At his udon restaurant's first venture outside of Japan, founder Shigeru Okada shares his recipe for a streetwear-inspired slurping experience
Ramen might be the poster child of Japanese cuisine when it comes to avant-garde recipes, with components like blue broth and durian having seen the inside of a ramen bowl; but when it comes to udon, the thicker, springier cousin of ramen, experimentation is practically unheard of. That is, unless your name is Shigeru Okada, the founder of Menchirashi, which is regarded by many as Japan's trendiest udon restaurant.
Menchirashi draws inspiration for its distinct dining experience from Ura-Harajuku, the decidedly more discreet area found behind Tokyo's more famous Harajuku neighbourhood that is known for being the birthplace of world-class streetwear brands like A Bathing Ape, Undercover, Neighborhood and WTAPS. Neon lights and red American diner seats complement an international crowd of streetwear-obsessed aesthetes who congregate for offerings like fried-to-order tempura with udon, and onigiri rice balls.
All these elements have made Menchirashi the udon restaurant of choice when it comes to fashion partnerships, with the likes of A Bathing Ape founder Nigo's curry restaurant, Curry Up, and fashion label Bedwin & The Heartbreakers counting themselves among the collaborators.
This month, Menchirashi embarked on its latest and greatest collaboration yet with Japanese fashion label du jour, Sacai, marking the first time their wares were served outside of Japan. While he was in Hong Kong, we met Okada in Basehall 02 to speak about how his upbringing influenced his path, the challenges of adapting udon to the local climate, his recipe for building fashion's favourite udon shop.
Read more: These are the 6 best ramen shops in Tokyo, according to Tabelog
Why udon specifically?
I get asked this a lot. [Parent company] En One Tokyo’s businesses are all based in Harajuku, so the idea was to do something food-related in that area. The focus was to always do something within Harajuku—there was no way we would do something outside. Thinking within the area of Harajuku about what I could bring or create, and something that would be original, eventually led me to udon.
What was the reason and how did this collaboration with Sacai come about?
Last year I was involved in a project with Sacai called Sacai Gastro, where we created a cafe within Tokyo Burnside, a pop-up restaurant space in Harajuku by En One Tokyo. There were a lot of people involved, like Nike and Ghetto Gastro, and the concept was that we would produce waffles in the shape of the Nike x Sacai collaboration sneakers.
So when this project came about, Sacai got in contact with me and asked if I'd like to do something similar here in Hong Kong. And so that's how it really started.
And you’re obviously a very fashionable individual. So have you always had an interest in fashion growing up?
I was always interested in clothes and that obviously led to fashion and stuff. In my mind the idea of creating a menu and creating recipes is the same as putting an outfit together and coordinating and matching clothes. That's why I feel a connection between the two.
In what way is it similar?
The most important thing is the feeling on that day. Feelings, mood, environment. Both food and fashion are something that raise your spirits and raise your feelings.
How did you try to capture the identity of Sacai in this menu?
Within the branding and concept of Sacai, there’s this idea of taking something, breaking it apart and then making something new. In Sacai's clothing, there's obviously a sort of deconstruction and the way that things are patchworked together, or frayed.
In Japan and also globally, the popularity of Sacai ranges from very young people to people of my generation who are also interested in fashion. So I wanted to create menu items that are eye-catching to a younger generation as well as an older audience, and create something that would really stick in their mind and have a big impact. Within the Menchirashi world, what could I try and bring to the Sacai branding was to create a tempura in the shape of the letter S from Sacai's logo.
What do you think is the most important part to creating a stylish dining experience?
This idea of style wasn't necessarily something that I was consciously thinking of. It turned out how it turned out working with the people that I’ve worked with and the connections that I've made.
Yardbird also did a pop up dinner with us at Tokyo Burnside last year, and so we’d been in communication with them for a while. After deciding to do something here in Hong Kong, it only felt natural to involve them in the process, as Matt [Abergel] and Lindsay [Jang] from Yardbird are friendly with sort of the community here so it made sense to involve them.
See also: Kitchen confidential: The best Cantonese private kitchens in Hong Kong
