Serial: Guardians of Time | Making Lost Family Recipes Delicious Again.

Guardians of Time | Ryosuke Oka (Head Chef, HOSHINOYA Tokyo)

Since taking the helm in 2023, Ryosuke Oka, Head Chef at HOSHINOYA Tokyo, has been dedicated to unearthing home-style and regional dishes from across Japan that have fallen out of common practice, and reimagining them as contemporary plates using French culinary techniques. "Okabe" from Nagasaki, "Yogoshi" from Toyama, "Getan" from Kagoshima—the concept is aptly named "Japanese Home Cooking No Longer Made."

Text by TSUCHIDA Takashi | Photographs by OHTAKI Kaku

Where Japan Gathers in Otemachi

HOSHINOYA Tokyo is located in Otemachi, Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo. Situated near the Imperial Palace, it stands in one of Tokyo's premier locations, home to the heart of Japan's economy.

During the Edo period, feudal lords from across the country would gather in this area for Sankin-kōtai, their alternate-year residency in Edo. The local ingredients and dishes they brought from their home provinces are said to have mingled in Edo, eventually shaping the local cuisine that followed, such as sushi, tempura, and unagi. This land holds a history of Japan's diverse food cultures converging in one place.

The surroundings of HOSHINOYA Tokyo are, indeed, an office district. Yet, once the shoji screens are closed, one is completely cut off from the outside world, as if transported to another dimension, finding solace far from the city's clamor.

Perhaps it is no coincidence that the "towering Japanese inn" HOSHINOYA Tokyo, standing in modern Otemachi, embarks on a project to unearth and gastronomically reconstruct home-style and regional dishes from all over Japan. Just as feudal lords once brought the tastes of their provinces to this land, the inn's mission, as a representative establishment in a prime Tokyo location, may be to gather dormant food cultures from across Japan and refine them with contemporary techniques.

Conversely, one could view this as a well-crafted marketing narrative. Shining a spotlight on fading regional flavors and transforming them into haute cuisine—it's a decidedly contemporary approach, blending nostalgia with gastronomy. However, upon speaking with Head Chef Ryosuke Oka, one discovers a philosophy that transcends mere theatrics.

"To put it bluntly, they just aren't tasty anymore," says Oka (all bracketed quotes are from Oka).

Oka attributes the disappearance of home-style and regional dishes from our tables to this very reason. They are no longer made not because of some nostalgic appeal, but simply because "people today don't find them delicious." Oka's work begins by confronting this blunt truth.

Knowing the Origins Broadens the Imagination

Oka's own culinary roots lie in his childhood dining table in Shiga Prefecture. Even with the same onigiri (rice balls), the taste varied depending on who made them. His grandmother, perhaps lacking strength, made very soft onigiri that were so delicate they threatened to fall apart when picked up, crumbling in the mouth. His mother's onigiri, on the other hand, featured plum preserves as the star, using traditional salty pickled plums, with the rice seasoned deliberately lightly.

"I found it interesting that even the same 'onigiri' could be so different from person to person, and I think that's what led me to pursue a career in cooking."

His awareness of food preferences as a child hadn't yet taken concrete form by the time he began laying his foundation in French cuisine at Kobe Kitano Hotel in 2005. At that point, he wasn't particularly conscious of ingredients. The turning point came when he moved to "Hommage" in Asakusa. He increasingly encountered sourcing that focused on Japanese ingredients, and he became familiar with work that connected him to the faces of the producers.

"When you understand how an ingredient is grown and with what kind of passion it was cultivated, culinary ideas naturally begin to flow. While deliciousness is paramount in food, I believe the 'mental consumption' that accompanies it is also incredibly important."

Knowing the provenance allows diners to expand their imagination about the dish. Eating with imagination, Oka believes, is an essential element of gastronomy, not just in French but in any cuisine, be it Japanese or Italian.

"A bowl of ramen for just over 1,000 yen is delicious and filling, but that alone feels somewhat lacking. I think a restaurant's role is to provide an experience for special occasions, where diners can savor not just the taste, but also the accompanying imagination and information."

After stints at Kobe Kitano Hotel, Asakusa's "Hommage," and Pierre Gagnaire in Tokyo, he moved to Hoshino Resorts' Oirase Keiryu Hotel in 2020, where he worked on adapting Aomori's regional cuisine into French dishes at the restaurant "Sonor." Even after assuming the role of Head Chef at HOSHINOYA Tokyo in May 2023, his relationships with producers forged during his Aomori days remain unbroken, expanding to new connections with seafood wholesalers in the Kanto region and beyond.

Cornetfish, a seasonal catch expertly prepared with the *shinkei-jime* (nerve-tying) technique, delivered by Mr. Hasegawa of "Gyojin," a fish wholesaler in Kanagawa.

Hasegawa's fish, served with Manganji peppers and seasonal top shells. The dish is finished with a *sauce de poisson* (fish stock sauce) that highlights the ingredients' natural flavors. The inspiration for this dish comes from Aomori's "Ichigo Ni." Each plate is a vessel for diverse contexts.

Why the Desire to Conceal and Eat?

