{"schema_version":"bf_book_companion_v1","release_id":"20261010T034321Z-reviewed-full-unique-works","book":{"amazon_purchase_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/1250145686?tag=bookfrontie00-20","asin":"1250145686","authors":["Michael Booth"],"book_id":"9781250145680","canonical_url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/super-sushi-ramen-express-9781250145680","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781250145680.jpg?v=3cde3f19f8474026","description":"From the author of The Almost Nearly Perfect People comes Super Sushi Ramen Express , a fascinating and funny culinary journey through Japan Japan is arguably the preeminent food nation on earth; it’s a mecca for the world’s greatest chefs and has more Michelin stars than any other country. The Japanese go to extraordinary lengths and expense to eat food that is marked both by its exquisite preparation and exotic content. Their creativity, dedication, and courage in the face of dishes such as cod sperm and octopus ice cream are only now beginning to be fully appreciated in the sushi- and ramen-saturated West, as are the remarkable health benefits of the traditional Japanese diet. Food and travel writer Michael Booth takes the culinary pulse of contemporary Japan, learning fascinating tips and recipes that few Westerners have been privy to before. Accompanied by two fussy eaters under the age of six, he and his wife travel the length of the country, from bear-infested, beer-loving Hokkaido to snake-infested, seaweed-loving Okinawa. Along the way, they dine with—and score surprising victory over—two sumo wrestlers, pamper the world’s most expensive cows with massages and beer, share a seaside lunch with free-diving female abalone hunters, and meet the greatest chefs working in Japan today. Less happily, they witness a mass fugu slaughter, are traumatized by an encounter with giant crabs, and attempt a calamitous cooking demonstration for the lunching ladies of Kyoto.","forthcoming":false,"isbn13":"9781250145680","publication_date":"20170905","publisher":"Picador","slug":"super-sushi-ramen-express","subtitle":"A Culinary Adventure Through Japan","title":"Super Sushi Ramen Express"},"discovery":{"categories":{"all":[{"bisac_code":"TRV026120","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Food Travel","score":0.8161,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"TRV003050","confidence_band":"high","label":"Japan Travel","score":0.8123,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"CGN004330","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Food Comics","score":0.7765,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"hint":[{"bisac_code":"TRV026120","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Food Travel","score":0.8161,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"TRV003050","confidence_band":"high","label":"Japan Travel","score":0.8123,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"CGN004330","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Food Comics","score":0.7765,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"publisher":[{"bisac_code":"CKB030000","confidence_band":"high","label":"Food Writing & Memoir","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"TRV003050","confidence_band":"high","label":"Japan Travel","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"TRV026120","confidence_band":"high","label":"Food Travel","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"}]},"genres":[{"label":"Food Travel","score":0.8161,"slug":"food-travel"},{"label":"Japan Travel","score":0.8123,"slug":"japan-travel"},{"label":"Food Comics","score":0.7765,"slug":"food-comics"}],"reader_fit":["Good for readers interested in Japanese food and culinary traditions","Readers looking for food-focused travel writing about Japan"],"related_lists":[],"series":null,"similar_books":[{"authors":["Hisashi Kashiwai"],"book_id":"9798217045358","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9798217045358.jpg?v=2c7795d1d199c974","score":0.7205,"title":"Menu of Happiness","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9798217045358"},{"authors":["Hisashi Kashiwai"],"book_id":"9780593717790","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780593717790.jpg?v=9784536a23b0b99d","score":0.7145,"title":"The Restaurant of Lost Recipes","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780593717790"},{"authors":["Michael Booth"],"book_id":"9781250114051","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781250114051.jpg?v=77b04e70fbdaab98","score":0.6838,"title":"Three Tigers, One Mountain","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781250114051"}],"topics":[{"evidence_refs":["keyword:travel japan"],"label":"Travel","score":0.0878,"slug":"travel"},{"evidence_refs":["keyword:japanese cuisine"],"label":"Japanese","score":0.0552,"slug":"japanese"},{"evidence_refs":["keyword:travel writing"],"label":"Writing","score":0.051,"slug":"writing"},{"evidence_refs":["keyword:japan food guide"],"label":"Food","score":0.0385,"slug":"food"}],"what_you_get":["Themes: Japanese cuisine, Food-focused travel in Japan, Traditional Japanese diet.","Themes: Travel, Japanese, Writing.","Reading lane: Food Travel and Japan Travel."]},"llm_signals":{"confidence":0.87,"pacing":"unknown","reader_fit":["Readers interested in Japanese food and culinary traditions","Readers looking for food-focused travel writing about Japan"],"themes":["Japanese cuisine","Food-focused travel in Japan","Traditional Japanese diet"],"tropes":[]},"source_presence":{"amazon":true,"book_detail":true,"goodreads":true,"llm_signals":true,"similarity_seed":true},"stats":{"amazon_ratings_count":147,"goodreads_ratings_count":2271,"goodreads_reviews_count":321,"quality_score":0.9429}}