Zone (ゾーン) was an all-female rock band started in Sapporo, Japan, in 1997. It started as a dance group and turned into…
Zone (ゾーン) was an all-female rock band started in Sapporo, Japan, in 1997. It started as a dance group and turned into an all-female band. Zone has been categorized in a new genre called "bandol" (a portmanteau of the words "band" and "idol"). The band was started and managed by Studio RunTime and its first single, "Good Days", was released by the major record label Sony Records, on February 7, 2001. The group officially disbanded on April 7, 2013, when the last remaining member, Maiko Sakae, held the band's final event. Zone's most famous song is "Secret Base (Kimi ga Kureta Mono)", released on August 8, 2001. It sold about 744,000 copies in Japan.
Famous Japanese People: Chef
Chef: 21 people
Kei Kobayashi (小林圭 Kobayashi Kei born 29 August 1977) is a Japanese chef and owner of the restaurant Kei in Paris 1e.…
Kei Kobayashi (小林圭 Kobayashi Kei born 29 August 1977) is a Japanese chef and owner of the restaurant Kei in Paris 1e. His restaurant earned three Michelin stars in 2020. He is the first Japanese chef to earn three Michelin stars in France. Kobayashi was born in Nagano. He elected to focus on French cuisine after viewing a documentary about Alain Chapel. Kobayashi trained at French restaurants in Japan before moving to France in 1998 to work with Gilles Goujon and Alain Ducasse, at Plaza Athénée.
Takafumi Horie (堀江 貴文, Horie Takafumi; born October 29, 1972) is a Japanese entrepreneur who founded Livedoor, a…
Takafumi Horie (堀江 貴文, Horie Takafumi; born October 29, 1972) is a Japanese entrepreneur who founded Livedoor, a website design operation that grew into a popular internet portal. After being arrested and charged with securities fraud in 2006, he severed all connections with the company. His trial began on September 4, 2006. On March 16, 2007, Horie was sentenced to imprisonment of 2 years and 6 months. He is popularly known as Horiemon (ホリエモン) due to his resemblance to Doraemon, the chubby robot cat in a popular Japanese cartoon. The name Horiemon was also given to a racehorse he owned, after the name had been chosen by voting on a Livedoor website.
Masahiko Kobe (神戸 勝彦, Kōbe Masahiko; October 15, 1969 – March 14, 2019) was a celebrity chef specializing in Italian…
Masahiko Kobe (神戸 勝彦, Kōbe Masahiko; October 15, 1969 – March 14, 2019) was a celebrity chef specializing in Italian cuisine, most notable as the "Iron Chef Italian" on the television series Iron Chef, where he appeared wearing a chef's uniform decorated like the Italian Flag (green, white and red) and holding a tomato (in some episodes, an apple).
Fumiko Kono (Japanese: 狐野扶実子 born 1969) is a Japanese personal and business chef who prepares fusion dishes of French…
Fumiko Kono (Japanese: 狐野扶実子 born 1969) is a Japanese personal and business chef who prepares fusion dishes of French and Japanese cuisine. Classically trained at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, she has cooked for celebrities throughout the world, been the featured subject of documentaries, and has written her own cookbooks.
Yoshihiro Narisawa (成澤 由浩, Narisawa Yoshihiro; born 11 April 1969) is a Japanese chef and owner of the two-Michelin…
Yoshihiro Narisawa (成澤 由浩, Narisawa Yoshihiro; born 11 April 1969) is a Japanese chef and owner of the two-Michelin star restaurant Narisawa in Minato, Tokyo, Japan.
Sadaharu Aoki (青木 定治, Aoki Sadaharu; born 1 July 1968) is a Japanese chef patissier at the pâtisserie Sadaharu Aoki in…
Sadaharu Aoki (青木 定治, Aoki Sadaharu; born 1 July 1968) is a Japanese chef patissier at the pâtisserie Sadaharu Aoki in Paris, France. He is known for using traditional Japanese ingredients and flavors in French-style pastries. His style is defined as a combination of minimalistic aesthetics with rigorous French techniques. He is also known as a food consultant for Yumeiro Pâtissière manga, as claimed by the series author Natsumi Matsumoto.
