Charity dinner for Noto’s recovery

A charity dinner for the recovery of the Noto Peninsula, prepared by four chefs who have been honored by The Japan Times’ Destination Restaurants, was held on Sept. 27 at the A-Brand Hotel in the Hokkaido town of Yoichi.

At the suggestion of Hiroto Murai, owner of the Yoichi restaurant-inn Yoichi Sagra, chefs Kazuhiro Inoue of Restaurant Uozen in Niigata Prefecture, Kanji Kobayashi of Villa Aida in Wakayama Prefecture and Toru Kawashima of the 2024 Destination Restaurant, Ipponsugi Kawashima in Nanao, Ishikawa Prefecture — who was impacted by the Jan. 1 Noto earthquake — gathered and created a splendid meal for 40 guests. Chef Toshiya Ikehata of the restaurant L’Atelier de Noto in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, which was damaged in the quake, had planned to participate but could not because he had been engaged in distributing meals in the area and was affected by torrential rains that struck Noto just before the event.

The dinner’s eight courses, from appetizers to desserts, were created collaboratively using ingredients that each chef brought from his home region. Guests were truly delighted by the flavors of unique dishes that conveyed a feeling of the connections among regions and among people. These included “ikura rice,” combining the first crop of rice from Nanao in Ishikawa Prefecture with salmon roe from Yoichi, and a contemporary take on niku jaga (stewed meat and potatoes) made with Noto beef that was sent by chef Ikehata.

Also participating were producers from five popular Hokkaido wineries, who answered guests’ questions while serving them five rare types of wine with the meal. Bruce Gutlove of 10R Winery in Iwamizawa said: “Even though this is the busy grape harvest season, I came here because I support chef Murai’s wish to help Noto. The foundation of being human is helping one another. I’d like to be useful in some way through wine.”

At the end of the event, each chef gave a speech.

Kawashima said, “We haven’t been able to operate our restaurant since the Jan. 1 earthquake, and when chefs aren’t making food, they don’t really feel that they’re living. At one time I actually suffered from burnout syndrome, but today I’m very happy to have a chance to create dishes. Seeing our guests’ faces has given me energy.” His words were met with warm applause, and the event closed on an uplifting note.

ジャパンタイムズ主催「Destination Restaurants」を受賞した4人のシェフによる能登半島復興のためのチャリティーディナーが9月27日、北海道余市町『エーヴランドホテル』で行われた。同町で『余市サグラ』を営む村井啓人の声掛けで新潟県『ウオゼン』井上和洋、和歌山県『ヴィラ・アイーダ』小林寛司、さらに令和6年能登半島地震の被災者でもある石川県七尾市『一本杉 川嶋』川嶋亨が集まり、40名のゲストをもてなした。輪島市『ラトリエ・ド・ノト』池端隼也も参加予定だったが、直前の能登豪雨により被災して以降、地元で炊き出しを行っていることから当日の来場は見送られた。

今回は北海道の人気ワイナリー5軒の生産者も参加し、食事と共に希少なワイン5種を振る舞った。

「元日の震災以降、営業ができていませんが、今日は料理ができて幸せです。お客様の顔を見て元気をもらえました」と語る川嶋には会場からは温かい拍手が贈られ、盛会のうち、イベントは幕を閉じた。

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