The Qatar 365 team goes on a mouthwatering journey to explore the country’s diverse culinary scene. We sit down with renowned Chef Nobu Matsuhisa, learn about the traditional Japanese art of tuna cutting, and visit some of the best Middle Eastern breakfast spots off Doha’s beaten track.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00I always advise young people, if you want to do something, don't wait, just do it.
00:22Hello and welcome to Cutler 365 with me, Adil Halim.
00:26On this episode, we take you on a culinary journey that's sure to tantalize your taste
00:30buds.
00:31I sat down with the world-renowned namesake of the iconic Nobu brand, Chef Nobu himself.
00:37And Ioanna Hughes joins a tasting tour in Sukwakif to take a bite out of the best breakfast
00:42options on offer.
00:44But first, Lila Humaira went to Japanese restaurant Morimoto Doha, where she found out the art
00:49of tuna carving is anything but fishy.
00:56Kotaro Hayashi is a master sushi chef by day, but for tonight, he's also a culinary showman.
01:03This isn't Chef Kotaro's first rodeo.
01:06In fact, he's done this for years.
01:08So he's more than used to the bright lights, the audience, and coming face to face with
01:14a massive tuna.
01:15A crowd of excited diners are here to experience a rare form of live culinary entertainment,
01:21the kaitai ceremony, a Japanese tradition dating back centuries and passed down through
01:27generations of master chefs.
01:29The art of carving out a whole 150 kilogram tuna brings out the unique flavor of each
01:35part of the fish.
01:37And for Chef Kotaro, it's all about making the right cut.
01:52Since launching the first edition in 2022, the kaitai ceremony has become one of Morimoto
02:00Doha's marquee events, a clear crowd favorite.
02:04It's been very, very successful since then.
02:07And it just made sense for us and the team to continue on, on introducing it to our guests,
02:13bringing a bit of culture from Japan and, you know, letting people know what, what it's
02:17been done in Japan and how can we translate that here in Doha.
02:22But bringing kaitai to Qatar is more than just about satisfying the taste buds.
02:26It's also about educating and appreciating a skill that can itself be considered a cultural
02:32heritage.
02:47In the winter, the price of tuna skyrockets, with a single 100 kilogram fish fetching up
03:04to a million dollars.
03:06The tuna belly, or otoro, is the most coveted part.
03:34And for Morimoto Doha, founded by the famous Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto, the restaurant
03:39hopes to continue the chef's vision to make food the ingredient that brings people together.
03:45Morimoto-san has always had in mind creating a bridge between the Japanese culture and
03:51the Western culture.
03:53I think the chandelier that we have just behind us is a prime example of that.
03:57And I think the menu of Morimoto is pretty much the same, the same features, the same
04:01characteristics.
04:02Nobu.
04:03It's one of the most iconic restaurants in the world.
04:09And 2024 marked the brand's 30th anniversary.
04:13With more than 50 locations worldwide, including this one here in Qatar, Nobu's namesake,
04:18Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, is a world-renowned restaurateur, chef, businessman and best-selling author.
04:24I got a chance to sit down with Chef Nobu during his recent visit to Doha.
04:32Chef Nobu, welcome to Doha.
04:34You're here to host several exclusive events, from masterclasses to a seven-course menu
04:39curated by yourself.
04:41Now, why did you decide to stop here as part of your year-long celebration of 30 years
04:46of the Nobu brand?
04:47Well, it's like since 1994, you know, so 30 years, amazing for me, because time to
04:55fly.
04:56But between these 30 years, so we have like 56 Nobu around the world, including five continents.
05:05I'm so much proud that we're doing well, and all the teams, you know, some of the teams
05:12include Doha.
05:13So Middle East, it's growing so fast, and the people know it's good food, too.
05:20Now, each Nobu location is very unique in its design.
05:24Here in Doha, for example, it's a closed oyster shell, which is symbolic of the country's
05:28rich pearl diving history.
05:30Why is that important to get part of the design process to reflect the place that you're in?
