A Renowned Chef on the Excellence of Japanese Cuisine, a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage
A Shocking Experience in Paris
Kikunoi was founded by Murata's grandfather in 1912, and Murata was raised as its heir from an early age. However, when he was in college, he had doubts about following the path that was laid out for him and decided to study French cuisine. He went to Paris on his own, without any connections or concrete plans.
"Without knowing the basics of French cuisine, I thought I had to taste it for myself first, so I went to all kinds of restaurants, from Michelin-starred establishments to the Sorbonne University cafeteria."
He clearly remembers one conversation he had with a French student he had become friends with. "He told me that he tried sushi and soba noodles and thought Japanese cuisine was heavy on carbs and lacked nutrition. I was annoyed and countered that there was a culturally high-quality course meal called kaiseki, but he called me a liar, saying there was no way such cuisine existed in Japan."
It was this remark that determined the course of Murata's life. He wanted to return to the friend that called him a liar one day and make him realize that Japan has wonderful cuisine.
Trial, Error, and Ingenuity
Murata opened his own restaurant in Kiyamachi, Kyoto called Kikunoi Kiyamachi (now Roan) three years after returning to Japan. It had seven counter seats and served in the style of itamae kappo, in which a chef prepares food in front of diners.
"I was the son of a long-established ryotei (traditional restaurant), a naive boy who knew nothing about the world. I thought that once I opened a restaurant, customers would come. Of course, it was not that easy. I spent day after day without any customers."
He read numerous books on cooking and thoroughly studied his father's recipes. The turning point came when the chef of another long-established ryotei, who was the same age as his father, reprimanded him.
"I was thinking that Kikunoi should only serve my father's recipes and anything else was not real cooking. The chef scolded me, calling me an idiot and saying, 'Why don't you serve what you think is delicious? Why don't you cook your own food?'"
This opened Murata's eyes and led to a breakthrough. From then on, he pursued what he wanted to make and what he thought was delicious. A friend in France sent him a special device for sous vide (vacuum-sealing), which had not yet been adopted in Japanese cuisine at the time. Through trial, error, and ingenuity, Murata developed the signature flavor of the third-generation Kikunoi.
Japanese Cuisine Needs a Story
Murata describes the appeal of Japanese cuisine and kaiseki as follows: "In kaiseki, the course as a whole and each dish must have a story, complete with introduction, development, twist, and conclusion. Simply putting delicious dishes together does not constitute kaiseki. Each dish carries a message. As you see and eat the dish, the seasons, local features, and space are reflected in your mind like a painting. That is the appeal of Japanese cuisine."
Murata has worked to spread the appeal of Japanese food culture to the world, and in 2004 launched the Japanese Culinary Academy, an NPO dedicated to the future of Japanese and Kyoto cuisine. Simultaneously, he expanded his business to Tokyo, opening Akasaka Kikunoi in the Akasaka business district.
"I needed to be in Tokyo to send a message to the world. I understood this from my experience running a restaurant in Kyoto for many years. For people all over the world, Japan means Tokyo. It is a world-class city. Akasaka in particular is a traditional restaurant town, where a small cobblestone path surrounded by bamboo trees and a ryotei built in Kyoto's sukiya-zukuri (tearoom style) naturally blend among buildings."
Umami: Japan's Unique Taste
Murata deliberately took his time for the NPO work. He held many discussions and formulated strategies. He frequently traveled overseas and held workshops and seminars on Japanese cuisine for food industry heavyweights and the general public.
"Until then, there were only four tastes recognized by the global standard: sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. We promoted umami as the fifth taste."
Umami is a Japanese word for "savoriness" that is found in foods such as kelp and dried bonito. It has now become a globally acknowledged concept, just like the Japanese sport of judo has become popular worldwide. Kelp is now commonly used in three-star European restaurants.
"In 2010, the gastronomic meal of the French was registered as an Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO. They recognized it as not just food but a culture that should be preserved and passed down for the future. Then I thought that Japanese cuisine was the only other cuisine in the world that deserved to be recognized as an Intangible Cultural Heritage like French cuisine."
The lead campaigner for French cuisine's UNESCO registration was Jean-Robert Pitte, the former president of Paris-Sorbonne University and a world-renowned geographer. He had known Murata for a long time and offered to support the registration of Japanese cuisine. With the support of the masters of the French cuisine world, Japanese cuisine was finally registered as an Intangible Cultural Heritage.
"Tradition is important, of course, but even the taste and quality of vegetables like daikon radish have changed through the ages. Naturally, the way they are cooked needs to change as well. We can preserve traditions by identifying what has changed and what has not and continuing to innovate, rather than by doing the same things. I would like to pass this on to the next generation and to the world."
Murata Yoshihiro