The concept of elevating forgotten home-style cooking into fine dining emerged from casual conversations during his time in Aomori. As his relationships with producers deepened, he began hearing stories like, "We used to make this dish, but it's hardly made anymore."

For example, Aomori's "Saké no Iizushi" (fermented salmon sushi) is incredibly labor-intensive. However, it wasn't born out of a desire for exquisite taste, but rather as a survival strategy for winter. It was about preserving the bounty of spring and summer for consumption during the colder months—taste was a secondary, or even tertiary, concern, and no amount of time or effort was spared. In an era where ingredients are available year-round and can be eaten immediately, such wisdom became obsolete. This same pattern applied to home-style dishes across the country.

Nevertheless, each dish that fell out of practice has its own story. Oka believes that understanding these stories is part of the joy of rediscovery. He previously worked on "Uzume Meshi" from Shimane, a dish where the toppings are hidden beneath the rice. Why hide them, when they could simply be placed on top? The reason lies in the austerity policies of the feudal lord at the time. To avoid the scrutiny of officials, elaborate toppings were concealed beneath the rice. This is what is said to have happened.

"I sometimes discover that dishes were born from a variety of backgrounds and narratives."

The taste must have been so valuable that it compelled people to eat it, even while concealing it from others' eyes. While perhaps unattainable for the common folk in Edo, such delicacies existed for the populace in their local regions. Oka feels that understanding these contexts and contemplating the past enriches the experience of food.

Able to Articulate Everything in My Own Words

Where, then, does the boundary lie between rediscovering a dish and making it "Oka's dish"? Oka explains this by posing a question:

"Why did you choose this oil? Why did you start at this temperature?" Being able to answer these questions in one's own words is, I believe, the mark of a dish being truly one's own.

The most challenging dish technically for this occasion was "Okabe" from Nagasaki. The simple dish of rice seasoned with vinegar, topped with vinegared horse mackerel and perilla leaves, was first served in its original form, followed by a modern interpretation. This represented the "before and after" of this course.

The original Nagasaki home-style dish, "Okabe." A simple plate of vinegared horse mackerel and rice seasoned with vinegar, served with perilla leaves.

The reimagined "Okabe." A terrine layering vinegared horse mackerel with smoked tofu puree, served with green beans dressed in a perilla and pine nut vinaigrette, accented with cheese.

Oka hypothesizes in his own words why the original dish might no longer be palatable. Perhaps the vinegar's acidity is too strong, or the dry texture of the okara (soy pulp) is off-putting. To address this, he reduced the vinegar's intensity, lightly pickling the fish, and transformed the smoked tofu into a smooth purée. He then reassembled these elements with the vinegared horse mackerel into a terrine. While the ingredients and the fundamental flavor profile remain true to the original "Okabe," altering the textures elevated the dish to a remarkable level of deliciousness.

A similar transformation is evident in the Omi beef dish served as the main course. The cuts of Omi beef (sotohira, or hind leg, and neck) are brined along with fermented rice, similar to the process used for *funazushi* (fermented sushi), and then prepared as a hamburger steak. Shiga Prefecture is also Oka's home prefecture. "Using ingredients from my home prefecture, I've gathered the finest of Shiga," Oka explains. His understated tone belies the profound affection he holds for this dish.

"Kale." A dish featuring duck prepared with charcoal-grilled eel and chicken roulade, topped with kale and squid reminiscent of Toyama's "Yogoshi," finished with a wood sorrel purée and a sauce made from *shamo* (Japanese gamecock) dashi.

If We Gain Insight, a Different Future Awaits

Oka has gone through considerable trial and error regarding how much to explain about the dishes. Initially, he explained everything verbally, but he realized this left diners feeling mentally fatigued after the meal. He has now settled on a method where he provides a brochure with illustrations and brief text about the background of the regional dishes, offers a short explanation when serving the plate, and delves deeper only for those guests who express particular interest. He notes that international guests often find these aspects of Japanese food culture simply and engagingly fascinating.

The reaction "I know this dish" is not as common as he might have expected. Nevertheless, he often witnesses diners reminiscing, "Come to think of it, my grandmother used to..." sparking conversations about their own food memories.

"Economic and social benefits mean that one side flourishes while the other declines—unfortunately, this may be unavoidable at times. However, simply accepting this reality leads to no progress. If we can gain insight and take some form of action, perhaps a different future awaits."

Home-style cooking embodies the selfless love of mothers and grandmothers, possessing an endearment that money cannot buy. Luxury isn't solely about pursuing expensive ingredients or rarity. By giving form to the feelings behind those family meals, contemporary chefs can enable us to experience them once more—this is the reimagining that Oka continues to craft on his plates.

Ryosuke Oka

Head Chef at HOSHINOYA Tokyo. Born in 1985 in Shiga Prefecture. From 2005, he honed his skills in French cuisine at establishments including Kobe Kitano Hotel, Restaurant Hommage, and Pierre Gagnaire. After his tenure at Hoshino Resorts' Oirase Keiryu Hotel (Restaurant "Sonor"), he was appointed Head Chef of HOSHINOYA Tokyo in May 2023. He elevates traditional ingredients and cooking methods into new dishes through French techniques and a unique sensibility.