Onomichi Port City’s Food Culture of the Past and Present

A history of fish cuisine & processing cultivated in the port city of Onomichi

The use of fish from the Seto Inland Sea is one core characteristic of Onomichi’s cuisine. “Dashi” cooking stock prepared from the fish and dried young sardines, known locally as chirimenjako are also key components. Onomichi is home to many smaller varieties of fish, and miso soup prepared and consumed by local households often uses cooking stock made from these fish. Onomichi Ramen, a type of ramen that uses such stock, is popular throughout Japan.

"Eejan Onomichi" is an establishment where customers can buy goods directly from the producers. At this market, the fish are handled and sold by fisher who caught them that very morning out in the Seto Inland Sea. The market also features fresh regional varieties such as red Pacific sea bream, red rock fish, Kizami wrasse fish, etc., all of which are also caught that morning. Red rockfish in particular is popular among locals as a luxury ingredient, one that is suitable for a banquet, feast, or other special meal.

The fishermen themselves handle and process the catch to individual customer preference, such as by descaling the fish, removing the head, etc. Onomichi has historically been host to a thriving fishing industry, and at one point there were actually fishermen living out on the water, without a permanent residence. In Onomichi, the simplest and most promising method of fishing commerce still remains: customers can directly purchase fresh fish from the very people who caught them.

Dishes featuring Onomichi tomatoes are offered at LOG, which opened in December 2018. This accommodation facility provides its guests a new way to spend time in the city, including experiencing local food. LOG’s seasonal menu offers dishes that use local Onomichi ingredients that are in-season. The different seasonings and tastes offered by these dishes make use of the natural flavors of the ingredients. They are simple, yet profoundly delicious. It has a somehow relaxing flavor, as would a homemade dish made by a friend who’s good at cooking, would have.

The chilled tomato pasta, for example, is offered for lunch only during the summer (left photo). Its cold soup features the rich and dense umami flavors and acidity of Onomichi-grown tomatoes, and mixes with the deliciously uneven-textured flat noodles developed by a local noodle manufacturer. The dish may not be over the top or showy, but its vegetables feature gradually-deepening umami flavors that are a joyful experience. This particular dish is made by hand, by LOG’s kitchen staff under the supervision of chef Ai Hosokawa.

Takanobu Yoshida, who works as LOG’s General Manager, made the following comment on the establishment’s dishes: “We’ve worked with local ingredients in a similar fashion in the past. But we are always thinking about how we can go further. Instead of sophisticated dishes that one might find in a big city, I would like our customers to enjoy our carefully prepared dishes that make full use of the ingredients. I want people to experience our food as a gateway, one that allows them to develop a deeper interest in the charms that Onomichi’s culture and climate.”

LOG is located at the top of a flight of stone steps, and cannot be accessed by car. This results in certain limitations as to what may be brought to the establishment, and its employees strive to be imaginative and creative when developing a menu.

“As it is not possible to transport large amounts of heavy ingredients here, we use herbs picked in our own garden, for example, and try to make things as lightweight as possible. We even use plastic bottles for serving our beer. An easy example would be with soda: It would be a struggle for the liquor shop to transport dozens of glass bottles up these steps. So we produce it ourselves onsite, using syrup. The limitations of this location are making us creative.”

In addition to its food, LOG has also gained considerable attention for its architecture. It was the first structure produced by Bijoy Jain, from the Indian architecture firm Studio Mumbai, which was implemented outside of India. Mr. Jain worked together with local craftspeople to renovate what was formerly an apartment building, helping the structure be reborn as a calm space that feels open and freeing.

From the color scheme and materials, to the width of the steps and curved surfaces of the walls, each and every detail reflects Mr. Jain’s aesthetic and philosophy. The architecture is designed to become attached to peoples’ feelings as it is used. The flat stones paving the courtyard, for example, were manually laid, one by one, by local volunteers.

And the cafe’s entrance door is made using copper (photo). The color of this material slowly morphs as it is touched, and the people around it are able to enjoy the gradual change which takes place over the years.

“Small changes like this occur day to day. Once this building fully melds into Onomichi’s hilly landscape, a grand achievement will have been made. I am certain that this will happen within around 15 years”, laughs Mr. Yoshida.

“As we continue to build and demolish structures, Onomichi risks seeing its unique charms as a city being lost. It will become just another town that one could find anywhere. I would like us all to think deeply about the materials that we use for construction, as the resulting buildings will eventually meld into the townscape once said 15 years or so have passed. I’d like to see both Onomichi’s people and its buildings constantly evolving.”

“The vegetables come from Pitchfork Farms, which is run by a friend from the United States who moved here to the city. This same friend also makes our mayonnaise, doing it at home. Everything is organic, of course. For those of us here, choosing organic vegetables or avoiding chemical additives is nothing special, something not worth mentioning. But since then, I’ve learned that this is not the case for everyone, so I recently came to think, it would be a good idea to tell how much we care about how our vegetables are produced”, says Mr. Ueda.

As Mr. Ueda says, the city is host to different exchanges that take place between locals and the wide range of visitors who come from throughout Japan as well as from other countries. These daily interactions are a breeding ground for new trends and cultures. This is the food culture of Onomichi, a port city that sees the coming and going of both people and products. The city’s traditions remain alive and well even in the present day, taking the form of new food trends in the broad ties between its people.