Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Jiro's Dream

karrisaarinen.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

31–37 of 37 posts

Re: Jiro's Dream

#31

Post by ojiikun »

joezydeco wrote: post #13

I watched this movie on a flight home recently and loved it. Loved the man, loved that he found a calling and stuck to it, loved that he never changed a thing and won worldwide acclaim because of it. Then I got home and read Ebert's review. This paragraph hit me like a punch to the stomach and put it all in perspective: "Even at the high prices of his premium fresh ingredients, you realize he must be a rich man. But…

Have a great care in how you attempt to cast Japanese priorities into your western morals. Devotion to work is devotion to family. Selflessness is expressed via success, not conspicuous gratification. Joy is found in greatness, not triviality or distraction. Speaking of oneself in terms of happiness is very different that speaking on fulfilment.

I would actually urge any westerner to go study a semester or two of Japanese language (not culture), purely for the calm insight it can provide into the alternatives to our way of seeing, understanding, and acting upon the world.

Re: Jiro's Dream

#32

Post by andyakb »

joezydeco wrote: post #25
owenjones wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ebert's comments were a surprise? One of the major themes of the movie is the incredible cost of perfection/mastery. Everyone wants to be the best at something, but so very few are willing to give everything to perfect their craft.

They were a surprise because I got suckered in by the direction of the filmmakers. Here's Jiro. Jiro is successful, and let's explore what he does. It's so freaking simple when you look at it, right? He practices and practices. He's meticulous, he's a perfectionist. And wow, look at those Michelin stars. And look at how people line up months in advance to eat at his restaurant. I was so dazzled by the simplicity and…

I think that is a major question the documentary should make you ask; is it worth it? I mean, it makes it pretty clear that to achieve that level of greatness requires huge sacrifices that come from complete devotion to a craft. Missing that point takes away a lot from what he achieved and also puts it into perspective.

Re: Jiro's Dream

#33

Post by wahnfrieden »

phaus wrote: post #15
wahnfrieden wrote: post #3

Tangential, but I just ate at Sukiyabashi Jiro last week and it was incredible. They were much friendlier than sometimes portrayed too.

Was it worth almost $400 per person? Or $19 for each piece of sushi? I'm not surprised that they were very friendly. Most of the people in the documentary stated that Jiro has a "stern" appearance when he's making sushi. From my experience, I find that people often mistake concentration for anger.

As with many things it's diminishing returns, but I can easily say it far exceeded any other I'd had (and I used to live there). Whether it's worth the money is up to you. It was for me, though I won't be coming back for the same omakase again. I'd go back for a few individual ones that stood out. The omakase course is IMO the right way to get the full experience your first time.

It also wasn't as rushed as I've read, though it wasn't a full house when I went. The course lasted at least a half hour, then we were seated at a table with watermelon and tea and however much time we wanted to wind down.

Re: Jiro's Dream

#34

Post by NeilRShah »

iandanforth wrote: post #22

I am now $120 poorer thanks to this 'free' movie. After watching this movie you may be tempted to find your nearest high quality sushi restaurant, sit at the bar and ask the Chef to make you whatever he sees fit. This is a delicious but very expensive idea. I did get to try a number of dishes that I would never have ordered though ... all thanks to Jiro.

Ha! The exact same thing happened to me.

If you are in DC I highly recommend the tasting menu at Sushi Taro. Very similar experience to the film - 10 courses of amazing food (although it includes some non sushi items as well).

Re: Jiro's Dream

#35

Post by wahnfrieden »

wahnfrieden wrote: post #33
phaus wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Was it worth almost $400 per person? Or $19 for each piece of sushi? I'm not surprised that they were very friendly. Most of the people in the documentary stated that Jiro has a "stern" appearance when he's making sushi. From my experience, I find that people often mistake concentration for anger.

As with many things it's diminishing returns, but I can easily say it far exceeded any other I'd had (and I used to live there). Whether it's worth the money is up to you. It was for me, though I won't be coming back for the same omakase again. I'd go back for a few individual ones that stood out. The omakase course is IMO the right way to get the full experience your first time. It also wasn't as rushed as I've read…

Some notes if you want to visit: They seem to require you make a reservation from a Japanese number. They will direct you to their (lesser or at least much different) Roppongi branch if you're not a fluent/native speaker, so get a friend in Japan to do it for you. You can only reserve for the following month, so do it on the first day of the previous month. This means that you'll probably have to plan your trip around the reservation you're able to get.

Re: Jiro's Dream

#36

Post by rdl »

noirman wrote: post #5

"75 years rule" is the new "10,000 hours rule".

If life extension pans out, imagine how awesome it would be if experts easily could spend 75 years perfecting their craft without dedicating their entire lives.

Re: Jiro's Dream

#37

Post by w1ntermute »

ojiikun wrote: post #31
joezydeco wrote: post #13

I watched this movie on a flight home recently and loved it. Loved the man, loved that he found a calling and stuck to it, loved that he never changed a thing and won worldwide acclaim because of it. Then I got home and read Ebert's review. This paragraph hit me like a punch to the stomach and put it all in perspective: "Even at the high prices of his premium fresh ingredients, you realize he must be a rich man. But…

Have a great care in how you attempt to cast Japanese priorities into your western morals. Devotion to work is devotion to family. Selflessness is expressed via success, not conspicuous gratification. Joy is found in greatness, not triviality or distraction. Speaking of oneself in terms of happiness is very different that speaking on fulfilment. I would actually urge any westerner to go study a semester or two of Jap…

> I would actually urge any westerner to go study a semester or two of Japanese language (not culture), purely for the calm insight it can provide into the alternatives to our way of seeing, understanding, and acting upon the world.

I have to agree with this. The first foreign language I studied was French, and it taught me almost nothing - everything was so similar to English that most things were just a matter of memorization and one-to-one conversion. I quickly lost interest.

But Japanese has been entirely different. When you speak in Japanese, the way you think is different from when you speak in a Western language, such as English. The culture is inextricably tied to the language, and if you learn the language and then get a chance to actually visit the country and use it in real-life situations, it all clicks - why the language is structured how it is, and how it shapes all of Japanese society into its unique form.

Post reply on HN