by Lara Schwenk

When people think of Japanese cuisine, besides the obvious sushi and rāmen, dishes like curry rice (jpn. karē raisu) or omuraisu might come to mind. Some Westerners might even think of the latter in connection with subcultures such as maid cafés and conclude that it is, in fact, a typical Japanese food. But how do Japanese people perceive such dishes? Surely, when they speak of going out to eat “Japanese food”, they are not referring to omuraisu, right? And yet, many Japanese restaurants abroad also offer it as an item on their menu. Could it be that foods are perceived to be “originally” from different places, depending on where you are in the world?

In a conversation about the distinction between Japanese food (jpn. washoku) and Western food (jpn. yōshoku), my interview partner, a student from Seikei University in Tokyo, explained that, according to her understanding, omuraisu was closer to Western food than to Japanese food. Still, it was clear that this dish represents some kind of in-between: she hesitated, expressing her uncertainty when asked to categorize it. Interestingly, she mentioned that there are two cafeterias at her university which are distinguished by the types of meals they offer. One serves more Japanese dishes, while the other serves more Western food. Though if the line between these two categories is blurred, however, one might ask how they decide on their menus and which options could be seen as surprising for Japanese and foreign students respectively.

This brings us to our next example: avocado sushi. My interview partner had never eaten Japanese food abroad, but our conversation reminded her of a show she had seen on Japanese TV. In this show, the concept of avocado sushi, which is common in Europe, was introduced to a Japanese audience. This surprised her and she recounted feeling torn at the thought of such a variation of sushi. The question was raised whether avocado sushi should even be called “sushi” and whether it is authentic, since this variation is not commonly available in Japan. After a long consideration, my interview partner expressed a cautiously positive attitude towards it, saying that, if this type of sushi will make sushi more widely known internationally, then she is okay with it.

This interview gave both of us the chance to reflect on our own perceptions of food and the varying degrees of authenticity of certain dishes. It reminded me of a curious example one of my Japanese friends had brought up in conversation a few years ago. There’s a cold noodle dish that is literally called “chilled Chinese” (jpn. hiyashi chūka) in Japanese, and many Japanese people believe its origin to lay in China. But as it turns out, in China, the same dish is called “Japanese style chilled noodles”. There are numerous examples of dishes from other countries where the origins are unclear and the lines blur, such as bánh mì from Vietnam or döner kebab from Germany. This shows that food is deeply interconnected with culture, and it is something learned through lived experiences. Depending on what we grew up eating and where we first encountered certain dishes, we might associate different foods with different places and even assume their origins. As food is such a highly personal topic, it can be great conversation material, as this interview has shown. So, next time you are sharing a meal with friends, it might be worth asking about their home country’s national cuisine or their favorite comfort food.

Lara Schwenk is a student in the MA program Global East Asia at the Freie Universität Berlin.