Toshiaki Kawada (川田 利明, Kawada Toshiaki) (born December 8, 1963) is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is…
Toshiaki Kawada (川田 利明, Kawada Toshiaki) (born December 8, 1963) is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), whom he worked for from his debut in 1982 up until 2008. In the promotion, he was a five-time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, a nine-time World Tag Team Champion, three-time winner of the Real World Tag League and a two-time winner of the Champion Carnival. He was also recognized as the ace of the promotion from 2000 to 2005. A years-long contemporary of Mitsuharu Misawa, they made their debut in AJPW together in the 1980s. Kawada became the understudy of Genichiro Tenryu, one of the top stars of the promotion at the time, and was so until 1990 when the Revolution stable disbanded in the event of the SWS exodus. From then on, he became one of their top rising stars alongside Misawa and Kenta Kobashi, and would be the founding members of the Super Generation Army (超世代軍, Chou Sedai-gun). In 1993, he broke away from the stable and joined Tsuruta-accomplice Akira Taue as a unit, coining themselves as the Holy Demon Army (聖鬼軍, Sei Ki Gun). Their rivalry with Misawa and Kobashi was a huge turning point for AJPW in the 1990s, and the individual rivalry between Kawada and Misawa was considered the defining storyline of the 1990s in AJPW and Japan all-together. That same year, he had been coined as a member of the Four Heavenly Kings (プロレスの四天王, Puroresu no shiten'nō; also called the Four Pillars of Heaven) line-up, alongside Misawa, Kobashi, and Taue. When Misawa ended his relationship with AJPW and formed Pro Wrestling Noah, Kawada stayed loyal to AJPW, and was then picked by Motoko Baba (the widow of Giant Baba, the company founder) to be the leading wrestler on the roster. He had the longest individual reign of any Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion in the 2000s, and was tied (with Kento Miyahara's fourth reign) for the most defenses of any individual reign with 10. In the midst of the division between AJPW and Noah, he made several appearances with other promotions, most notably New Japan Pro-Wrestling, where he competed for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Wrestling World 2001 in the Tokyo Dome against Kensuke Sasaki. He became a freelancer in 2005, and made his first in-ring appearance for Noah at the Destiny 2005 pay-per-view, losing to Misawa. He also competed for Hustle, where he assumed many comedic roles. He won his last world title, the ZERO1 World Heavyweight Championship, in October 2009, defeating Masato Tanaka and losing it to Kohei Sato the next year. After the death of Misawa in June 2009 in a freak ring accident, Kawada slowed down his role as a pro wrestler, and had his final match on August 15, 2010 during the G1 Climax XX tournament, unbeknownst to the majority of his contemporaries and fans. After his final match, he began to collaborate more with his contemporaries outside the ring, including Kobashi and Taue (the surviving Heavenly Kings), Jushin Liger, Katsuhiko Nakajima, and student Taichi. Known by fans and his contemporaries as "Dangerous K" (デンジャラス K, Denjarasu kei) for his extremely stiff wrestling style and martial arts strikes, he is widely considered one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. His matches against Mitsuharu Misawa, Jun Akiyama, Akira Taue, and Kenta Kobashi in the 1990s are argued by many fans and experts in the industry as some of the greatest professional wrestling matches of all time. He also has the distinction of having three Tokyo Sports Best Bout awards, which too brought him the distinction of being nicknamed the "Best Match Machine" (名勝負製造機, Mei shōbu seizō-ki).
Yoshiteru Nishi (Japanese: 西芳照; born 23 January 1962) is a Japanese chef.
