There is a bar two stops from Tokyo Station, right near the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, where you can freely enjoy the tastes of Japan. Ninben Dashi Bar, founded in 1699, sells dashi made using dried bonito for 100 yen a cup and is popular with foreign tourists. Bonito is dried and thinly sliced every day and the aroma of dashi lingers in Ninben Dashi Bar, located on the first floor of COREDO Muromachi.
Dashi is the liquid seasoning extracted by boiling kelp and fish, which form the basis of Japanese food, and is rich in umami (the fifth category of taste following sweet, sour, salty and bitter). Unlike UK soup stock, French bouillon, and Chinese Tan , which are extracted after long periods of boiling, Japanese dashi is extracted after just a short period of boiling and often uses kelp, anchovies, dried bonito, and dried shiitake mushrooms, which have a greater umami component than cheese and meats.
As a result of Japanese food being added to the world heritage listing, there has been a movement to acquire Halal certification for Japanese style powdered dashi. Imuraya plans to develop a Halal production line for Japanese style powdered dashi produced from kelp and shiitake, and obtain Halal certification in May of this year. They will roll out Halal-certified products beginning in Southeast Asia. As dashi is Halal by nature, you will soon be able to freely enjoy the tastes of Japan using Halal-certified dashi.
