Zitat des Tages von Nobu Matsuhisa:
My favorite knife is from Miyakoya in Japan - I have one in each of my restaurants.
When I set up my first restaurant, I was so inspired by Wolfgang Puck, who is also based in L.A. and is now a good friend of mine, and the way he would engage with his customers and greet them personally.
Many chefs are either technically or artistically better than me, but I know my food has soul.
When I was 11 or 12 - a young boy in Japan - one of my older brothers took me to a sushi restaurant. I had never been to one, and it was very memorable. Back then, sushi was expensive and hard to come by, not like today, when there's a sushi restaurant on every street corner and you can buy it in supermarkets.
In my generation, there was no sushi school, no cooking school, so people have to learn from working.
I feel like I owe something to America, as it is where I found success.
A sushi chef has to spot the best-quality fresh fish instantly.
The first jolt I received in my life was when I lost my father in a motorcycle accident when I was eight. I would have been with him if he hadn't turned down my request to go out with him that afternoon.
I can't imagine Japanese food without dashi, a broth made with kelp and dried bonito flakes. It has the aroma of the sea, tinged with a subtle smokiness, and adds a very important, distinct flavor.
Have you ever been to Mexico City and haggled with the locals over souvenirs? Well, in Peru, you had to negotiate like that to get the freshest fish at the market.
People who make mistakes but try their best, other people will support. But people who make mistakes because they're lazy, nobody supports.
I eat soup noodles for comfort. In fact, noodles of any kind. It's a food that is very easy to eat; it's very soothing and comfortable, too. If I could choose any, I'd say buckwheat was my favourite: it has a very good flavour and is healthy, too.
I enjoy people who have passion, whether it is as a musician or whatever they do. All people who have success keep it very basic. Try your best. But without passion, you will not have success.
Peru was the Incas; it has 3,000 to 4,000 years of history.
Every year, I do a New Year's day party at my home. I invite my staff and my friends and their kids. Around 40-50 people come by, and I do a barbecue and salads, steak and sushi, and also lots of cheese.
In Japan, I have my own line of dinnerware, but I'm not aggressive about pursuing those projects.
Dashi remains unfamiliar to most French and American cooks, who tend to reach for a bouillon cube to do many of the same things. But dashi is worth preparing and using the way the Japanese do: for poaching fish, as a soup base, and in simmered dishes.
Sushi is something very exclusive. It is not like a McDonald's, not like a hot dog, not like a French fry. It's very high-class cooking in Japan.
With sushi, it is all about balance. Sometimes they cut the fish too thick, sometimes too thin. Often the rice is overcooked or undercooked. Not enough rice vinegar or too much.
I am very lucky to consider many of my business associates friends. Some are closer than others, but I respect and value all of them.
It's still my happiest time when I'm eating.
I exercise every morning, no matter what. Sometimes it's tough to do right when you get off the plane, but after ten minutes you start sweating, and you always feel better.
I was a bit of a wild boy - always swimming and exploring the mountains.
Shellfish is better to buy live. In the U.S., because we eat oysters and clams raw, it is very important that they are alive before we prepare them. It's important to look for a closed shell. If a clam is alive, the shell will be closed. Never buy clams if the shell is open.
I grew up in the countryside in Saitama prefecture, north of Tokyo.
My flight time is important to me; I actually prefer a longer flight to a short one. That way I have time to read a book, watch movies, and think about new dishes.
One day, the people who work in my kitchen stir-fried chopped Napa cabbage to serve with some meat or fish for their own dinner. I got to thinking: 'What if the cabbage was the most important thing on the plate?'
I like Mercedes because my wife has been in two big accidents and emerged without a scratch, thanks to the safety of these cars.
Businesses that run well are almost like marriages. Everything has to be up for discussion, or there will be real problems.
I learned from my first restaurant: Make customers happy, make sure the customer comes back again. And automatically, success has followed me.
I travel all over the world, usually 10 months out of the year. I stay at a lot of hotels, and the ones I like best are clean and not complicated. You go to bed and say, 'Wow, I feel comfortable.'
My cooking is simply ingredients plus umami.
When I'm home in L.A., I go to La Brea, a bakery which does artisan breads, excellent sourdoughs primarily, but also patisserie and cakes.
I always eat a meal at home before I leave for the airport, so I only eat the soup and salad on the plane.