Samurai Chef Tsutomu Fukuhara

samurai tsutomu chef fukuhara

BY MARY ANN HESTER PHOTOS BY MARK MCLANE

SC WINE & DINE

24 SOUTHCAROLINA MAGAZINE MARCH/APRIL 2006 tsutomu fukuhara

For at least one Nara native, hon- future Nippon Cultural Center asked oring tradition and moving into the Chef Fukuhara to come make sure RESTING IN THE CENTER OF future means relocating to the other their restaurant, Yagoto, “grew up side of the world. The journey that right.” Under Chef Fukuhara’s guid- JAPAN, THE ANCIENT CITY OF has been Chef Tsutomu Fukuhara’s ance, Yagoto was quickly embraced career to date has taken him from by serious food lovers. NARA HAS THE KIND OF SECU- Nara to Dallas to Atlanta to Greenville To comprehend the depth of RITY ABOUT ITS IDENTITY THAT to his latest restaurant, which rests on what Chef Fukuhara has achieved the banks of Lake Hartwell. at restaurants takes some under- ALLOWS IT TO BLEND THE Twenty-seven years ago, the own- standing of his training in Japan. ers of a restaurant in a city much He studied for ten years under his BEST OF ANCIENT TRADITIONS younger than Nara wanted to offer “cooking fathers.” Along with an clients a blend of the best of an overall “cooking father” mentor, WITH THE WONDERS OF MOD- ancient culture with the dynamism he had three other “fathers” who ERN CIVILIZATION. LOCATED of their city. Nothing less than an trained him in knives, sauce tast- authentic, world-class Japanese chef ing and fish, respectively. In each ON THE EAST END OF THE would do. So it was that they wooed of these specialties he had to learn Tsutomu Fukuhara away from Nara not only the particulars, but the EURASIAN CONTINENT, NARA and into a new life in Dallas. philosophy behind it as well. The For the next ten years, as Chef intense Samurai-like training was WAS ONCE THE TERMINATION Fukuhara laid out the finest of as much social as culinary, teach- POINT OF THE EAST END OF his country’s culinary traditions for ing pupils to master first the basics patrons night after night, he gar- before moving on to the higher THE SILK ROAD. GROWING UP nered recognition throughout the level of skill that involved both the city and beyond. Word of his suc- mind and the body. IN NARA MEANS LEARNING cess spread in culinary circles. In In addition to his rigorous train- almost no time, Atlanta’s Hama ing, Chef Fukuhara also has a blow- TO HONOR TRADITION WHILE Restaurant came courting. fish license. As blowfish, or Fugu, MOVING INTO WHATEVER THE Hama was one of the first traditional contains a nerve-shattering com- Japanese style restaurants in the city pound that is 1,200 times more FUTURE BRINGS. and a hot spot for Atlantans wanting deadly than cyanide, a two-to-three to try something different. Some ten year apprenticeship is required years later, the owner of Greenville’s before a chef is allowed to take

MARCH/APRIL 2006 SOUTHCAROLINA MAGAZINE 25 RECIPE: THE SAMURAI (The most popular dish at the restaurant!) SPICY TUNA ROLL Fresh tuna, chopped finely Nami Sauce* Korean Hot Sauce Mix tuna with Nami and Korean Hot Sauce. Proportions should be 2:1 (2 Nami, 1 Hot Sauce)

