American Cake

While eating dinner with Shuzo-san he mentioned how he loves collecting small items from the United States. He lived there for most of his childhood and teen years but still finds certain things fun & interesting.

For example, when visiting the U.S. he buys many note pads because the quality of the paper is so coarse. Or ball point pens that draw a huge line, when they work at all.

When he brings his Japanese employees to America he likes to take them to a large department store as soon as he can. He particularly likes going to the baked goods section, pointing to a birthday cake and say something like, "See that thing? So huge and smothered in a thick layer of frosting. But not just frosting, frosting that is a totally unusual and unappetizing color."

My wife nodded vigorously in agreement and, when thinking about it, I can now imagine how a typical American pastry would look (and taste!) to someone from Japan. Shuzo-san noted that everything... EVERYTHING... in Japan is so delicate and refined. He does not necessarily think that all products made in the U.S. are poor, only that it is so different that how the same item would be made in Japan.

At home we often buy cakes from Japanese bakeries. My wife prefers them and I enjoy them as well. Although I often note and hear others comment on the frosting of American cakes it never struck me as something of a cultural novelty.