God of Cooking

Chapter 152: Chapter 152: Globalization & Localization (1)

Martin didn’t acknowledge Cho Min Joon’s prediction, but there was no use. Cho Min Joon as well as the others were already certain, and Martin’s suspicious attitude was one of the hints. Anderson opened his mouth.

“Tokyo Harmony… The name sounds like it’s fusion. Has anyone been there?”

“I have.”

Only Emily answered. Upon seeing Anderson glancing over at Jeremy and Sarah, Emily smirked and continued,

“I don’t think anyone else has been there. From what I know, it hasn’t been long since they received their Michelin stars. This place didn’t have any and got all three at once. That’s why I went.”

“… Hm, I’ve heard of them, but I never had a chance to come, so I only looked at photos.”

“Photos…”

Anderson mumbled. Cho Min Joon opened his mouth.

“Do you want me to show you photos?”

“No. I don’t look at photos of places I go to for the first time.”

Anderson refused in a stern voice. Cho Min Joon asked in a suspicious voice, “Why not?”

“I think I might know the answer. May I answer instead?”

Emily raised her hand as if she was a student in class, and Anderson gestured for her to go on. Emily showed an interested look on her face and spoke. She must’ve thought of this as a riddle.

“Because you want to enjoy your first taste, right?”

“… First taste?”

Cho Min Joon looked at Emily suspiciously before looking back at Anderson. He nodded to acknowledge that she was right. Emily answered with an elated face, “Min Joon should know this very well. Appearance also has an effect on the taste of food. Of course, normal restaurants, like places that sell ramen or hamburgers, are easy to predict, so that’s a different story. But this restaurant isn’t like that.”

“That’s true. It looks different entirely, but normal restaurants don’t care about decoration or plating… As for expensive places, they even hire food artists to care about their outer appearance. But…”

Cho Min Joon tilted his head.

“Wouldn’t it be fun to raise the anticipation by looking at a photo beforehand? A dish that you only see without tasting. Being curious about how it tastes might bring some excitement up to the point when you actually face it in person.”

“That might depend on the person. For some, the anticipation lasts a while and for others, it fades pretty quickly. Anderson must be the latter.”

“Hm… I heard Japanese people like to beat around the bush, but the name of the restaurant isn’t like that. It seems like they tried to summarize their theme directly.”

Harmony. Combination. It was obvious what that meant. They probably tried to find a middle ground between Japanese food and those of other countries. It was possible that that was the biggest strength of Japan. The localization of foreign food and the globalization of Japanese food.

‘Korea is good at localizing food.’

The most common foods that were localized in Korea was pizza and pasta. They added all sorts of different toppings and even added cheese, sweet potato, and cream in the dough… There were even times when they made the dough in the form of pies or coffee buns.

The same applied to pasta. Unlike the West, where they liked the sauce to be thick all over the noodles, the noodles in Korea dripped with sauce when you picked it up.

It was a fascinating thing. It was the same dish, but to some, it tasted good while others thought differently. And what set them apart could have something to do with the environment they grew up in.

‘If tasting standards change depending on where you grew up… where should my standards be?’

He got the idea that it was up to him. After all, his mother’s cooking followed no rules. At times, they tasted like nothing while at others, there was too much salt.

It was possible that her bad cooking was what allowed him to establish his own set of rules. The thought of that made Cho Min Joon burst into laughter. Rachel opened her eyes wide and looked back at Cho Min Joon.

“What are you laughing at?”

“No, I just thought of something. I feel like the fact that my mom was bad at cooking helped nurture my skills.”

“… How?”

“People normally tame their tastebuds according to the food they grew up with at home. But at my home, my mother’s cooking… was not great.”

“… Your mother would be sad to hear that.”

Rachel spoke with an awkward face. She was now his pupil’s mother, so she couldn’t agree with Cho Min Joon’s remark so easily. Cho Min Joon smirked.

“If she would be hurt by something like this, she would’ve studied more about cooking. But that’s okay. I feel like she’s the reason why I established my own set of tasting standards.”

“That makes sense. Normally, people become interested in cooking because of one of the two reasons—because their mother’s cooking was too good or really bad. But what made you think of that anyway?”

“It’s just fascinating. The fact that people’s palates change depending on where they grow up, and it makes me wonder what standards determined my palate… Why are you looking at me like that?”

Cho Min Joon cut himself off and looked at Rachel. Rachel had her eyes wide open as if she was shocked. Rachel shook her head in surprise.

“N-no, nothing. I just thought of someone…. I like that idea. Keep thinking about it. I’m sure you’ll get something out of it.”

