Tag: Robatayaki
Robata originates from a centuries-old country style of cooking by northern Japanese fishermen around a communal hearth (irori) that serves as a cooking area and a source of heat, found on the northernmost island of Japan, Hokkaido. The fishermen needed a way to cook on the boats, so they encased coals in a stone box to protect the boat from the intense heat. After a government campaign depicting Hokkaido as an idyllic rustic area, this style of cooking became popular all over Japan. The first robata restaurant (named "Robata") opened in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. Proving a successful formula, soon more robata restaurants followed, starting in Osaka. As of 1965, there were more than 10,000 such restaurants across the country.
In the fishermen's town of Kushiro on Hokkaido, now many restaurants specialize in this style of cuisine.
The Fuki-ya restaurant once owned by Junko and Richard K. Diran in the Japan Center (San Francisco) is said to have been the first robatayaki restaurant in the United States.
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