Feast Your Eyes on Japan's Fake Food(newyorker.com)
newyorker.com
Feast Your Eyes on Japan's Fake Food
https://www.newyorker.com/culture/annals-of-gastronomy/feast-your-eyes-on-japans-fake-food
20 comments
Gordon Ramsey (in one of his failing restaurant tear-down shows) said that pictures on menus meant the food was shit, and to axe them. He's coming from fine dining, of course, but I couldn't disagree more. Sometimes a lot of the menu is illustrated, but the thing I want to try isn't, so I have to Google it and take a chance.
The Americn economy leans heavily on lack of price transparency and opaqueness. You're not allowed to know what you're buying until it delivers, at which point you can either accept it or complain loudly. Adding on a million junk fees and not selling things for prices as advertised is also really important. Food samples would be a huge 180 from all this, culturally speaking.
> at which point you can either accept it or complain loudly.
Or sue.
Or sue.
> I miss Japan so much.
I grew up in the U.S. but this is his I feel whenever I come back from a visit to Japan.
I grew up in the U.S. but this is his I feel whenever I come back from a visit to Japan.
What’s interesting to me is how functional this is, not just decorative.
The fake food isn’t about realism for its own sake, but about reducing ambiguity: you instantly understand portion size, ingredients, and even relative price without sharing a language.
In a way it feels like a very physical form of UX design, solving a real communication problem long before digital menus or translations were common.
I’m curious whether this tradition persists mainly out of nostalgia now, or if restaurants still see measurable benefits from it.
> Japanese people like to say that they “eat with their eyes,” relishing the colors, shapes, and textures of a dish before it ever hits the tongue
That's interesting, because, as a French person, I'm used to restaurant menus being, at best, a few words written on paper ; and sometimes there's no physical support and the menu is only provided orally by the waiter.
And places that display pictures of the food or, even worse, plastic replicas, tend to turn down my appetite. It feels gross and unnatural. I think part of it is because it means two things: either you'll have exactly the same thing in your plate, which mean industrialized food, or it won't match what you've been shown, you've been lied to.
Meanwhile, in restaurants without visual clues, you can only let your imagination go wild and guess what you're going to have. Once the plate is put in front of you, two surprises awaits you: does it looks like what you imagined and is it good?
At least that's the experience I'm looking for in restaurants.
That's interesting, because, as a French person, I'm used to restaurant menus being, at best, a few words written on paper ; and sometimes there's no physical support and the menu is only provided orally by the waiter.
And places that display pictures of the food or, even worse, plastic replicas, tend to turn down my appetite. It feels gross and unnatural. I think part of it is because it means two things: either you'll have exactly the same thing in your plate, which mean industrialized food, or it won't match what you've been shown, you've been lied to.
Meanwhile, in restaurants without visual clues, you can only let your imagination go wild and guess what you're going to have. Once the plate is put in front of you, two surprises awaits you: does it looks like what you imagined and is it good?
At least that's the experience I'm looking for in restaurants.
> which mean industrialized food
Or maybe it means a skilled chef.
Is this the future of art and code? Someone was able to make what was commissioned, hence it must be AI?
Or maybe it means a skilled chef.
Is this the future of art and code? Someone was able to make what was commissioned, hence it must be AI?
I was just on a short trip to Japan, and I find the replica food very intriguing. Take the experience with a large grain of salt of course, since it's just a few days worth of sightseeing.
What's particularly interesting, is that the replicas really do look like the actual food. Some replicas are so good, that I would not be able to tell that it is fake even by close inspection. One of the gyoza replica got the doughy body, the crispy bottom, and oily surface that is visually indistinguishable from a real one. Even the touch is somewhat real.
I'm not saying seeing those replicas gives me a better appetite; that's doubtful. I just appreciate the crafts.
The other side of the coin is that the actual food do look like the replica/photos, so it's not a bait-and-switch scheme. The people who prepare the dishes---be it a chef or a worker at a fast food chain---all seem quite accurate. Not that all dishes always look beautiful; but they do look consistent. Your plate of curry over rice might be plain, but it will look exactly the same as the previous order (and also as the photo), even if it is created entirely by hand. It's kinda amazing in its own right.
