Ekondate - Illustrated Kaiseki Menu (Hideo Dekura)

*E-Menu (Kaiseki Cuisine) in Early Summer in Sydney
This program explores the history of Japanese cuisine, examining both classic and contemporary aspects of menu planning. During the 300 years since the establishment of Japanese food culture, particularly from the late Edo period through the Meiji and Taisho eras, high-end restaurants would hand-draw beautifully illustrated menus on washi paper, with each dish beautifully illustrated by hand, along with a calligraphy explanation of the 13 courses, from appetizers to desserts. In today's rapidly changing lifestyles, chefs no longer spend days creating menus for their guests.
But how do today's guests perceive an illustrated menu created with such hospitality and formality? What a luxurious moment, don't you think? Furthermore, the five-meter-long lacquered illustrated menu will be handed over to the guests directly by the chef as soon as their meal is over. It will surely become a lifelong memory, one that will be passed down for generations. I look forward to seeing how the audience at J-EXPO will understand the theme of this illustrated menu.