Put one palm of prepared sushi rice on the test. Both handling and carving seasoned seaweed (nori), seaweed side the spiked fish must be done with care, up. Add spicy tuna across the roll. Roll tuna on top of the roll, then apply ensuring only about 30 percent of the sushi up using two hands. Press with a kabayaki sauce and sesame seeds to applicants pass the test. Chef Fukuhara bamboo mat to form. the top. was so skilled at Fugu that he also trained students, but he does not seem to miss SAMURAI ROLL *NAMI SAUCE: the stress of this potentially toxic fish as, Take spicy tuna roll and dust with 3 parts mayonnaise, 2 parts Japanese “it is only served in the larger cities in flour. On top of flour, add an egg wash. mayonnaise; add hot sauce, pinch the US and not many of them.” Then roll in panko bread crumbs and of sesame paste and saki to taste. When the Nippon Center closed, a deep fry 20-30 seconds until golden Kabayaki sauce and sushi vinegar (to fellow chef who was working at Nami brown. Cut into eight pieces and make sushi rice) can be purchased at Asian Bistro at Portman Marina sug- stack on a plate. Add raw, thinly sliced Asian grocery stores. gested that Chef Fukuhara come in to help with the struggling concept of a

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26 SOUTHCAROLINA MAGAZINE MARCH/APRIL 2006 sushi restaurant on a southern lake. Nami, the big city restaurants where he would His passion and training come through the brainchild of David Freeman who be more of an overseer than chef.” in every dish that leaves the kitchen owns Portman Marina, was not “growing He prefers to utilize his training and and to sit at the sushi bar is to be both up right,” so Chef Fukuhara reinvented experience, passing along both to some entertained and fed exquisite food. the kitchen, brining it more in line with of the American staff at Nami. He is Nami is one of those hidden gems in the traditional systematic, respectful, cul- the “cooking father” to young Bryan South Carolina that make dining in the turally-oriented style of Japan Williams, whom he handpicked from state a real pleasure. SCM Chef Fukuhara, ever humble, is quick the nearby Galley Restaurant. They to give David Freeman credit. These have cultivated a respectful father-son two gentlemen, who grew up a world relationship they both seem to enjoy. Getting There apart, share the philosophy that, “the Nami translates as “wave,” and that is Nami is loacted at 1629 Marina customer is the most important thing exactly what Chef Fukuhara has created Rd. at Portman Marina on Lake and the best way to keep them com- at Portman Marina, welcoming diners Hartwell in Anderson and is ing back for more is through constant from Georgia and South Carolina alike. accessibile via I-85. 864-287-3219 innovation, finding the best ingredients possible and a providing a restful envi- ronment in which to dine.” Sounds simple, but it also means that the South Carolina History emphasis cannot be strictly on the bot- tom line. Chef Fukuhara truly believes Carnival of Blood that anything is possible at his restaurant Dueling, Lynching, and Murder in and he constantly challenges himself South Carolina, 1880–1920 to accommodate particular requests. John Hammond Moore He still loves to be “hands-on,” and it In his investigation into murder and death in the is not unusual to see him at the sushi Palmetto State on the cusp of our modern age, bar wielding his knives while talking John Hammond Moore identifies three specific with customers and overseeing what trends—the demise of dueling, the rise and fall of is happening in the rest of the dining lynching, and the proliferation of murder. Moore room. He says he is “not enticed by details specific incidents, ranging from the notori- ous to the relatively unknown. 304 pp., 18 illus., cloth, $29.95 Family and Domestic Law South Carolina Scalawags Hyman J. Rubin III THE South Carolina Scalawags tells the familiar story of Reconstruction from a mostly unfamiliar vantage point, that of white southerners who broke ranks MASELLA and supported the newly recognized rights and LAW FIRM, P.A. freedoms of their black neighbors. 232 pp., 19 illus., cloth, $29.95 The Dawn of Religious Freedom in South Carolina Edited by James Lowell Underwood and W. Lewis Burke Introduction by Walter Edgar Uncovering the historical roots of the separation professional of church and state, the contributors use South Carolina’s experience to illustrate that religious freedom is more secure when widely shared. service 248 pp., cloth, $39.95 when your family needs Visit us online to request a copy of it most. our new regional catalog.

917 Calhoun Street At bookstores or from Columbia, S.C. 29201 (803)748-9990 800-768-2500 Visit us online at www.Lawyers.com/Masella www.sc.edu/uscpress.

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