soy sauce. very old style. anthony: man, that looks good. masa: yeah. 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 s good friend and art advisor haruo konishi has a family hideaway here. a beautiful 120-year-old traditional kominka style home built around an irori a sunken hearth in the middle of the living room. it s wild getting up here, the snow, the rocks in the road. masa: yeah, right? anthony: man, it s masa: yeah. anthony: ooh, pretty. not only does the irori heat the entire house, it becomes the gathering place on nights like these. masa: arigato, cheers. anthony: konbai. they get together cook, eat, drink large quantities of unfiltered, slightly chunky sake, and enjoy the country life. lookin good. the boys have laid out the makings of a pretty amazing feast iwana, or char, were caught today in a nearby mountain stream. enormous hokkaido scallops, pulled this morning from the sea of japan, sizzle and pucker in their shells over the fire in butter and lime juice and a touch of home-brewed soy sauce. wild japanese boar hangs above
masa: very tough. at that time, his grandfather was here too. very tough. anthony: young masa was first hired here as an apprentice by shokunin toshiaku sugiyama. this is his son, mamoru sugyiyama, who runs sushiko today. the fourth generation to uphold the standards and family tradition. sugyiyama: [ speaking japanese ] anthony: some things should stay the same. masa: exactly, yes. sugyiyama: [ speaking japanese ] japanese ] masa: mix. anthony: seared horse mackerel over green onion and ginger drizzled with house-made soy. masa: yeah, i love this kind of stuff. very simple, right? anthony: oh, that s fantastic. masa: [ speaking japanese ] anthony: love it. masa: [ speaking japanese ] see here s one that marinated in
known in kanazawa, gained widespread popularity in the late 18th century. wearing elaborate kimono costumes and makeup, geikos are paid to entertain by singing, dancing, drinking basically making older men, generally, feel good and welcome for an hour, maybe two. yaeko is the owner of the fujinoya teahouse, one of only 15 or so left in kanazawa. these teahouses, which at one time numbered in the hundreds, provide a stage for the geiko, of which there are only about 50 left working in the city yaeko is a retired geiko and an old friend of masa whom he credits with teaching him many things about culture, life and, presumably, about women. [ applause ]
sugyiyama: [ speaking japanese ] masa: please teach my son, what he said. anthony: oh, wow look at that. masa: this has lots of shrimp eggs, those eggs, and the fish paste is in. anthony: really. masa: very special stuff. anthony: did he ever think back then that you would be a success in america? or did he think bad move? sugyiyama: [ speaking japanese ] anthony: ambitious. masa: exactly, ambitious. sugyiyama: [ speaking japanese ] masa: [ speaking japanese ] sugyiyama: [ speaking japanese ] masa: [ speaking japanese ]