Paper short abstract:

This presentation traces and analyzes modern Japanese culinary aesthetics, from guidelines articulated by early 20th century restaurateur Kitaōji Rosanjin to contemporary global deployment by chefs in world renowned non-Japanese restaurants.

Paper long abstract:

It is often remarked that Japanese cuisine is "to be eaten with the eyes." Indeed, many of its genres provide not only gustatory and olfactory pleasures, but also strong aesthetic appeal. This presentation addresses visual aspects of Japanese cuisine and the deterritorialization of its culinary aesthetics as many of the world's top dining destinations, such as Heston Blumenthal's Fat Duck and Rene Redzepi's Noma adopted Japanese styles in food presentation.

I describe the visual conventions of modern kaiseki cuisine as articulated by ceramicist and restaurateur Kitaōji Rosanjin (1883-1959), the most notorious gourmet figure in modern Japanese history. Rosanjin demanded artistry in plating that painstakingly paired foods with seasonally appropriate tableware in a variety of shapes, styles, and colors. Euro-Americans remained largely unaware of the visual appeal of Japanese high cuisine through the 1970s, however, as most travelers found native fare, including raw and fermented foods, unpalatable. As Japanese elites relocated abroad in the 1980s to support booming national economic interests, they were accompanied by high-end restaurants purveying sushi and kaiseki to ex-pat clientele. Non-Japanese urban cognoscenti developed a taste for sushi at these new establishments. Colorful and exotically plated, sushi had an arresting visual quality and satisfied growing demands for light, healthy foods. In the 1990s chefs like Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, founder of Nobu, rejected long Japanese apprenticeships to open sophisticated establishments in world capitals, furthering Western associations between Japanese and haute cuisine. Nobu served innovative, hybrid dishes appealing to Euro-American eyes and palates but experienced as "authentically Japanese" by most customers.

In recent years Japanese cuisine has reached new heights of global acclaim, especially since 2007 when Michelin began awarding more stars in Tokyo than in Paris and New York combined. As a result of the skyrocketing status of Japanese cuisine, chefs have begun to adopt and adapt its aesthetics in interiors and food presentation to enhance the cosmopolitan appeal of their own wares. This paper traces and analyzes how and why Japanese culinary aesthetics have become a significant source of cultural capital among producers and consumers in the competitive global circuit of haute cuisine.