Marital Bliss Produces Japanese Comfort Food
Behind every great man is a great woman. But I know that a great man and woman are behind the Okamoto Kitchen Food Truck designed to introduce Americans to authentic, lesser known Japanese dishes such as Chicken Nanban, Mochi, Katsu and Classic Style Japanese Curry.
Gerald and Chizuru Abraham launched their Japanese comfort food truck earlier this month. Upon seeing lines forming the minute the truck opens and the standout anime art on the outside, you’d never guess Okamoto is new to the LA food truck scene. But while they haven’t been around as long as Kogi, they’ve rolled it out seamlessly by leveraging their perfectly balanced skill sets: Chizuru’s cooking and Gerald’s visual arts expertise.
As a child, Gerald was obsessed with anime and Japanese video games. He moved to Japan to live for a few years where he met Chizuru. And, yes, he’s fluent in Japanese! Owner of Industry Visual Effects, Gerald has over a decade of computer graphics and visual effects experience. No wonder their red and yellow, anime-laden truck stands out in a crowded parking lot of others. The truck’s back, pictured above, makes me feel like a kid. It showcases a girl (Chizuru) and her dog (Honey). Her big eyes are Big Eyes meets Speed Racer.
Chizuru is a first generation Japanese who graduated from Le Condon Bleu and studied under a master, Nobu Matsuhisa. This woman knows traditional Japanese food and how to produce it using world-class cooking techniques. Not only can she cook, but she can bake. Check out my post on the custom Cinnamon Roll Cake she made. With Cinnamon Lady Fingers, Cinnamon Cream, Butterscotch Mousse and Dripping Caramel, it was DeathbedFood.
Bonus tip: She’ll make a custom cake for you, too! Just tell her your occasion, theme, favorite ingredients and she’ll whip it up.
Find out where they’ll be on Twitter @OkamotoKitchen. And tell ’em, Di sent you!