Shinya Tasaki (Japanese name: 田崎真也 born: 21 March 1958) is a Japanese sommelier who was named best sommelier in the…
Shinya Tasaki (Japanese name: 田崎真也 born: 21 March 1958) is a Japanese sommelier who was named best sommelier in the world in 1995 by the Association de la Sommellerie Internationale. Tasaki is the only Asian national ever to win the title of the Best Sommelier of the World, and he was awarded the Yellow Ribbon Medal of Honor by the Emperor of Japan.
Yūji Wakiya (脇屋 友詞, Wakiya Yūji; born 20 March 1958) is a Japanese - Cantonese chef famous for cooking Chinese cuisine.
Ken'ichi Azuma (Japanese: 東 建一, Hepburn: Azuma Ken'ichi; 5 January 1956 – 11 March 2023), known professionally as Chen…
Ken'ichi Azuma (Japanese: 東 建一, Hepburn: Azuma Ken'ichi; 5 January 1956 – 11 March 2023), known professionally as Chen Kenichi (Japanese: 陳建一, Hepburn: Chin Ken'ichi) was a Chinese - Japanese chef and restaurateur, best known for his role as the Iron Chef Chinese on the television series Iron Chef (料理の鉄人). Nicknamed The Szechuan Sage, he wore a yellow outfit and rose into Kitchen Stadium holding a large Chinese chef's knife in his hand. He was the only Iron Chef to have held his position throughout the life of the show. He was born in Japan to a Japanese mother named Yoko (洋子) and a Han Chinese father, Chen Kenmin.
Minoru Sano (佐野 実, Sano Minoru; April 4, 1951 – April 11, 2014) was a Japanese celebrity chef who specialized in ramen.…
Minoru Sano (佐野 実, Sano Minoru; April 4, 1951 – April 11, 2014) was a Japanese celebrity chef who specialized in ramen. He was called the Oni of Ramen in Japan. He founded the Shinasobaya Company and helped run the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum. Minoru Sano was born in Totsuka-ku in the city of Yokohama in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. He had numerous appearances in the Japanese media. He had many ramen chef disciples. He died of multiple organ failure after suffering with Diabetes for 3 years prior to his death in hospital, surrounded by family.
Harumi Kurihara (栗原 はるみ, Kurihara Harumi; born March 5, 1947) is a celebrity homemaker and television personality in…
Harumi Kurihara (栗原 はるみ, Kurihara Harumi; born March 5, 1947) is a celebrity homemaker and television personality in Japan. Kurihara has often been called the "Martha Stewart of Japan", and has enjoyed popularity there for over twenty years. She is the host of numerous television shows, author of Suteki Recipe, a quarterly recipe magazine which has sold 5 million copies, as well as over 20 bestselling cookbooks and style magazines, has a line of cookware named after her, and owns a chain of stores. Her homemaking empire is named Yutori no Kukan, which means "a space to relax". She has had sponsorship deals with companies such as P&G, Shiseido, 3M, Takara Distillers and Nissan. She was born in Shimoda, a coastal city, and never had professional training as a chef. She is therefore known for satisfying home cooking. In particular her cuisine is known for combining traditional and newer Western influences, while accounting for the real-world time constraints of a housewife. She is married to Reiji Kurihara, a former television newsanchor, who originally encouraged her to begin her television career, and is now president of Yutori no Kukan. Harumi's first cookbook was Gochisōsama Ga Kikitakute!, which translates to "I want to hear you say: 'I'm all finished and that was great!'". Harumi's first major cookbook published in English was Harumi's Japanese Cooking, which in 2004 was awarded the best cookbook of the year (and the best world Asian cuisine book) at the 10th Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, and was selected from a pool of 5000 cookbooks from 67 countries.
