You don't know when inspiration is going to come. But you have to be aware of what's going on around you, so that at any moment, when inspiration happens, you're ready for it and you interpret it.

Respect for food is respect for life, for who we are and what we do.

I think that's the important thing - being aware of that inspiration and being able to interpret it into something that's meaningful for you.

Any job worth doing is worth doing well. But to be able to do that, you have to do it over and over again.

Good food is a good trend.

We go through our careers and things happen to us. Those experiences made me what I am.

A kaiseki meal is like that, very small courses over a long period of time.