By Keiko FukudaIn 1992, I came to Los Angeles initially to spend a long holiday after quitting a publishing company in Tokyo. However, 6 months later, I ended up staying for a while because I had an opportunity to work for a Japanese community magazine, and also acquired a working visa. The office w...

By Keiko FukudaWhen a good Japanese restaurant opens, the news spreads very quickly in the Japanese community. A friend of mine who lives in Orange County told me, “A nice restaurant just opened. It is called Soba Izakaya Minami”. After that, I had a chance to have lunch with another friend who live...

By Elli SekineIt has been 7 or 8 years since izakaya-style restaurants started to permeate the San Francisco area. Now, they are surely settled in American society, and have become a part of San Francisco’s gourmet culture. However, in the US, the concept of izakaya is more diverse, “having everythi...

By Aya OtaIn the Flatiron District, there is a restaurant known as a modern and sophisticated space where you can enjoy superbly creative washoku and ramen. It is "ROKI Le IZAKAYA". It is also gaining attention as a collaboration of Koji Hagihara, one of the top Japanese chefs in New York, and Keiko...

By Keiko FukudaThere is a restaurant in Torrance that has gained popularity quickly in the past few years for its vivid ambiance, in which you enjoy fresh seafood and meat dishes. It is “Izakaya Hachi”. Another Hachi restaurant also opened in Costa Mesa in Orange County a year ago. They opened their...

by Aya OtaIn the East Village, a vibrant town of condensation of diverse ethnic groups and cultures, you first climb a set of stairs to an izakaya, ge...

By Eri Shimizu / Editing: Elli SekineAlthough Napa Valley, known for its wine producing, is located in the Bay Area where many high-end and high-quality Japanese restaurants already exist, there was no Japanese restaurant in the valley. Finally, last year in 2016, Japanese restaurants such as “KENZO...

By Aya OtaIn the Williamsburg district of Brooklyn, stylish and innovative stores are appearing one after another, and you find something new every time you visit. People think that this town is most sensitive about the newest trends. In such a town, extremely stylish exteriors draw your attention. ...

ベルビュー市内のラーメン店、輝月の紹介です。皆さんご存知だと思いますが、2016年1月1日より店名が空海から輝月へと変わっております。明るすぎない照明と綺麗な内装で落ち着いた雰囲気の店内でした。近頃の日本食ブームもあってのことか、店内は大変賑わっていましたが、サーバーの方のサービスも丁寧で快適な空間...

By Aya OtaThe “Zuma” group has opened 10 contemporary Japanese restaurants all over the world in the cities such as Hong Kong, Istanbul, Dhaka, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bangkok, and Rome since they opened the first location in London in 2002. In the United States, following the first location in Miami in 2...