Foodle

📍 해운대 모리, 釜山, 2025年4月
[English Below]

私はいつも、日本という国がアジア各国から特別な憧れの眼差しを向けられているように感じていました…でも韓国では、それがほとんど一種の情熱、いや執着と言ってもいいほどで、とりわけ飲食の世界ではその傾向が際立っているように思います。もちろん韓国の友人たちは異論を唱えるかもしれませんが、私の目には、その熱意が韓国をまるで日本料理の宝石箱のような存在へと変えたように映っています。高いレベルの寿司や和食があふれ、その層の厚さには本当に驚かされます。そして釜山のMoriは、たった48時間の小さな日帰り旅行を、私の人生でも指折りの美しい食の思い出へと変えてくれました。
Moriでは、魚介や野菜の構成は単に季節によって決まるわけではありません。その日の最高の状態にあるものが何よりも優先されます。料理長は、ある食材が素晴らしい状態なら、それを二度、三度と繰り返し使うことをためらいません。その代わりに他の食材を大胆に減らすこともあります…でも本物のアーティストなら、それで退屈さではなく驚きだけを生み出せるのです。
私が訪れた日には、鰻、蟹、海老、そしてアスパラガスが驚くほど素晴らしい品質でした。料理長はそれらを堂々たる主役に据え、この日の舞台を作り上げていました…そして正直なところ、一口ごとに拍手を送りたくなるほどでした。それは私だけではありませんでした。
今ではあなたには新しい店舗があり、私には新しいカメラがあります…それでも、こんなにも美しい思い出を、自分の記録から外しておくことはできませんでした。どれほど投稿が遅くなろうとも、それだけは別の話です。
心からありがとう。またお会いできる日を楽しみにしています。

I have always felt that Japan is admired in a special way throughout Asia… but in Korea, it almost seems like an obsession, especially when it comes to the culinary world. My Korean friends may not agree with me, but from my perspective, that passion has turned Korea into a true jewel of Japanese gastronomy, filled with outstanding sushi-ya and washoku restos of remarkably high quality. And that is exactly how Mori, in Busan, transformed a simple 48-hour day trip into one of the finest culinary memories of my life.
At Mori, proteins and vegetables are not chosen solely according to the season, but above all according to the quality and freshness of the day. The chef is not afraid to repeat the same ingredients two or even three times while drastically reducing the presence of others… when you are a true artist, you can do that and create nothing but wonder, never monotony.
During my visit, eel, crab, shrimp, and asparagus were definitely next level (Chef said). So…He made them the undisputed stars of the performance… and honestly, every bite deserved applause, not only from me but from everyone around the counter.
Today, you have a new location, and I have a new camera… yet a memory this beautiful simply could not be left out of my journal, no matter how unbelievably slow I am at publishing these stories.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I cannot wait to see you again. Less

April 30, 2026 Three wonderful lunches in Barcelona. Suculent, located just off the Rambla, offers the innovative and exciting cuisine of Toni Romero in a casual and comfortable setting. Botafumeiro, one of Barcelona’s hallowed seafood establishments, remains as good as ever. Eldelmar, the Torres brothers latest venue, offers lovely sea views and an array of stunning seafood.

#barcelona #spain❤️ #thequest #mystorywithmichelin Less

📍 해운대 모리, 釜山, 2025年4月
[English Below]

