Let me start with the conclusion. The Japanese diet is basically relatively light, and they pay attention to the seasonality of ingredients. Their eating habits are related to social reasons. Considering this is a huge topic, I’ve only mentioned a small part and tried to tie it together using some terms from Japanese food.

Seasonal ritual model culture simplicity nutrition drink semi-finished food coupon machine set culture food portion one person dining Japanese pasta fried food culture wine shop culture family restaurant eating alley drunkard high-end cuisine traditional Japanese food one juice three dishes Bread culture bento culture Osechi cuisine station lunch box raw food culture Japanese wasabi natto hamburger meat origin complex

Let’s start with Long Aotian Zhenlou first.

There are more and more Japanese food restaurants in China. Ramen, curry, fried dumplings, omelette rice, and sushi are no longer unfamiliar to us... But for the Japanese, real "Japanese food" is not these things. What are the characteristics of Japanese food?

Seasonality In fact, Japan, like us, also emphasizes the use of seasonal ingredients. However, the seasonality of Japanese food is more commercialized, and businesses will launch dishes or set meals with different names. For example, Japanese people’s favorite cherry blossom season, in addition to the special cherry blossom viewing bento, there are also cherry blossom-shaped wagashi, sakura cakes, and hanami dumplings. These are the epitome of Japan’s seasonal food culture.

In movies and TV shows, Japanese people will say "いただきます" before eating. In reality, some people will say it out loud, and some people will say it silently in their hearts, which means I'm going to start. . In Japanese culture, food is a gift. In addition to the people who prepare the food, you must also thank the ingredients.

In addition, Japanese people will say "ごちそうさま" after finishing their meal, which means thank you for the hospitality. Then the store owner will shout a "Thank you very much" in response. This kind of human touch is more obvious in smaller restaurants.

Model culture Many restaurants in Japan will have food samples at the door, but please note that these are only for viewing but not eating. These are food models. On the one hand, using delicious food can attract customers, and it also allows customers to easily judge whether it is worth going in to eat.

Convenience The singleness rate among the three generations of old, middle-aged and young people in Japan is very high. One person does not want to bother with cooking, so the development of convenience food is very mature. Many dishes can simply be heated in a microwave oven.

Nutritional drinks The overtime culture is prevalent in Japan. The government has recently passed regulations to gradually curb it. However, energy-boosting functional drinks are still very common and are suitable for people who stay up late and work overtime. In addition, Japanese urbanites are very busy, and vegetables and fruits are very expensive, so there will be a large number of drinks that supplement vegetable nutrition.