Fish Head Dinner

Most Japanese food I can handle.

I eat most sushi and sashimi (items more expensive than UNI, the yellow sea urchin ooze, I tend to not like), I eat all the noodles, even the black squid ink pasta.

For some reason though, the more expensive food gets in Japan… The harder it is for me to stomach.

At a friends wedding this lovely item was served.

Wedding food is some of the most fancy food in Japan… So… Yeah.

Actually, not to mislead anyone… There is actually a type of mashed potato or something inside of the fish head here. Some people would nibble around the eye, but by no means did they eat the entire head.

It would also be wrong to say that fish head is never eaten in Japan.

Remember that old cartoon song? “Fish heads fish heads rolly-polly fish heads. Fish heads fish heads eat them up yum ♪”

One more culture/language point. This fish is “Tai”, Red Snapper. In Japan the Tai is usually served at celebrations. Reason being, to say “congratulations” in the sense of, “good news!” in Japanese, you say 「おめでたい」”omedeTAI” .

Since the last part of the word Omedetai is pronounced the same as the fish, Tai, you get fish head on your plate for dinner. なるほど！！

Heh.

- Harvey