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Long-time resident of Japan here. This article was a revelation; I had no idea that the humble katsu curry is now so common in the U.K. A similar phenomenon of

Long-time resident of Japan here. This article was a revelation; I had no idea that the humble katsu curry is now so common in the U.K. A similar phenomenon of culinary appropriation and adaptation might be the Nepali-run Indian restaurants in Japan. In the past twenty years or so, they have spread to nearly every corner of the country. Though independently owned and run, they have largely similar menus, with food that, I've read, would seem out of place in both Nepal and India. A recent book in Japanese [1] does a good job of tracing their origins and their role in giving immigration and employment opportunities to Nepalis. [1] https://shinsho.shueisha.co.jp/kikan/1208-n/ https://shinsho.shueisha.co.jp/kikan/1208-n/ Addendum: After I posted the above, I counted in my head the number of Nepali/Indian restaurants within a twenty-minute walk of my home in Yokohama and came up with six (I’ve eaten at all of them). It turns out that there are several more. Here’s a map of my neighborhood with them marked: https://www.gally.net/temp/20240823_Indian_Nepali_restaurants_in_Yokohama.jpg https://www.gally.net/temp/20240823_Indian_Nepali_restaurant... If anyone wants to see what they look like on Google Street View or search for others, here’s a link: https://www.google.com/maps/search/%E3%82%A4%E3%83%B3%E3%83%89%E6%96%99%E7%90%86/@35.4711808,139.6214515,16z/data=!3m1!4b1?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI0MDgyMC4xIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D https://www.google.com/maps/search/%E3%82%A4%E3%83%B3%E3%83%... Probably none of them have katsu curry on the menu, though I have been to a few Nepali/Indian restaurants in Japan that did serve it—no doubt to appeal to less-adventurous Japanese tastes.

pen2l 2y ago
It’s pretty “popular” in United States also, well at least in my group of peers whenever we’re going for sushi one of us will have ordered katsu curry. My absolute favorite is the curry as it’s made by Yayume sushi in San Ramon.
- tkgally 2y ago
  That's interesting. In Japan, you might have a hard time finding a place that serves both sushi and katsu curry. Restaurants tend to specialize.
  - bigstrat2003 2y ago
    I suspect it's because in the US, it all gets lumped together under the "Japanese food" category. I suspect the dishes being foreign in origin makes people less likely to consider them as separate categories. I can confirm that I have the same thing in my part of the US though. A lot of restaurants will offer sushi and ramen both on the menu, with some other dishes like katsu curry showing up here and there. I would say the best sushi/ramen places here do specialize (just like you said about Japan), but it's pretty common to see places which don't.
  - tptacek 2y ago
    They specialize here too, but midrange sushi spots always have a section of the menu catering to the one family member who hates sushi.
    - growse 2y ago
      Is this unique to certain genres? Everyone in the UK knows about "Chinese takeaway chips" and "Indian Omlettes", but you don't see such concessions in Thai, Italian, French etc. places.
      - tptacek 2y ago
        I can only speak to Japanese places in the US.
  - zdragnar 2y ago
    Quite a few people in the US have an aversion to eating raw meat, including sushi. Any mid range restaurant is going to offer more than just sushi so that there's something for everyone when a group wants to go out to eat.
    - antimemetics 2y ago
      Always love to shock US-Americans with the fact that we eat raw pork in Germany (google mettigel)
- incanus77 2y ago
  It’s very common in Portland, OR — I had pork katsu this week at a Hawaiian place. Curry less so, but plenty of non-sushi Japanese restaurants around.
- barber_the_dope 2y ago
  [dead]
alephnan 2y ago
Pretty much all non-Japanese food in Japan is some form of “cultural appropriation” to the extent that it plays into stereotypes/tropes Japanese people expect from that given “cuisine”. For example, Italian would consist of lots of cheese. Japanese “Italian” food is in a category of its own. In this case, it would be actual appropriation because it’s made by Japanese people rather than the given ethnic minority putting a spin on their cuisine. Best comment I’ve ever read on Reddit is that the Japanese don’t like cheese, they like the concept of cheese. Japanese people can’t stand strong smells nor spice, so that already greatly restricts the authenticity of food. The exception would be if the restaurant is catering specifically or exclusively to the immigrant population. I’ve found this to be common in Vietnamese restaurants where it’s just a community hangout spot for the migrant workers. Since you live in Yokohama, the entire town plays on stereotypes and tropes of what Japanese think of Chinese. Namely, all the fortune teller shops since the Japanese think Chinese people are mystical (the Western version is fortune telling machines feature an automata wearing a Turban or Gypsies).
- tkgally 2y ago
  Thanks for the response. I mostly agree with you about the food, but not about Yokohama. Chinatown is a tiny, atypical part of Yokohama; the vast majority of the city, including where I live, has nothing to do with stereotypes of Chinese. Also, Japanese views of China and of Chinese people are, for better or worse, diverse and complex, and mysticalness and fortune-telling play little to no role for most people.
- MisterTea 2y ago
  I was in Japan the past two weeks and coming from NYC I wanted to try some pizza. So while in Sapporo I tried pizza at the Kirin beer garden (maybe Sapporo? I was drunk) and was disappointed. The cheese was a small pat in each quadrant and bland, similar to polly-o, the sauce lacked flavor which tasted like jar sauce, and the crust was under cooked. Then in Tokyo wandering the Ueno shopping district I found a small Italian joint that also had pizza. Same issues as my experience in Sapporo but the dough was almost uncooked in the center. I will say they got the look of pizza down but none of the flavor and texture is all wrong. Feels more like a quick and dirty homemade pizza using cheap canned super market ingredients. Maybe they need a fat guy named Sal from Queens to lend a hand. Maybe they just dont like the flavor or texture of proper pizza.
morninglight 2y ago
It is mostly a kid's food in Japan. When we lived there our kids loved Japanese curry. Now that we are back in the US, we can get it from Amazon. The kids are a lot older, but they still love it. https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Curry-Sauce-Mild-Ounce/dp/B07BQ42FFZ https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Curry-Sauce-Mild-Ounce/dp/B07B...
tompark 2y ago
Would you recommend any of these as "must try"? (I'm going to be in Yokohama in October for the YIS centennial anniversary.)

