JRIs Kyushu using the Shinkansen to spread its premium ingredients to Asia?

Global restaurant competition "World's Best"50Takanori Nakamura, who serves as the Japan chairman of ``Japanese Restaurants'' and is well-versed in hotel and restaurant situations in Japan and abroad, has been fascinated by Japan's local gastronomy for the past few years. He seems to be busy, serving as the chairman of the judging panel for the Gourmet Awards sponsored by Niigata Prefecture, and attending Dining Out, a food event held irregularly in the charming local area. What made me attracted toJR``Seven Stars'' was born in Kyushu as Japan's first cruise train. in　Kyushu"2022I think he was in charge of being an advisor when the company was renovated in 2017. Mr. Nakamura, who frequently visits the Kyushu area, has always provided us with a variety of interesting information.

I heard an interesting story from Mr. Nakamura. "JR"Kyushu will be introducing special Kagoshima ingredients to Asia." Speaking of Kagoshima, it is the terminal station of the Kyushu Shinkansen that departs from Fukuoka. It makes sense that they transport goods other than passengers, but to Asia? What exactly is that?

"table dot"Special dinner in style

When I told Mr. Nakamura that I wanted to know the true meaning of those words, he told me that he had a clue about a special collaborative dinner event to be held in Fukuoka, and that I should definitely experience it. With that in mind, I headed to Fukuoka in early spring.

A popular restaurant in Fukuoka that no one knows about.gohThe event ``Table Dot Fukuoka'' was held at ``Table Dot Fukuoka''. The host is “goh” Chef Tsuyoshi Fukuyama. The collaboration partner is a two-star restaurant in Wakayama Prefecture.villa aidaThis is a gorgeous combination of chef Hiroshi Kobayashi from ``. A store that has been loved for a long time in Fukuoka has been temporarily closed and opened anew.gohChef Fukuyama got his start as ``Table Dot'', but the theme of his new restaurant is ``Table Dot'', which is the name of the event. In French, it is a style of dining in which the host (cook) and guests gather at one table and entertain with the best cuisine, and this is exactly the ideal that Chef Fukuyama is aiming for. Chef Kobayashi runs a similar table dot style restaurant in Wakayama. On this day, the two showed off their dishes to the domestic and foreign foodies who had gathered to enjoy the collaboration.

A lineup of rare Kagoshima ingredients that take center stage

By the way, Chef Fukuyama is a person who usually cooks dishes using Kyushu ingredients, mainly from Fukuoka. Furthermore, Chef Kobayashi has a restaurant in a quiet area of ​​Iwade City, Wakayama Prefecture, and grows vegetables on his own farm. The menu that the two of them created that day listed many names of ingredients produced in Kagoshima Prefecture. Satoyama beef, bonito, Kirishima eel, taka shrimp, Satsuma Amaterasu (tomato), fava beans, peach banana, tankan, pika ichigo (strawberry), and angel night (white strawberry). In addition to these, the lineup of ingredients alone is luxurious, including vegetables from Fukuoka and Kumamoto, and vegetables grown by Chef Kobayashi himself. Almost all of Kagoshima's ingredients are said to have been transported by the Kyushu Shinkansen.

A Singaporean chef with a penchant for Japan encounters delicious food for the first time

Mr. Takanori Nakamura, who was enjoying the meal in the audience seat,2I was explaining these dishes and Kyushu's food culture to a Singaporean chef. One is Mr. Jason Tan of Singapore's star restaurant Euphoria. The other person is2023Asia's Best50Joanne Shi of ``Lola'' won the ``Asian Female Chef Award''. If you ask me, a few days ago2Mr. Nakamura is accompanying Mr. Nakamura on a tour to see Kagoshima's ingredients, and this night seems to be the finale.

Mr. Nakamura says.
"JRKyushu has carried out various experiments so far. Seven Stars introduced a new style of travel, train cruises for the wealthy, and now similar fun luxury trains have sprung up all over Japan. The Nishi-Kyushu Shinkansen, commonly known as ``Kamome,'' runs from Takeo Onsen to Nagasaki.2022I think it will be fresh in your memory since it opened in the fall of 2019. Like thatJRLast year, Kyushu began an Asian expansion project for Kyushu ingredients that combines Shinkansen and air transportation. This time from Singapore2We invited a local chef to view the attractive ingredients of Kagoshima. Although Kyushu is a short distance from Singapore, these ingredients must be transported via existing transportation routes, such as truck transport from the production area and onto flights departing from Fukuoka, or wholesale from Kagoshima to Tokyo and then to Singapore. Quality control was difficult in all of these steps."

"Japanese ingredients are very popular in Singapore, but I actually don't have much connection with Kagoshima-grown ingredients. I only knew Kagoshima beef at most, so this visit was full of surprises. Seafood and agricultural products. "So unique! So fresh!" says Chef Joan.

Numerous benefits of Shinkansen + airplane

started last yearJRThe Kyushu project is said to be an attempt to expand distribution, which had previously been focused on the domestic market, to Asia. There isn't much of a problem if you're in the Fukuoka area, but not so much elsewhere. This is because Kyushu is large. If ingredients from Kagoshima or Kumamoto were transported by truck to the hub city of Fukuoka, it would take time and cost, and from there it would be difficult to expand overseas. However, if you take the Shinkansen to Fukuoka, move it to Fukuoka Airport, which is closer to the city center than Tokyo, and load it onto a plane, the distance to Asia is the same as Tokyo. In fact, in an experimental transport project that began last winter, the brand-name farmed yellowtail ``Yamio'' was landed early in the morning in Nagashima Town, an island in the northwestern part of Kagoshima Prefecture. It was transported by Shinkansen to Fukuoka, and from there it was flown by plane to Taiwan. In fact, it arrived within half a day after being shipped.

When you hear about Shinkansen transportation, it may seem like a simple story. However, the chefs (including Chef Fukuyama and Chef Kobayashi, who were in the kitchen that day) said, ``Although I thought I knew Kagoshima ingredients well, it opened my eyes to a whole new world.'' Seafood from the East China Sea. The crops that grow in the whitebait fields of Satsuma, as well as the recently talked-about shochu and whiskey, are also interesting.I would definitely like to try them in the future.''It is easy to understand that this project has great potential. can. Of course, the Shinkansen will be useful not only for food, but also for transporting sample organs and blood, but there is no doubt that it will bring a new breeze to the world of gastronomy.

Gastronomy trends are reflected in the use of ingredients

When I was reporting on restaurants as a novice journalist, chefs and sommeliers would often enthusiastically show me their Challan duck and foie gras, saying, ``This is authentic ○○○ that we ordered from the local area.'' Later, when the Scandinavian cuisine craze swept the world, I was greatly moved by his thorough approach to local production and local consumption, such as ``In Northern Europe, where citrus fruits don't grow, ants are used for sourness.'' In the world of Japanese cuisine, both ancient and modern, ``remaining ○○ and running●●I respect the way ingredients are put together, but as the world continues to warm, I am worried about what kind of strain is being put on kitchens. In addition, truck transportation is on the horizon.2024With the issue of 2017 and carbon neutrality looming, there are many things to think about regarding the state of food ingredients.

I am not saying that Shinkansen transportation will solve all of these problems. However, if this system comes into use, there will probably be some changes in Japanese food trends in Asia, and I think it will lead to a new awareness of local gastronomy in Japan as well. While enjoying the lively and delicious night in Fukuoka, I realized once again that it was a dinner event in which I learned a lot.

*The third “Table Dot Fukuoka” is scheduled to be held in April 3. Details will be announced on Goh's Chef Tsuyoshi Fukuyama's Instagram.