“Yes. I will.”

Rachel responded to Cho Min Joon’s smile with a warmer one. She couldn’t help it. Her heart felt as though the windows to it opened to fresh air.

‘Daniel… said the same thing once.’

It was possible that it was just a coincidence. Anyone could think that, and there could have been many people who said that to her before. But was it because Cho Min Joon said it this time? It sounded more meaningful to her.

“I…”

Anderson opened his mouth after much hesitation. He glanced over at Rachel and Cho Min Joon before looking down at his fingers and continuing, “I had a similar thought. Just like how the nature of Japanese people shows in the restaurant’s name… cooking has a lot of thought involved. Depending on what you think about while coking, the kitchen or the restaurant itself could change.”

“I agree.”

Rachel looked at Anderson with a soft smile. Was that his refusal to let Cho Min Joon beat him? The way he immediately jumped in after his praise was like a kid but mature at the same time. Because despite the worry of coming off that way, he spoke up anyway.

Sarah watched the three of them before looking back at Emily.

“The relationship between rivals is funny and cool at the same time, right?”

“Yeah. It’s always like that though. It’s too bad food critics can’t be competitive like that.”

“… Are you sure?”

“It’s true. All we do is eat and give reviews. How can we compete with that?”

Sarah shut her mouth, and it was clear what feeling was between her lips. By the time Emily’s eyes looked confused, Sarah turned her head and opened her mouth. Her voice sounded drained.

“Yeah. I guess you’re right.”

***

Michelin 3 stars. The meaning of that was simple. A restaurant worth traveling for. It was simple, but it was bold at the same time because it was like putting a restaurant on the same level as nature or a landmark that excited tourists.

Many said that Michelin favored Japan, but that didn’t devalue three-star restaurants in the country.

Tokyo Harmony was located near Tokyo Harbor. It was a 2-story building, but it was as high as a 5-story building. The outside wall was made of glass, so as a result, even when they went inside, they could enjoy the scenery of the Tokyo ocean.

“Wow… I feel like this is the only sight I’ll remember from coming to Tokyo.”

Cho Min Joon was in awe. His eyes were filled with the ocean as well as the refreshing wind. By the time he looked at the Western-style tables, clean floors, and the rafters toward the roof, Martin opened his mouth.

“The live broadcast will begin soon. There are many viewers on standby today—140,000 people. That’s 10,000 more than last time. You know the greeting, right?”

“Yes.”

“Great. Then before we start the broadcast, say all the stuff you can’t say live on the air now. Something like, ‘I love you, friend.’ I’ll edit it for you.”

“We know you won’t edit it out.”

In response to Anderson’s flat voice, Martin scratched his head. He then raised his hand high. Three fingers, two fingers, one finger, and then a fist. At the same time, all 6 of them smiled at the camera.

“Hello, this is Hunger Trip.”

They spoke in a clear voice, but it wasn’t noisy. Comments began to flood the chat screen.

[Oh, the camera’s on, but where are they?]

[I heard they’re in Japan, but it looks fancy. Are they at a Michelin restaurant?]

[Oh, I think I know that place. It’s a three-star restaurant in Tokyo. Was it Tokyo Harmony? It’s really nice.]

All 6 of them stared at the chat screen without a word. It was when Martin stuck his face in front of the chat screen that all of them flinched and came back to their senses. Cho Min Joon opened his mouth.

“This is a Japanese restaurant called Tokyo Harmony. It’s a Michelin three-star restaurant. We’re all looking forward to it.”

“We are, but it looks like you’re the most excited.”

“It’s my first time trying an Asian three-star restaurant.”

He actually thought Higashino’s cooking was not far from three stars. Of course, there were no 10-point dishes, but the average score was close to that of any three-star restaurant.

But cooking wasn’t only about the taste. With a beautiful atmosphere like this, how could it not have an influence? And since they probably used much more expensive ingredients than that of Higashino, Cho Min Joon believed that it could be better. No matter how talented he was, it was hard to beat the quality of expensive ingredients.

One chef approached them. Cho Min Joon watched him quietly. His cooking uniform was odd. It looked like a hybrid between a Japanese yukata and a Western chef uniform. It was black overall, and there were small white lines here and there. But there was something else that was especially unique.

[The chef’s here, but he’s white.]

That was it. He looked to be in his 40s. The chef that approached them was a white man with blonde hair.

“Welcome to our restaurant. I’m the head chef of Tokyo Harmony, Samuel King.”

He had a British accent. Emily smiled and answered, “Long time no see, Samuel. You look dashing as usual.”