私はいつも、日本という国がアジア各国から特別な憧れの眼差しを向けられているように感じていました…でも韓国では、それがほとんど一種の情熱、いや執着と言ってもいいほどで、とりわけ飲食の世界ではその傾向が際立っているように思います。もちろん韓国の友人たちは異論を唱えるかもしれませんが、私の目には、その熱意が韓国をまるで日本料理の宝石箱のような存在へと変えたように映っています。高いレベルの寿司や和食があふれ、その層の厚さには本当に驚かされます。そして釜山のMoriは、たった48時間の小さな日帰り旅行を、私の人生でも指折りの美しい食の思い出へと変えてくれました。
Moriでは、魚介や野菜の構成は単に季節によって決まるわけではありません。その日の最高の状態にあるものが何よりも優先されます。料理長は、ある食材が素晴らしい状態なら、それを二度、三度と繰り返し使うことをためらいません。その代わりに他の食材を大胆に減らすこともあります…でも本物のアーティストなら、それで退屈さではなく驚きだけを生み出せるのです。
私が訪れた日には、鰻、蟹、海老、そしてアスパラガスが驚くほど素晴らしい品質でした。料理長はそれらを堂々たる主役に据え、この日の舞台を作り上げていました…そして正直なところ、一口ごとに拍手を送りたくなるほどでした。それは私だけではありませんでした。
今ではあなたには新しい店舗があり、私には新しいカメラがあります…それでも、こんなにも美しい思い出を、自分の記録から外しておくことはできませんでした。どれほど投稿が遅くなろうとも、それだけは別の話です。
心からありがとう。またお会いできる日を楽しみにしています。

I have always felt that Japan is admired in a special way throughout Asia… but in Korea, it almost seems like an obsession, especially when it comes to the culinary world. My Korean friends may not agree with me, but from my perspective, that passion has turned Korea into a true jewel of Japanese gastronomy, filled with outstanding sushi-ya and washoku restos of remarkably high quality. And that is exactly how Mori, in Busan, transformed a simple 48-hour day trip into one of the finest culinary memories of my life.
At Mori, proteins and vegetables are not chosen solely according to the season, but above all according to the quality and freshness of the day. The chef is not afraid to repeat the same ingredients two or even three times while drastically reducing the presence of others… when you are a true artist, you can do that and create nothing but wonder, never monotony.
During my visit, eel, crab, shrimp, and asparagus were definitely next level (Chef said). So…He made them the undisputed stars of the performance… and honestly, every bite deserved applause, not only from me but from everyone around the counter.
Today, you have a new location, and I have a new camera… yet a memory this beautiful simply could not be left out of my journal, no matter how unbelievably slow I am at publishing these stories.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I cannot wait to see you again. Less

🇫🇷 Datil, Paris, France : such delicate vegetal clarity and care by Cheffe Manon Fleury and her team

Here’s a meal I still think about. Weeks later. Food is not just a plate. And I’ve rarely come across a place like Datil, or a cheffe like Manon Fleury, who seems to care as much about the plate as the ecosystem around it. And @bill_addison (Los Angeles Times food critic) loved it so much he wished she moved to California to put a spotlight on vegetables and fruits as she does in Paris.

And there’s maybe a movie to be made.

The heroine. A Burgundy-raised, a junior national fencing champion. Manon Fleury then changed path and trained between New York and Paris under Pascal Barbot at l’Astrance and Dan Barber at Blue Hill at Stone Barns, made her name running the kitchen at Le Mermoz, and in September 2023 with Laurène Barjhoux, opened her own home : Datil. The name of a plum so rare it had almost vanished, rescued by a regional conservatory.

The plot. She makes vegetables sing. Everything was subtle, precise, sometimes unexpected in the best way, like the union of a black olive sorbet and a strawberry cake that had no business working, and it did. She’s a cinephile too, and it shows. The very first bite she sent out was born from a scene in a Kore-eda film.

The set. This place is not just there to feed you. It is quietly political, and delicate in its manners. The radical part is in how it is built. No brigade, no shouting. She co-founded Bondir.e, the collective fighting violence in professional kitchens, and you feel that in the room. A calm, almost entirely female team she put together on purpose. Weekends closed so no one burns out. And more battles. Against food waste. Obsessed with ingredients and farmers. Everyone is named, the whole team on the menu, the growers and artisans in a little booklet beside it. Movie credits rolling down. I have only seen that kind of full credit a handful of times. Somni in Los Angeles was one of them. It is too rare.

It takes a village to have delicious food. And by supporting places like Datil, you also vote with your stomach for people who want a better village. Thank you, Manon Fleury, and her team. Less