Rice, Noodle, Fish

Deep Travels Through Japan's Food Culture (Roads & Kingdoms Presents, Book 1)

By: Matt Goulding

Narrated by: Will Damron

Length: 7 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

An innovative new take on the travel guide, Rice, Noodle, Fish decodes Japan's extraordinary food culture through a mix of in-depth narrative and insider advice. In this 5,000-mile journey through the noodle shops, tempura temples, and teahouses of Japan, Matt Goulding, cocreator of the enormously popular Eat This, Not That! book series, navigates the intersection between food, history, and culture, creating one of the most ambitious and complete books ever written about Japanese culinary culture from the Western perspective.

Written in the same evocative voice that drives the award-winning magazine Roads & Kingdoms, Rice, Noodle, Fish explores Japan's most intriguing culinary disciplines in seven key regions, from the kaiseki tradition of Kyoto and the sushi masters of Tokyo to the street food of Osaka and the ramen culture of Fukuoka. You won't find hotel recommendations or bus schedules; you will find a brilliant narrative that interweaves immersive food journalism with intimate portraits of the cities and the people who shape Japan's food culture.

Rice, Noodle, Fish is a rare blend of inspiration and information, perfect for the intrepid and armchair traveler alike. Combining literary storytelling and indispensable insider information, the end result is the first ever guidebook for the new age of culinary tourism.

©2015 Matt Goulding and Nathan Thornburgh (P)2020 Tantor

Read it, don’t listen

The prose in this book is fantastic. The coverage of the history and variety of Japanese food culture is exceptional. I appreciate that the author goes beyond what Westerners think of when we think of Japanese food. That said, the narrator is TERRIBLE. He cannot pronounce any Japanese words or names correctly. He always putting the emphasis on the wrong syllable. It becomes really grating really quickly. Buy this in hard copy or on Kindle, the experience will be so much more enjoyable.

I love Japan, Japanese food and this book.

First, I'd like to say I really loved this book and wish I had listened to it before heading to Japan a couple of weeks ago. It was very informative about the various food styles, eateries, and customs surrounding eating in Japan. There were recommendations for every price bracket and taste - down to earth ramen with various toppings at about $7, perfectly constructed, and weird dishes of various sea life offal, as well as $400+ Kaizeki meals. Goulding is a master of metaphor and he made many of the dishes sizzle in the telling; I could almost taste some of them.

But the overuse of superlative metaphors was, in my view, sometimes detrimental to the book. After a while I tired of tortured prose with comments like becoming "weak at the knees" after spotting a Maiko (Geisha in training.). Really? Weak at the knees? I think that's a bit over the top.

That said, I will likely also buy the book in kindle form, anticipating a return to Japan as soon as I can afford it.

Wonderful

This book is a must read or listen for any foodie out there. This book goes over history And all The nuances about Japanese culture

Starts strong tapers off

The book is very solid. My only complaint would be that I was more interested in some of the early chapters (possibly because I had been there) opposed to last few.

I plan to listen to more in his series.

Wonderful food tour

Evocative and earthy travel memoir from an unabashed outsider in Japan who has fallen in love with the culinary traditions. It is a great read if you are planning to visit Japan and to go beyond the beaten path to discover the culture from sushi to fermented food.