Rintaro: Japanese Food from an Izakaya in California

Nestled behind a leafy courtyard in San Francisco's Mission District, with the warm glow of lanterns illuminating well-worn wood counters, Rintaro is a beautiful escape; familiar and unexpected, bold and restrained. And its food is straightforwardly delicious: dashimaki tamago, juicy and piping hot; pork gyoza, each dumpling held together by a web of crispy batter; udon with hand-rolled noodles and a hot-spring egg; and a towering melon parfait with bright melon jellies that all but burst in your mouth. This is food that tastes both like Japan and California — not fusion food — but the food that you'd expect if the Bay Area were a region of Japan.

Rintaro, the debut cookbook from this groundbreaking restaurant, translates the experience of a Tokyo izakaya to the home kitchen. Beautiful and idiosyncratic, Rintaro is both a master class in making homemade udon noodles, and plumbs the depths of true comfort in food, with recipes like its curry rice. With over 70 recipes showcasing inspiration and detailed instruction in equal measure, Rintaro is a book for anyone who loves Japanese food, from the curious novice to expats craving the tastes of home. It is a book that blends careful mastery with the pure delight of making the tastiest food, it encourages you to find the beauty in your own terroir and the heart in your own cooking.

“I think this might be the most beautiful cookbook I have ever seen! Sylvan is not only an artist in the kitchen, he is also an artist on the page. He understands that delicious food and beauty are inextricably bound together — and that beauty originates in the soil, in the hands of the local, organic farmers, ranchers, and fishers. Readers will find this book irresistible.” Alice Waters, Founder of Chez Panisse & the Edible Schoolyard Project

“Rintaro is vibrant, generous, and the most exciting book on Japanese izakaya food to come out in over a decade. Sylvan Mishima Brackett embodies a deeply ingrained aesthetic sense, thoughtful attention to detail, and a desire to create pure deliciousness. These qualities are infused on each page of this remarkable book, reflecting a total dedication to excellence and community. Rintaro needs to be on the shelves of every cook interested in truly authentic Japanese food.” Nancy Singleton Hachisu, author of Japan: The Cookbook and Japanese Farm Food

Sylvan Mishima Brackett is the chef/owner of Rintaro in San Francisco, which was named one of Bon Appétit's Top 10 New Restaurants six months after opening in 2015. Sylvan was born in Kyoto and raised in Northern California. He is the former creative director at Chez Panisse, and trained at Soba Ro in Saitama, and at a Ryotei in Aoyama, Tokyo.

Jessica Battilana is a food writer, recipe developer, and author of Repertoire: All the Recipes You Need (Little Brown, 2018) and the co-author of over 6 cookbooks.