Finding Real Japanese Food in the States
Most of the year you are not in Japan. The good news is that a surprising amount of it is available domestically if you know what you are looking for — and knowing what to look for is mostly a matter of a few reliable signals.
6 min read
Signals that a ramen shop is serious
- A short menu. Shops that do one broth well tend to list four or five bowls, not thirty.
- Noodles specified by supplier or made in house, and mentioned somewhere.
- Firmness options offered — a sign the kitchen is thinking about texture.
- It gets busy at odd hours, which usually means a Japanese-speaking clientele rather than only a lunch rush.
Japanese grocery chains are the real find
Several Japanese supermarket chains operate in the US, largely in metropolitan areas, and they change what is possible at home: proper dashi, fresh noodles, decent miso, konbini-style prepared food, and seasonal items that appear and vanish the way they do in Japan.
Larger pan-Asian supermarkets carry much of the same range at lower prices, though with less depth in specifically Japanese products.
Festivals and gardens
Japanese cultural festivals run in many American cities, most commonly in spring around blossom season and in summer for obon. Cherry blossom plantings exist in a number of cities, some of them substantial and decades old. Japanese gardens attached to botanical gardens or museums are more common than most people realise and are frequently excellent.
[ADD YOUR OWN] Your actual local finds, named. This piece is only worth reading if the recommendations are places you have been.
