Sushi Awards 2009: Outline

Sponsored by

Supported by:
Embassy of Japan, JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization), JNTO (Japan National Tourism Organization) and All Japan Sushi Association

Special thanks to:
ALL NIPPON AIRWAYS, FENG SUSHI, GEKKEIKAN SAKE, JAPAN CATERING, MOSHI MOSHI, SASAKI GREEN TEA, SHINMEI CO.,LTD. and T&S ENTERPRISES (ATARI-YA FOODS)

Organized by:
EAT-JAPAN, MAFF (Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries)

The Eat-Japan Sushi Awards is the world’s only professional level sushi competition, and in 2009 they were bigger and better than ever. For the first time, the Awards teamed up with Masterchef Live a BBC Good Food Production to bring you an event packed full of big names and even bigger flavours.

The Eat-Japan Sushi Awards 2009 brought together the world’s most innovative and exciting chefs as the Seven Sushi Samurai. These seven chefs battled it out to try and make sure that their entry was crowned Sushi of the Year 2009. In addition to the seven stunning entries, visitors could also enjoy authentic sushi made by our three veteran Sushi Masters and a gorgeous buffet of Japanese food, followed by green tea dorayaki cakes. Guests could wash it down with a choice of premium sake, Japanese beer, hot or chilled green tea, or regional sake blends from around Japan. It’s an unrivalled opportunity for fans of Japanese food to experience the very best cuisine and produce that Japan has to offer – in between sampling some of the most innovative and gastronomic sushi you’ll ever come across.

There’s nowhere else in the world that brings together sushi chefs from all over the world like the Eat-Japan Sushi Awards, and certainly nowhere else where they are tested to limits by having to prepare 300+ pieces of sushi in just 90 minutes. It’s a true test of conceptual innovation, sushi skill, and professionalism; unlike any other in the world.

The exclusive event was held on Saturday 14th November 2009 at the Masterchef Live a BBC Good Food Production, Olympia. Tickets were available as an exclusive combination ticket including one-day entry to Masterchef Live a BBC Good Food Production.

As well as the Eat-Japan Sushi Awards, the “OISHII JAPAN” Pavilion, (“oishii” means “delicious”) brought the tastes, smells and flavours of Japan alive to MasterChef Live visitors. This was a colourful festival of Japanese foods, held as part of the JAPAN-UK 150 seriesof events celebrating 150 years of friendship. Visitors were able to enjoy the experience of live cooking demos, try delicious dishes at the restaurant corner, and buy a range of Japanese food and ingredients.