This is what a cheese platter looks like in Japan
Say wine, snacks or haute cuisine and the gourmands at online food magazine FavorFlav know where to drink, how to eat it and what to cook. This time our cheffies serve you: This is what a cheese platter looks like in Japan.
The vacation in Japan was a series of culinary highlights. Fancy restaurants and snack bars, from savory pancakes to bento boxes for on the go: everything was equally delicious. The only setback was the cheese platter my husband ordered. A culinary misstep, for which he had to pay.
A honeymoon to Japan, can you imagine my happiness? Backpacks on and off we went, from hotel to hotel, from Tokyo to Hiroshima and from Kyoto to Osaka, with that super-fast train. What an experience! Lots of art and culture, cities and nature, but above all: the food, ohhh, the food.
Fish, more fish
The tastiest fish I have ever eaten came on my plate in a suburb of Tokyo. No one in the restaurant spoke English, except for a shy teenager who apparently had to do the dishes. He was pushed to our table to translate the menu, but he couldn't get further than: fish. And that: also fish. Here: more fish. So we ate fish and it was delicious, one course after another.
Whisky-cola against thirst
Not only did I find the fancy restaurants a party, but also the vending machines that are literally everywhere were a surprise every time. Hot coffee in a can? Just rolls out of that machine if you press the wrong button. I discovered calpis, a fizzy drink made from milk (you have to taste it to believe it) and noticed that you can order ginger ale everywhere. Also, alcoholic drinks just come out of those vending machines, and not just a little. A big sip of whisky-cola when I thirstily thought I had pulled a regular cola brought the holiday mood into a higher gear.
Smoky brie
But one thing we actually didn't encounter anywhere in Japan, and that is cheese. Not so strange, because in Asia, dairy has traditionally not been eaten. Cheese came into Japanese food culture during the reconstruction after World War II, when American soldiers were stationed in the country. You can apparently buy grated cheese in the supermarket, and they even make a kind of cheesecake, but a nice piece of crumbly cheese or a wedge of smoky brie we did not see anywhere. We also heard from an insider that Japanese people are disgusted by the smell of cheese – not so strange if you weren't raised with it.
Gleaming
Until my husband, in a fancy jazz café in Kyoto, saw a cheese platter on the menu with snacks a cheese platter His eyes started to gleam, he is crazy about cheese. Immediately ordered of course, and add a nice glass of beer, because this was going to be enjoyable. He thought.
Feast for the eyes
All dishes, even when we bought something at a station from a snack bar or a quick bite from the supermarket, looked beautiful. Beautifully packaged, nice dishes, carefully arranged plates, a sprig of green and colorful drops of sauce on top: a feast for the eyes. That cheese platter also looked amazing. A lead-gray plate with a subtle decoration on the edge, delicate forks to poke the cheese cubes; the whole picture.
Spoiled cheese head
But… it was La Vache Qui Rit. Yes, you read that right. That spreadable cheese for children's sandwiches and school trips. In three flavors: green, red, and plain. Still in their aluminum foil packaging. Maybe an exotic delicacy on the other side of the world, but for our spoiled cheese heads not what we expected. Sorry darling, it also seemed too good to be true. All meals in Japan were a great success, but a cheese platter? You'd better order that when you're back home.
