Chef’s cutting board

Festivals featuring Sushi demonstration are flourishing 

Cultural News, June 2008

By Andy Matsuda

    With summer finally upon us, we’re scheduled to be at a lot of events where we can continue to showcase good sushi to the public.  The first event we have on the calendar is the SushiMasters California State Finals at the Sacramento Convention Center on June 10, from 5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. (www.sushimasters.com).  I have been invited back to be one of the judges.  It is really great to see how this competition has grown over the past few years, to the point where there are now Southern California, San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento regional competitions leading up to the State Finals.

    At another event, I will demonstrate cooking for the Sushi and Sake Festival on the Queen Mary in Long Beach on June 14, from 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. (www.queenmaryfestival.com).  We’re expecting close to 5,000 attendees during the day where we’ll be celebrating Japanese culture and food with live taiko-drum performances, and sushi and sake tasting.

    After that we’ll head up north for San Francisco magazine’s eighth annual “Best of the Bay Area Party” on June 26, from 6 p.m. – 11 p.m. at the Concourse Exhibition Center, 635 Eighth Street at Brannan in San Francisco Downtown. I will prepare Uni (sea urchin) appetizers and sushi at the Yuzu Restaurant booth. (www.sanfranmag.com/bestof/)  

    On the next day, June 27, from 3 p.m. – 5 p.m., I will teach a Sushi class for mothers and daughters at Yuzu.  On June 28, from 2 p.m. – 5 p.m., a Sushi class for everybody will be offered at Yuzu (www.yuzusf.com)

     At the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, we will be giving two sushi demonstrations on July 12 at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. This will be part of the “Target Free Family Day: Cooking Capers.” There will be free admission to the museum and the cooking demonstrations due to Target store sponsorship.

     I’m very excited to say that in August we’re launching a 20-hour, one week long (Aug. 4-8) Sake Sommelier class for professionals.  The main focus of the class is to teach professional restaurateurs about sake and matching it with the right food.  We’ve done one-day Sake Sommelier classes in the past at the Cordon Bleu and for private events, but felt the need to expand the format to include a more detailed course.  We plan to conduct the course with sake expert Yoshi Murakami of Los Angeles three times a year.  Students who complete the course will receive a certificate.

    Andy Matsuda is the founder and chief instructor of Sushi Chef Institute in Los Angeles. www.sushischool.net

(This text was completed by Gavin Kelley)