Oishinbo

Synopsis

Mr. Black invites Yamaoka to lunch to get ideas for an upcoming magazine article on "introducing Japan" and Yamaoka suggests donburi. When the American journalist, Arthur Brown, arrives in Japan to write the article, Yamaoka takes him to different restaurants to sample donburi topped with tempura, chicken and tuna sashimi. Brown is so impressed with the style of food that he highlights donburi in his article as "The Heart of Japan". The loud-talking American then introduces the Italian writer, Anna Marina who initially came to Japan to study martial arts, and she claims that norimaki culture best represents Japan. She demands that Yamaoka take them to the best norimaki restaurants, so he takes them to Ms. Natsuko's sushi restaurant. Natsuko prepares a range of norimaki with different fillings which Brown consumes with gusto. However, Brown is unimpressed until he takes a blind taste test with wasabi maki. Although powerful tasting, the experience finally convinces him that norimaki does encapsulate Japanese culture, and he agrees to Marina writing her article for his magazine.

(Source: Wikipedia)