Beware, the Sushi Police are coming.

I found this really well written article about how the Japanese Government, the ministry of Agriculture, is going to create a Japanese restaurant certification. Now this may not sound like a bad thing at all... except when you realize that this is a ministry that is certifying restaurants abroad.

I highly recommend the article, but here's the synopsis:

What this means is that a team of Japanese could come to Vancouver, and having gone into a restaurant where !gasp! BC Rolls, California Rolls and Dynamite Rolls are being served, they could decide that since these are not Japanese foods, that this restaurant is not an official Japan sanctioned restaurant. Of course, this is really only meant for Japanese nationals, who are travelling. I suppose they want to create a list of certified authentic Japanese food around the world that Japanese tourists around the world will feel comfortable going to.

I admit there are some bad sushi restaurants, but there are also some very good combinations that even many in Japan would like. I know my wife seems to like rolls with Cream Cheese in them... even though they're definitely NOT Japanese.

I think fusion foods can really bring out the best in a cuisine and if you want my advice, check out "Wild Rice" close to tinseltown downtown for some of the best fusion Chinese you'll ever have.

Sidenote: I wonder if the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture realize that tempura comes from Europe?