakaeda who is the chef/partner of Nami Nori https://www.naminori.us/ .  Nami Nori is a unique concept of temaki sushi bar that serves open-style hand rolls on a U-shaped stand. Since its opening in 2019 in New York, Taka has created many fans of his beautifully made, casual and high-quality sushi.  Now he operates four locations of Nami Nori in New York, New Jersey and Miami...

Our guest is Takumi Kuwabara who is the toji or brewmaster at SakéOne in Forest Grove, Oregon.   SakéOne (https://www.sakeone.com/) is a unique sake brewery.  It was founded in 1992 by Momokawa Brewing in Aomori Prefecture, Japan, which was founded in 1889. SakéOne started sake-brewing in 1997 and since then, its sake has won multiple awards at prestigious competitions like the U.S. National Sake...