Hiroyuki Sakai (坂井 宏行, Sakai Hiroyuki; born April 2, 1942) is a French-Japanese chef who specializes in French cuisine.…
Hiroyuki Sakai (坂井 宏行, Sakai Hiroyuki; born April 2, 1942) is a French-Japanese chef who specializes in French cuisine. Sakai is best known as the second, final, and longest-serving Iron Chef French on the Japanese television show Iron Chef, first appearing at the beginning of 1994 (after Yutaka Ishinabe retired) and continuing to appear over the show's nine further seasons. Sakai has the third best winning percentage of the Iron Chefs, trailing only his Iron Chef French predecessor, Yutaka Ishinabe and the first Iron Chef Japanese Rokusaburo Michiba. He was named the "King of Iron Chefs" after emerging victorious from the show's grand finale, a tournament involving all the active Iron Chefs. He went on to defeat the top chef in the world, Alain Passard, in the final Long-Gang Chicken battle. His record on Iron Chef is 70–15–1. His television trademark is a red French chef's costume; he rises into Kitchen Stadium holding a yonashi ("Western Pear") in his hand. He is often described as the "Delacroix of French cuisine" because of the presentation of his dishes. His formidable record in fish challenges led to fans of the show giving him the nickname, "Seafood Sakai".
Kazuo Yamagishi (1934-2015) was a Japanese chef, who is known for inventing the tsukemen dish. He was born in Nagano…
Kazuo Yamagishi (1934-2015) was a Japanese chef, who is known for inventing the tsukemen dish. He was born in Nagano Prefecture, and came upon the idea of Tsukemen at the age of 17 after seeing a co-worker eating noodles dipped in a soup bowl. In 1961, he added tsukemen, then named "special morisoba", to his Taishoken restaurant. The 2013 documentary The God of Ramen, follows 13 years in his life.
Rokusaburō Michiba (Japanese: 道場 六三郎, Hepburn: Michiba Rokusaburō; born 3 January 1931) is a Japanese chef, best known…
Rokusaburō Michiba (Japanese: 道場 六三郎, Hepburn: Michiba Rokusaburō; born 3 January 1931) is a Japanese chef, best known as the inaugural Japanese Iron Chef on the television series Iron Chef. He was born in Yamanaka, Ishikawa. His tenure on the program lasted from its debut in 1993 until his retirement on his 65th birthday, January 3, 1996.
Ai Kidosaki (城戸崎 愛, Kidosaki Ai; 1 July 1925 – 13 February 2020) was a Japanese author and chef best known for her…
Ai Kidosaki (城戸崎 愛, Kidosaki Ai; 1 July 1925 – 13 February 2020) was a Japanese author and chef best known for her career on the Kyō no Ryōri cooking programme.
Kazuo Dan (檀 一雄, Dan Kazuo; February 3, 1912 – January 2, 1976) was a Japanese novelist and poet.
Fujio Shido (志度 藤雄, Shido Fujio; 1901–1986) was a Japanese chef who played an important role in introducing French…
Fujio Shido (志度 藤雄, Shido Fujio; 1901–1986) was a Japanese chef who played an important role in introducing French cuisine to Japan. When he was in his early 20s, he stowed away on a ship going to London, where he was deported. However, on his trip back to Japan, he escaped the ship when it stopped in Marseille, eventually making his way to Paris. There he studied at the Le Cordon Bleu cooking school. After World War II, he returned to Japan and opened a series of restaurants. In the mid-1950s, he served as the cook at the official residence of the Prime Minister of Japan. Shido was a pioneer of French cuisine in Japan, and is credited with creating fond de veau curry and soupe Paris soir, the former of which made him an overnight celebrity in Japan. He wrote books on Japanese and French cuisine, one of which influenced Iron Chef French Hiroyuki Sakai. Sakai studied under Shido for three years.
Tokuzō Akiyama (秋山 徳蔵, Akiyama Tokuzō; August 30, 1888 – July 14, 1974) was a Japanese chef who served as Emperor…
Tokuzō Akiyama (秋山 徳蔵, Akiyama Tokuzō; August 30, 1888 – July 14, 1974) was a Japanese chef who served as Emperor Taishō's and later Emperor Shōwa's imperial chef. He is regarded as an influential figure in spreading French cuisine in Japan. His life was adapted into a novel and several television series. He is regarded as the "Japanese Escoffier".