“Thank you, Emily. You look beautiful as well.”

“Uh… this feels weird. This is a Japanese restaurant, and it’s fusion, so I thought the head chef would be Japanese.”

“Well, you could say I’m half Japanese. I’ve been studying Japanese food in Japan for over 10 years now.”

Samuel answered with a friendly smile. Cho Min Joon picked up the menu. There were words in Japanese and English. Upon scanning the menu, Cho Min Joon opened his mouth in a suspicious voice.

“There’s no differentiation between appetizers and mains.”

He was right. There were categories for salad, noodles, rice, sushi, and seafood… But there was no order indicated. Samuel answered in a calm voice,

“That’s what I wanted for this restaurant. A restaurant that didn’t follow the form of typical fine dining restaurants. It’s a place where you can order what you want when you want. Does that make you uncomfortable?”

“No, the truth is… I’m comfortable with that. I don’t feel anxious about what to order.”

Cho Min Joon smiled. Samuel looked at everyone and opened his mouth.

“I won’t make any particular recommendations. We researched over and over until we were confident that every dish was perfect, and there’s no order to be followed. But one thing…”

Samuel paused. At the same time, servers appeared and put down new plates in front of them. They were pieces of ginger.

“Please cleanse your palate with ginger after every dish. Then you’ll taste the dish much clearer.”

“This is just like a sushi restaurant.”

“I won’t discourage you from getting inspired.”

Samuel replied with a smile. Cho Min Joon looked over at the menu, and his eyes stopped in one section—beef gyoza dumplings. And beside that said the origin of the beef was Kobe. Cho Min Joon opened his mouth.

“How about we order dumpings?”

“Uh… Oh! Steamed dumplings? That could be good to start things off. I’m in. Let’s do it.”

“Me too.”

That was how they decided to start off with steamed dumplings. A moment later, gyoza dumplings in a steamer arrived on the table. Cho Min Joon gulped and looked at it.

[Steamed beef gyoza dumplings]

Freshness: 98%

Origin: (Too many ingredients for an accurate calculation)

Quality: High

Cooking Score: 8/10

“We made the peel ourselves. We did our best so that it wouldn’t lag behind a dumpling restaurant that invested decades into their food. Here, please try it with some soy sauce.”

Samuel added their homemade wasabi to their soy sauce. Cho Min Joon slowly picked up a dumpling and dipped it in soy sauce, and his eyes soon flashed in a loving way.

The size of the dumpling was small as if it was made by a child. The ivory-colored peel was soft like jelly, but it didn’t rip easily, so the ingredients inside could be seen. The way the soy sauce dripped off the peel looked sexy.

So as soon as he put it into his mouth, he felt a sense of guilt. At first, it stimulated his lips as if it was a kiss, but once the broth flowed down his throat, his heart twitched.

And the soy sauce wasn’t average either. They must’ve mixed lemon juice into it because it had a refreshing scent to it, and the juices that came from the vegetables and beef inside the dumpling was so moist that he couldn’t tell if he was eating a soupy dish or dumplings.

[Cho Min Joon is the best at eating. He makes it look so good. Is it because he’s sensitive?]

[I was too busy looking at Emily’s face. How did he eat it?]

[As if he was kissing a woman. I can’t describe it differently. I’m an engineer.]

Just as the chats said, Cho Min Joon’s face looked happy, guilty, and affectionate. But as time passed, the ends of his eyes shook. That was because of a window that popped up in front of Cho Min Joon’s eyes.

‘The origin of the beef… isn’t Kobe but Matsusaka.’

The menu said it was from Kobe. And of course, beef from Matsusaka was just as good as that from Kobe. They didn’t commit a scam with meat.

Cho Min Joon looked at Samuel. Once they met eyes, Samuel smiled softly.

“Is something the matter?”

“No, it’s not that…”

Cho Min Joon smacked his lips. He wasn’t sure if it was worth asking. There was really no difference if the quality was still high. But what if the meat that was used was a mistake and they could have tasted dumplings that were even better…? Thinking about it that way got him to speak up.

The raising method of meat from Kobe and Matsusaka was different. It was a difference in brand, not just origin. So the taste was different from Cho Min Joon’s experience. Matsusaka meat had more marbling in comparison to that of Kobe. And if there was no difference in taste, people wouldn’t have had a preference.

Cho Min Joon opened his mouth.

“The menu said the meat is from Kobe… But this tastes much softer than the marbling that’s seen on Kobe meat. Is this really from Kobe?”

Silence fell.