pen2l 2y ago

It’s pretty “popular” in United States also, well at least in my group of peers whenever we’re going for sushi one of us will have ordered katsu curry. My absolute favorite is the curry as it’s made by Yayume sushi in San Ramon.

tkgally 2y ago
That's interesting. In Japan, you might have a hard time finding a place that serves both sushi and katsu curry. Restaurants tend to specialize.
- bigstrat2003 2y ago
  I suspect it's because in the US, it all gets lumped together under the "Japanese food" category. I suspect the dishes being foreign in origin makes people less likely to consider them as separate categories. I can confirm that I have the same thing in my part of the US though. A lot of restaurants will offer sushi and ramen both on the menu, with some other dishes like katsu curry showing up here and there. I would say the best sushi/ramen places here do specialize (just like you said about Japan), but it's pretty common to see places which don't.
- tptacek 2y ago
  They specialize here too, but midrange sushi spots always have a section of the menu catering to the one family member who hates sushi.
  - growse 2y ago
    Is this unique to certain genres? Everyone in the UK knows about "Chinese takeaway chips" and "Indian Omlettes", but you don't see such concessions in Thai, Italian, French etc. places.
    - tptacek 2y ago
      I can only speak to Japanese places in the US.
- zdragnar 2y ago
  Quite a few people in the US have an aversion to eating raw meat, including sushi. Any mid range restaurant is going to offer more than just sushi so that there's something for everyone when a group wants to go out to eat.
  - antimemetics 2y ago
    Always love to shock US-Americans with the fact that we eat raw pork in Germany (google mettigel)
incanus77 2y ago
It’s very common in Portland, OR — I had pork katsu this week at a Hawaiian place. Curry less so, but plenty of non-sushi Japanese restaurants around.
barber_the_dope 2y ago
[dead]

alephnan 2y ago

Pretty much all non-Japanese food in Japan is some form of “cultural appropriation” to the extent that it plays into stereotypes/tropes Japanese people expect from that given “cuisine”. For example, Italian would consist of lots of cheese. Japanese “Italian” food is in a category of its own. In this case, it would be actual appropriation because it’s made by Japanese people rather than the given ethnic minority putting a spin on their cuisine. Best comment I’ve ever read on Reddit is that the Japanese don’t like cheese, they like the concept of cheese. Japanese people can’t stand strong smells nor spice, so that already greatly restricts the authenticity of food. The exception would be if the restaurant is catering specifically or exclusively to the immigrant population. I’ve found this to be common in Vietnamese restaurants where it’s just a community hangout spot for the migrant workers. Since you live in Yokohama, the entire town plays on stereotypes and tropes of what Japanese think of Chinese. Namely, all the fortune teller shops since the Japanese think Chinese people are mystical (the Western version is fortune telling machines feature an automata wearing a Turban or Gypsies).

tkgally 2y ago
Thanks for the response. I mostly agree with you about the food, but not about Yokohama. Chinatown is a tiny, atypical part of Yokohama; the vast majority of the city, including where I live, has nothing to do with stereotypes of Chinese. Also, Japanese views of China and of Chinese people are, for better or worse, diverse and complex, and mysticalness and fortune-telling play little to no role for most people.
MisterTea 2y ago
I was in Japan the past two weeks and coming from NYC I wanted to try some pizza. So while in Sapporo I tried pizza at the Kirin beer garden (maybe Sapporo? I was drunk) and was disappointed. The cheese was a small pat in each quadrant and bland, similar to polly-o, the sauce lacked flavor which tasted like jar sauce, and the crust was under cooked. Then in Tokyo wandering the Ueno shopping district I found a small Italian joint that also had pizza. Same issues as my experience in Sapporo but the dough was almost uncooked in the center. I will say they got the look of pizza down but none of the flavor and texture is all wrong. Feels more like a quick and dirty homemade pizza using cheap canned super market ingredients. Maybe they need a fat guy named Sal from Queens to lend a hand. Maybe they just dont like the flavor or texture of proper pizza.

morninglight 2y ago

It is mostly a kid's food in Japan. When we lived there our kids loved Japanese curry. Now that we are back in the US, we can get it from Amazon. The kids are a lot older, but they still love it. https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Curry-Sauce-Mild-Ounce/dp/B07BQ42FFZ https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Curry-Sauce-Mild-Ounce/dp/B07B...

tompark 2y ago

Would you recommend any of these as "must try"? (I'm going to be in Yokohama in October for the YIS centennial anniversary.)