> Meanwhile, in restaurants without visual clues, you can only let your imagination go wild and guess what you're going to have. Once the plate is put in front of you, two surprises awaits you: does it looks like what you imagined and is it good? > > At least that's the experience I'm looking for in restaurants.
Well, you still retain the second part of the surprise: "is it good?". But yeah, it will ruin the first one, because of the accuracy. It's not something that particularly bothers me, but I can understand why you want to avoid the spoilers.
What's particularly interesting, is that the replicas really do look like the actual food. Some replicas are so good, that I would not be able to tell that it is fake even by close inspection. One of the gyoza replica got the doughy body, the crispy bottom, and oily surface that is visually indistinguishable from a real one. Even the touch is somewhat real.
I'm not saying seeing those replicas gives me a better appetite; that's doubtful. I just appreciate the crafts.
The other side of the coin is that the actual food do look like the replica/photos, so it's not a bait-and-switch scheme. The people who prepare the dishes---be it a chef or a worker at a fast food chain---all seem quite accurate. Not that all dishes always look beautiful; but they do look consistent. Your plate of curry over rice might be plain, but it will look exactly the same as the previous order (and also as the photo), even if it is created entirely by hand. It's kinda amazing in its own right.
> Meanwhile, in restaurants without visual clues, you can only let your imagination go wild and guess what you're going to have. Once the plate is put in front of you, two surprises awaits you: does it looks like what you imagined and is it good? > > At least that's the experience I'm looking for in restaurants.
Well, you still retain the second part of the surprise: "is it good?". But yeah, it will ruin the first one, because of the accuracy. It's not something that particularly bothers me, but I can understand why you want to avoid the spoilers.
> * as a French person, I'm used to restaurant menus being, at best, a few words written on paper ; and sometimes there's no physical support and the menu is only provided orally by the waiter*
Plenty of restaurants in Japan are omakase in various forms. Sometimes this means high-end sushi. Often, that you sit down and are served the chef's special. (Particularly true in the towns.)
Plenty of restaurants in Japan are omakase in various forms. Sometimes this means high-end sushi. Often, that you sit down and are served the chef's special. (Particularly true in the towns.)
French have rather specific relation with food, in some aspects better and in some worse than most of the world. Spending on and off there last 15 years so I have a bit of experience with that.
The simple fact is, french restaurants are aimed at french people and not really care about anybody else. So you are conditioned for your style of experience you keep expecting, for anybody else its rather uninviting experience that leaves you at most tolerated, if you know the language and its local aspects and food well enough (which is rather high level and properly sucks for foreigners).
Or to put it in other way - food itself is often superb, as long as its more traditional one and not some copy of foreign one (ie dont try south/east asian stuff its rather disappointing). The human part of experience will leave a lot to desire compared to literally anywhere else in the world.
The simple fact is, french restaurants are aimed at french people and not really care about anybody else. So you are conditioned for your style of experience you keep expecting, for anybody else its rather uninviting experience that leaves you at most tolerated, if you know the language and its local aspects and food well enough (which is rather high level and properly sucks for foreigners).
Or to put it in other way - food itself is often superb, as long as its more traditional one and not some copy of foreign one (ie dont try south/east asian stuff its rather disappointing). The human part of experience will leave a lot to desire compared to literally anywhere else in the world.
> Or to put it in other way - food itself is often superb, as long as its more traditional one and not some copy of foreign one (ie dont try south/east asian stuff its rather disappointing).
Hah, I was thinking this as well while reading the parent - maybe this explains why non-European food tends to be especially bad in France. Even compared to places like the UK or the Netherlands which aren't exactly known for their food and where too most non-European food isn't great.
Hah, I was thinking this as well while reading the parent - maybe this explains why non-European food tends to be especially bad in France. Even compared to places like the UK or the Netherlands which aren't exactly known for their food and where too most non-European food isn't great.
