I’m inherently an emotional, nostalgic person. Whether I want to or not, my mind constantly wanders to the past, to things I’ve done, things I’ve enjoyed and things I still long for. The tastes, smells and sounds forever echo in my head like a peanut being shaken inside a soda can.
Of all my travels, there are 2 places that hold a special place in my heart. Firstly, Singapore because of a few special relationships which I cultivated with the food, the culture and some very, very close friends. Only a half step behind on the ladder is Japan. I’ve spent more time in Japan than any other country with the exception of my native Canada, even though my cultural roots are just a hop over the China sea.
The fondest memories of Japan are simple ones: Riding the train, eating conbini onigiri with a bottle of cold tea, drinking with friends at karaoke, sitting at a ramen bar with a bunch of salarymen slurping back slightly chewy noodles in a deep complex broth. David Chang knows these simple pleasures as well as evident in issue #1 of his quarterly magazine, Lucky Peach.
The Final Product, LVG’s take on Lucky Peach Ramen