There is something quietly powerful about taking a shattered bowl and turning it into a piece of art. That is the heart of kintsugi, the centuries-old Japanese craft of repairing broken ceramics with lacquer and gold. I have spent the last 60 days repairing a chipped teacup, a cracked vase, and a chipped ramen bowl … Read more
When I started serving sushi at home more often, I realized my generic bamboo takeout chopsticks were doing me no favors. Tofu slid off the tips and nigiri fell apart. I kept fumbling with chopstick length and grip. So I spent the past three months testing eight pairs of Japanese chopsticks at our bistro, comparing … Read more
I switched to reusable chopsticks three years ago after calculating how many pairs I had thrown away from takeout orders. The number shocked me: more than 800 pairs in a single year, just from my household. That moment sent me on a hunt for the best reusable chopsticks I could find, and what started as … Read more
At KAZ Sushi Bistro, we set hundreds of chopsticks on the bar every single service. I have watched our chefs place their chopsticks on the counter between cuts, on the pass during plating, and on diners’ tables between bites. Every time, a small ceramic piece catches the eye and gives the table a moment of … Read more
Chopsticks have quietly become one of the most thoughtful gifts you can give. They’re practical, beautiful, and carry cultural meaning that goes back thousands of years. In Japan, China, and Korea, gifting a quality pair of chopsticks represents bonds, longevity, and well-wishes for the recipient. I’ve been collecting and gifting chopstick sets for years, and … Read more
I’ve spent the last two months testing chopstick rests across sushi nights, ramen marathons, and weeknight dinners at home to find the best Japanese chopstick holders worth your money. A proper hashioki (that’s the Japanese word for chopstick rest) does more than decorate your table. It keeps your chopsticks off the plate, prevents sauce from … Read more
Our team spent eight weeks testing 12 different Japanese serving platters across our test kitchen and during two home dinner parties, photographing each piece loaded with sashimi, nigiri, tempura, and appetizers. We weighed them, washed them hundreds of times, stacked them, dropped a few (accidentally), and compared them side by side under the same lighting … Read more
I’ve spent the last three months testing serving platters at our restaurant, plating everything from omakase courses to family-style roasts. The best large serving platters Japanese tradition has to offer combine centuries of craftsmanship with the practical demands of modern entertaining, and most Western options simply can’t compete on presentation. At KAZ Sushi Bistro, we … Read more
If you have ever sat down at a real sushi counter in Tokyo, you already know the difference a proper board makes. The chef slides a hinoki cypress geta toward you, and the fish looks brighter, the rice feels calmer, and the whole plate seems to breathe. I have tested dozens of these boards at … Read more
I tested eight different sushi serving boards over six weeks of home sushi nights and dinner parties, and the gap between a $14 mango wood platter and a $70 handcrafted boat is huge. Some boards warped after one wash, others held up beautifully to dozens of uses. A sushi serving board is a specialized platter … Read more