Japanese Whisky Gets the Eye

（27）
［English Edition］　VOICES From
THE NEW YORKERS
Ramen Lab
By Stacy Smith
With the
prominence
of
slurp
shops here
in the city,
it seems as
if ramen
h
a
s
replaced
sushi
in
terms of
what New Yorkers associate with
Japanese food. So it’s not surprising that earlier this year we
got our very own Ramen Lab,
which serves as a pop-up shop for
a variety of ramen proprietors taking part in its incubator program.
This Lower East Side space
accommodating only 10-12 people standing is as close as you can
get to a traditional ramen shop.
Water served in beakers reminds
customers of the lab theme, and
ramen chefs come for stints as
short as three weeks. I had a
chance to check out Japan's highly acclaimed Lamen Nikkou
headed by Chef Koji Nishikawa,
who created a menu for New
York showcasing four of his best
noodle soups. I came right after
the shop opened at 5 so I was
lucky enough to grab a counter
spot without a problem, but at
peak times people need to line up
outside while waiting their turn.
I had to try the Yuzu Tsukemen,
which features whole wheatspiked noodles in a bowl with
lemon, nori and a tangy yuzu flavor. Unlike regular ramen which
has noodles served in broth, with
tsukemen you dip the noodles into
a separate soup. In this case it was
an amazingly unique and refreshing chicken, seafood and yuzu
pepper dipping sauce, which really hit the spot. I will definitely
return to the lab to enjoy future
experimentation!
(Stacy Smith is a Japanese translator/interpreter/writer)
home: www.stacysmith.webs.com
blog: http://jetwit.com/worldpress/category/witlife
週刊NY生活　SHUKAN NEW YORK SEIKATSU
2015年（平成27年）7月4日（土）
NYクール日本
COOL JAPAN from New Yorkers’ Viewpoints
Sachie Arai
Live Show in NY
Recreates the stage from
the heyday of Japanese
idol singers in 80s
Japanese Whisky Gets the Eye
Three provincial distilleries’ foray into America
Japanese whisky is begining to
boom in America. Tokiwa
Imports (CEO Eric Swanson)
plans to import Ichiro whisky
from Saitama, Iwai from
Kagoshima, and Akashi from
Hyogo. In July the New York
Mutual Trading Company will
start selling Iwai whisky as its
exclusive distributer in the area,
while Domanie Select distributes
Ichiro and Akashi. General
Manager of Honbo Shuzo (CEO
Honbo Kazuyo) Harime Kunai,
Eigashima Shuzo CEO Mikio
Hirashi, and Venture Whisky
CEO Ichiro Akuto presented their
company histories and specialties
at a whisky tasting event commemorating the venture at the
Brandy Library in New York on
June 23rd.
(Ryoichi Miura/ Translated by
Hiroko Makabe)
ran from June 18th to
the 20th at the Javits
Center.
The ramen’s deep,
rich soy flavor, meltin-your-mouth roasted pork, wavy noodles, and rich broth
were impressive and
delicious until the
last drop. Toyama
Black truly deserves
its number one status
Japan’s No.1 Ramen
Toyama Black
NY Test Marketing
The renowned ramen shop
Toyama Black Men-ya IROHA
(Tentakaku Co. Ltd. HQ
Toyama./CEO
Kurihara
Kiyoshi), a five-time top seller
at the Tokyo Ramen Show,
began test marketing their ramen
to the public in New York. A
four-day trial sale at Tsushima,
a local Japanese restaurant in
Manhattan (210 E 44th St.),
completely sold out of its preprepared 600 servings. Toyama
Black was one of five caterers
present for the Japan Pavilion
Showa Kayo singer Sachie Arai,
who sings Japanese pop songs
from the Showa era, visited New
York to perform a live show
titled the “Showa Kayokyoku
Show” (J-Pop Hits from the 80s)
at the Tokyo Tapas Café in
Greenwich Village on June 16th.
It was her second live show in
New York. She sang a total of fifteen songs which included 80s
hits such as: “Akai Sweet Pea” by
Seiko Matsuda; “DESIRE” by
Akina Nakamori; “Nantettatte
Idol” by Kyoko Koizumi; and
original songs accompanied by
pianist and composer Migiwa
Miyajima.
She started her career in 2001 as
a member of Cho Hamori Tai, a
background chorus group for an
anime singer. The group gained
visibility among Tokyo music
clubs with a unique artistic style
booth at this year’s International
Franchise Expo (sponosored by
the Japan External Trade
Organization [JETRO]) which
in Japan.
(Ryoichi Miura/ Translated by
Hiroko Makabe)
Sachie Arai
that allowed them to express their
feminine side through their lyrics
and their comedic sensibilites
through their onstage banter with
the audience.
One song in particular keeps getting stuck in my head: her original
song,
“ I Want to Be a
Kikokushijo ” (the child of a
Japanese expat who grew up
abroad and returns to Japan). The
lyrics talk about a longing for the
indulgence that comes with being
a kikokushijo. If a girl wants to
hug or kiss a boy and shows her
feeling directly, she risks appearing too aggressive in a Japanese
context and may scare her beau
away. However, a kikokushijo
might be held to different standards, and instead of her behavior
being seen as aggressive, it might
instead be seen as a reflection of
where she grew up. The audience
showed their understanding for
the situation with knowing smiles
and excitement for the song.
Arai grew up in the 80s-the
golden age of Japanese pop stars
whom she admired,and hopes to
continue singing great songs that
never fade away. Her ultimate
goal is performing live with a bigband-someday, she’d love to sing
“ I Want to Be Kikokushijo”
accompanied by an orchestra.
Arai intends to visit New York at
least twice a year from now on.
(Text and Photo: Ryoichi
Miura/Translated by Mai Moore)
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