NOBU STYLE CUISINE: FROM AUTHENTICITY TO INNOVATION

Abstract

Article focusing on the case of Japanese Chef Matsuhisa Nobuyuki (松久 信幸), better known as Nobu. The authors outline the cultural and social consequences of the worldwide popularity of Japanese food in today's global world. The popularity of Japanese food is one example of a food culture that has developed a global influence, particularly through its presence in world centers such as New York, London, Tokyo, and Los Angeles. The case of Matsuhisa Nobuyuki is a vivid example of global success. His food is based on Japanese cuisine with accents of South and North American traditions. The case of Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, a Japanese chef well-recognized for his success in the United States, gives us interesting insights when we think about the process, in which the global reputation of Japanese food emerged. His food is based on Japanese cuisine with accents of South and North American cooking. His practice has always been to look for some tastes that would be accepted and enjoyed among the local people wherever he has worked. The aim of the study is an attempt to determine the basic components of Nobu style cuisine, and to define it as a certain phenomenon of the worldwide popularity of the influential chef Matsuhisa Nobuyuki, who defines the innovative categories of Asian food as a concept of multi-component and multi-nationality in view of the phenomenon of globalization of Japanese cuisine. In a sense, his cooking-style can be described as American food since his style has been transformed in America. The location of his restaurants is another significant point. He opened Matsuhisa in Los Angeles in 1987, and up until now in 2008, he has been running more than 20 restaurants around the world. He has established his own network for running restaurants at the nodes of the world cities. With the Americanized avor of his Japanese dishes, he has influenced the spread and recognition of Japanese food around the world. The Nobu-style, based on his training as a sushi chef in Japan and developed through his personal experiences of working in various places on the American continent, can be seen as Americanized Japanese food. He has successfully established a sense of authenticity for his dishes at the nodes of world cities and contributed to the worldwide popularity of Japanese food, a trend which can be described as the globalization of Japanese culinary culture.