anthony: nasushiobara is a town like many others in rural japan. the kind of japanese town we don t see much of in movies or television. a once traditional farming community, slow paced, inward looking, the opposite end of the universe, culturally, from new york and tokyo, even from kanazawa. ishi: [ speaking japanese ] anthony: it used to be a five-hour trip from tokyo, now reduced to two by the shinkansen bullet train. why don t we have these in america, by the way? ask your congressmen. this rather drab, featureless place is where masa was born and raised and could well have stayed.
[ applause ] masa: nice, beautiful, huh? anthony: beautiful. this is a hard thing to do. masa: oh yeah, yeah. anthony: a lot of masa: they need to learn a lot of stuff. thanks. anthony: play music, tell stories masa: dance. yaeko: [ speaking japanese ] masa: [ speaking japanese ] yaeko: that s ok. anthony: a lot of work. masa: a lot of work. cheers. anthony: so what brought you here first? masa: when i was young, i didn t know this kind of world color wise, artist, beautiful i ve never seen that kind of stuff. big kind, kind of shock. i was a country boy, here is very sophisticated. people are sophisticated. i learned from her culture, what the secret is, spiritual wise. they teach me, you know? that s why the kanzawa city, this is my second country. anthony: owned and run by
all known each other? how many years? masa: 30 years. right? we know each other. i love this kind of cooking, you know? it s the way i like. anthony: wow. masa: be careful, though. it s hot, though. anthony: oh, yeah. masa: mm! anthony: wow, it s sweet. masa: [ speaking japanese ] konishi: [ speaking japanese ] anthony: izura, freshly caught local quail, is rubbed with olive oil, sprinkled with salt and lightly glazed with that homemade soy. masa: [ speaking japanese ] anthony: oh, wow. masa: how is it, good? anthony: that is good. mm. masa: this kind of charcoal slow cooking gives this kind of flavor, soft, juicy. how s the fish? konishi: [ speaking japanese ] [ laughter ] masa: you know what he said? before fish, i m gonna burn up. anthony: so him first. [ laughter ] masa: don t hurry. good food takes long time. anthony: so this big argument
anthony: maguro, bluefin tuna prepared in classic zuke style. that s so beautiful. masa: yeah. anthony: what happened if you did a bad job? masa: he didn t slap, but you know, the thing is a lot of punishment. anthony: yeah, you don t go home feeling good. masa: yelling. yelling. anthony: yelling. masa: yelling. anthony: how does he remember you? good guy, bad guy? pain in the ass? masa: [ speaking japanese ] sugyiyama: [ speaking japanese ] anthony: saxophone. sugyiyama: [ speaking japanese ] anthony: wait. is he any good at saxophone? [ laughter ] sugyiyama: good. good. very good. masa: i love jazz. i didn t know anything about it til i started working here. on a sunday, day off, taking classes a little bit, then
fantastic. it s really good. today s sashimi course is cod, salted and pressed between leaves of kelp for two hours, coated with sake cured codfish roe. next to it, flounder. its skin gently rubbed with grilled tomato the day before. masa: [ speaking japanese ] anthony: finally, a super luxurious clam hot pot. rice is steamed with clam and a bonito broth. then topped with plump torigai, plum, and manju clams, as well as creamy sea urchin and a japanese broccolini blossom for good measure. simple. perfect. wow. anthony: uni? masa: uni. anthony: awesome. masa: oh the umami hold into the rice. right? anthony: right. so, i wanna know the stereotypical japanese mentality. the, the salaryman. you join the company, you stay with the company. masa: well, some people go that way. anthony: most people go this way, yes. they, they choose security. masa: yeah, yeah. maybe. anthony: it s an unusual way of thinking. i have to make my own way.