I think French (and by extension, many Western) and Japanese people just emphasize different aspects of the restaurant experience. Order a sirloin steak anywhe

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.