Fuentes bluefin tuna tapas: talent to scale
A logbook by Sensei Hiroshi Umi. Internationally speaking, they are the most recognisable trait of Spanish cuisine. As universal as sushi or pizza. Supposedly they had a twofold origin: a matter of hygiene, and what might be called whetting...
Tora: a tiger on the loose in the Salamanca district
A logbook by Sensei Hiroshi Umi. A talented, self-made sushiman, an investor who is an elite footballer, and a hugely elegant venue in the heart of Madrid’s Salamanca district. These are the calling cards of Tora (tiger in my mother t...
El Doncel: bluefin tuna 1,000 m above sea level
A logbook by Sensei Hiroshi Umi. He gives off the aura of days gone by, out of the ordinary, like a man of the Golden Age, veteran of a thousand battles, arising from a literary world. A rakishly piratical beard, professorial glasses, sharp...
Sharaku: hidden island, supreme nigiri
A logbook by Sensei Hiroshi Umi. One of the most reassuring experiences for the nomadic, investigative, analytical, gluttonous and loquacious guild of culinary critics is for our taste buds to come across some unsuspected discovery. The few...
Hermanos Vinagre, or why bluefin tuna is a sublime tapa
I first set foot in Spain as a gastronomic correspondent back in 1989. And what my bosses got me to explore to begin with was what I then defined as holy ground: the bars of Madrid. Notebook in hand, my bewildered face betraying my stupefac...
Nippon 2: a quixotic story and a cult sushiman
“My name is Yuho Matsushita. I was born in the south of Japan, in Kagoshima province, 57 years ago. It is 30 years since I moved to Spain. I came to the Barcelona Olympic Games in 1992, because I love athletics. I got my ticket and saw Fe...