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http://authentic-japan-selection.japantimes.com

Why regional restaurants topped
Destination list

Right: Kei Tokado, CEO of Pocket Concierge, which was founded in 2011 andacquired by American Express in January 2019.
Left: Yoshiki Tsuji, head of the board of directors of the Tsuji Culinary Institute,
director of the All Japan Food Association and selection committee member for
Destination Restaurants.

By MINAMI NAKAWADA CONTRIBUTING WRITER

D

estination
Restaurants
2021 is a list of the best
restaurants in Japan, published by The Japan Times in April
2021. To commemorate the announcement, a special talk sessionon the charm of Japanese food culture was held at The Japan Times’
headquarters in December. Thespeakers were Yoshiki Tsuji, principal of the Tsuji Culinary Instituteand a member of the Destination
Restaurants selection committee,and Kei Tokado, representative director of Pocket Concierge, one ofAmerican Express’ dining businesses and a sponsor of the Destination Restaurants list. The facili-Tsuji and Tokado with the chair of The
Japan Times, Minako Suematsu

tator was the chair of The JapanTimes, Minako Suematsu.
Over the years, the Japanese
have cultivated distinctive and richfood cultures suited to their particular local climates. They have also
actively incorporated dishes fromoverseas and developed them into
original dishes through the use of
local ingredients and cooking
methods. And yet, when it came toevaluating Japan’s foods and restaurants, there was always a tendency for foreign criteria to be applied. The new list was born from adesire to demonstrate to the world
how the Japanese evaluate and appraise their own food.
“At first, when The Japan Times
asked me to join the selection committee, I worried that the list would
be no different from the otherguides and awards,” Tsuji said.
“But the more I heard about theplan, the more I realized it was different. This award was the chance
for Japanese to proudly introduce
restaurants selected when a Japanese filter is applied, based on Japanese culture and history. Other
major awards to date, such as theMichelin Guide and the World Best
50 Restaurants, evaluate foodbased on an international common
language from a foreign perspective. But they can’t capture everything that Japanese food has to offer. We seek out the artisans, andthe local stories. Perhaps the difference between this list and others is that we don’t make selections
based solely on the taste of thefood. We consider the surroundings leading to the creation of therestaurant, the chef’s efforts tobring together the local environment, ingredients and producers,
like an orchestra conductor.” As aresult, the restaurants that were ultimately selected were not in the
big cities of Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto, but in the regions, in locations
you might visit for a night.
For curious customers venturing
to these independently run regional restaurants, there is a service tohelp: Pocket Concierge (https://pocket-concierge.jp/en/).Pocket
Concierge lists more than 1,000 famous restaurants all over Japanand allows you to make reservations and payments. You can evenmake reservations in English aswell as Japanese. With Pocket
Concierge, not only can people
from all over the world experience
the best food culture that Japan
has to offer, but they can make reservations at restaurants recognized by local foodies, and payments are smooth with their online
pre-payment system. “Of course,for people visiting a restaurant thetaste of the food is important, but I
think the experience of the restaurant goes far beyond that. We see it
as our role to provide that experience,” Tokado said.
Although the number of inboundtourists to Japan has declined drastically amid the pandemic, thisdoes not mean that Japan’s diverse
food culture and the technicalskills of its chefs are being lost.
Japanese food continues to yieldrich discoveries. American Express members can make priority
reservations for Destination Restaurants on a special section in thePocket Concierge site. Don’t waste
any time going out to the countryside and enjoying a completely new
food experience.

Summary日本発信のベスト・レストラン・リスト。その魅力を語る。
「Destination Restaurants 2021」は、ジャパンタイムズが発表した日本のベストレストランを選定したリスト。それを記念し日本の食文化の魅力をテーマに特別セッションが行われた。ゲストは、辻調理師専門学校校長でリスト選考委員の辻芳樹氏と、リストのスポンサーで、アメリカン・エキスプレスのダイニング事業のひとつである「ポケットコンシェルジュ」の代表取締役、戸門慶氏。「このリストは日本人のフィルターを通して、外国人へ向け、誇りをもってレストランを紹介するものです」と辻芳樹氏は語る。
そんなレストランとお客さんを繋いでくれるのが「ポケットコンシェルジュ」。予約から決済までを行えるオンライン予約サービスで、日本全国の名店を1000軒以上掲載。英語でも店の予約ができる。
「 おいしい と感じていただくことは大切ですが、それ以上に店での体験が重要です。それを提供するのが私たちの役割だと思っています」。戸門慶氏は語る。

POCKET CONCIERGE

日本語全文はこちらから

Pocket Concierge is a restaurant reservation
service for carefully selected restaurants,
offering services such as vacant seat
notifications for hard-to-book restaurants andwaiting lists for restaurants that are usually
open only to regular customers.

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