Not that there's not a lot of standardization in Japanese food, but if I order most French dishes, especially in France, I generally have a pretty good idea of what I'm going to get.
One things I've heard about French food (and food supply chains) is that it's something of a monoculture which has both good and not so good aspects.
One things I've heard about French food (and food supply chains) is that it's something of a monoculture which has both good and not so good aspects.
Personally I always hated the minimalistic style of these menus, the descriptions are never enough and I was often underwhelmed by the final result of a 5 word description.
I get the appeal of the "mystery" and leaving the art to the artist but I honestly prefer the Chinese menus with pictures of food they personally took of the dishes they made.
I get the appeal of the "mystery" and leaving the art to the artist but I honestly prefer the Chinese menus with pictures of food they personally took of the dishes they made.
I think French (and by extension, many Western) and Japanese people just emphasize different aspects of the restaurant experience.
Order a sirloin steak anywhere in the Western hemisphere, and you know almost nothing about what it will look and taste like, other than the fact that it will contain a piece of beef sirloin. The chef might have his own secret sauce, or garnish the steak with unusual herbs, which can change the flavor completely. Those are the some of the surprises that you're looking for, but most of them can be visually identified. They'll be ruined if you can see in advance exactly what kind of herbs will be used.
In Japanese cuisine, many dishes are based on either raw or minimally modified ingredients. White rice is white rice. Poached shrimp is just poached shrimp. You already know what a slice of tuna or fried tofu looks like. The dish as a whole just looks like the sum of its ingredients. Heck, if you can read Japanese, it looks exactly as its name says! No surprises there at all. Instead, you find delightful surprises elsewhere: the freshness of the fish and vegetables, the richness of the broth, the way in which disparate flavors balance one another in your mouth as you take a bite. These surprises will not be ruined by knowing what the dish looks like in advance. Because you're not looking for an original recipe here. You're looking for the most perfect execution of a known recipe.
Of course it's a gross simplification, but this might help explain the different reaction between East and West.
Order a sirloin steak anywhere in the Western hemisphere, and you know almost nothing about what it will look and taste like, other than the fact that it will contain a piece of beef sirloin. The chef might have his own secret sauce, or garnish the steak with unusual herbs, which can change the flavor completely. Those are the some of the surprises that you're looking for, but most of them can be visually identified. They'll be ruined if you can see in advance exactly what kind of herbs will be used.
In Japanese cuisine, many dishes are based on either raw or minimally modified ingredients. White rice is white rice. Poached shrimp is just poached shrimp. You already know what a slice of tuna or fried tofu looks like. The dish as a whole just looks like the sum of its ingredients. Heck, if you can read Japanese, it looks exactly as its name says! No surprises there at all. Instead, you find delightful surprises elsewhere: the freshness of the fish and vegetables, the richness of the broth, the way in which disparate flavors balance one another in your mouth as you take a bite. These surprises will not be ruined by knowing what the dish looks like in advance. Because you're not looking for an original recipe here. You're looking for the most perfect execution of a known recipe.
Of course it's a gross simplification, but this might help explain the different reaction between East and West.
That's certainly a take. If the menu says sirloin steak and doesn't mention any sauces, and I order a medium rare sirloin steak without mentioning any sauces, then I rather expect to get exactly what I think I'm ordering, a medium rare sirloin steak. Maybe a bit of a herby garnish wouldn't be a terrible surprise, although if it changed the flavour completely then it really ought to say about it on the menu.
It seems to me like steak is maybe one of the dishes where what you're saying is least true. I know a great deal about what it will look and taste like.
It seems to me like steak is maybe one of the dishes where what you're saying is least true. I know a great deal about what it will look and taste like.
https://morino-sample.jp/ sells fake-food knickknacks like the ones mentioned in the article, including fridge magnets and keychains. Some of the ones I've bought are more realistic than others--which is fair since they're not for restaurant use anyway--but they're all delightful!
Really looking forward to read this one. The author is one of my favorites and these YouTube videos are my favorite video content: https://youtu.be/Chi8hk1Vqs8
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→ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_model
I miss Japan so much.