Food in Anime | Anime in Food
by YAKISOBA
Food is an integral part of human life and anime has not failed in portraying this very important aspect of human living. From simple everyday dishes of rice and fish, to more complicated and intricate fantasy foods, the artful portrayal of delicious dishes brings to life the 2D images of the food. Viewers can taste with their eyes, so to speak. The animators give great detail to the animation to make these dishes more realistic and they are to be commended. Even shows not dedicated to cooking make things look so tasty and good.
Image from Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso
Some fans get inspired by anime to put a twist to the food they make. Kyarabens with their favorite characters are increasingly becoming more common. There exist Naruto onigiri, Sanrio cakes, SAO inspired sandwiches, parfaits with little chibi Pokemon sticking out, Dragon Ball Z french fries, Totoro spaghetti, and many many more. Not only is anime inspiring different things like keychains, fanbooks and shirts, it has graced itself upon our plates and into our bellies. There is no limit to anime’s reach nowadays.
Image from Tiny Urban Kitchen
Specialty cafes make it their goal to spread the love of anime and food by giving their customers this in-depth experience of immersion. A few months back, some restaurants in Shinjuku, Tsumugi and -yuuna-, offered a limited time menu of food items inspired by Tokyo Ghoul. Back in 2014, the Pikachu Cafe opened up for a limited time serving many different Pikachu themed dishes, like burgers and curry. There’s a Hello Kitty Cafe Truck in the USA selling, as you would think, Hello Kitty themed pastries and merchandise. There are many more different cafes and restaurants that cater to fans who want to taste these anime inspired food.
Image from metropolis.co.jp
Other fans even take it to the next level and try to recreate dishes seen in anime and create recipes of them. This may seem easy, as quite a lot of food can be found in real life. However, there are also anime only dishes that people are curious about. How do they taste? How would they look like in the real world? How can I get to eat that here? Questions like these prompt certain chefs to take on the task of recreating dishes only seen in anime. Blogs of chefs and fans popped up to share their recreations of dishes found in fiction. This task requires a high level of cooking skill, imagination, knowledge of good substitutes, and a crazy sense of taste. This artistry and skill is to be highly praised. It’s not easy to create a dish by looking at 2D drawn images. Examples of these are Black Butler’s Chocolate Curry Buns, The Legend of Zelda’s Elixir Soup, and Avatar: The Last Airbender’s Five Flavor Soup.
Image from The Geeky Chef
Food is an integral part human life and anime has shown different possibilities that food can take. Fans try their best to bring this food to life and maybe in the future we can see fruits that have never existed before, recreated from the stuff of fantasies. Personally, I am curious how Pokemon berries taste like. These fans, chefs, and food enthusiasts have brought a new meaning to appreciating food and anime. I wonder how it would feel to watch an anime and eat the food inspired from it at the same time. Happy eating and watching, everyone!