05:35For me, so restaurants, most important, good food, good service.
05:40And of course, it's like design means customers stay here, start eating.
05:47You know, you can see the nice view, and good space, you know, it makes more feel comfortable.
05:55And especially this one, its image, it's like more ocean, also Nobu restaurant, a lot of
06:01seafood, including sushi.
06:03So I think that this Doha location, it's the beautiful, most beautiful location.
06:09Across many parts of the world, wherever the Nobu restaurant is, you have celebrities,
06:15you have food lovers who flock to your restaurant.
06:18So many happy moments have been created now, but you had a difficult childhood.
06:22Your father passed away at the age of eight in a motorcycle accident.
06:25He left school at 17.
06:27What kept you going to persevere?
06:29Always I advise young people, if you want to do something, don't wait.
06:36Just do it.
06:37Even if I make a mistake, so smart people learn from the mistake.
06:41I learn to appreciate, love, and support, you know, everything from my experience, learn
06:48from the mistake.
06:49It used to be that Japan, it's like Japanese food have to be this way, but my experience
06:56went to Peru, then traveling all over the world, so start my mind to change to more
07:03like free.
07:04So my life and my experience changed my cooking style.
07:09Now I'm going to get to join Chef Nobu in the kitchen.
07:11I'm really excited about this.
07:13So can I show you my couple signature dishes for you?
07:17Absolutely.
07:18So first one, this is the fresh yellowtail, very simple, clean flavor, very simple, and
07:26I think it's too simple, but people love this one.
07:30We call yellowtail jalapeños.
07:38Try this one.
07:39Okay.
07:40So how to eat this, like a piece of the cilantro on top, then rolling like this, and dip sauce,
07:51you can eat it.
07:53You can use this chopstick.
07:54I'm left-handed.
08:01Amazing.
08:06And a little bit of spice, not a lot.
08:09That's right, that's right.
08:10If you don't like the spicy, you know, you can slice more thin, but have to be, each
08:17dish have to be some point, you know, not like a soft, sour, and spicy.
08:23I like to order this kind of combination.
08:25This is like a Nobu style.
08:30From fine dining and Japanese cuisine to culinary delights closer to home, Yohana Hu's had an
08:34early wake-up call and joined a breakfast tasting tour right here in Suquakef.
08:41They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and in the Middle East, they quite
08:46literally don't take that lightly.
08:48Friends and families, or in this case, foodies, gather for big breakfast spreads like this
08:53one at Abu Sharia Restaurant in Suquakef, which has been serving traditional breakfasts
08:58for decades.
09:00Since 1950, in Palestine, and then we go to Jordan, we open, like, now we have more than
09:0520 branch in Jordan, and we open in Qatar here, Suquakef.
09:09It's Middle East food, Arabic food, like hummus full, falafel, fattah with meat, hummus with
09:14meat, it's Arabic food.
09:16Arabic food is just one of the many cuisines that Terry Booth spotlights in his tasting
09:21tours.
09:22Formerly an oil and gas, the retired Brit has turned his passion into a profession.
09:28He regularly takes food lovers across Doha to try new restaurants and has even written
09:33a book about Qatar's culinary scene.
09:35So, I've been doing the tours for just under three years now, and it's not just a good
09:40foodie destination, it's a great food destination.
09:43The country claims to have approximately 90, 95 different nationalities represented.
09:50Even in the souk here that you can walk around in 20, 25 minutes, you can probably experience
09:5630, 35 different cuisines maybe.
09:58Stop two on the tasting tour is this hidden gem, Kabab Al Tayab, one of the oldest traditional
10:03restaurants tucked away in the alleys of Suquakef.
10:06It's a little bit hard to find, but exactly the kind of place that Terry likes to take
10:10his diners to, a spot that they might not know exists, where they can try food and flavors
10:15that they might not be that familiar with.
10:19Although I've been here for 24 years, we tend to go to the same places.
10:24So, it's allowed me to kind of discover new places in Doha.
10:28Some of the tours have been street food tours, some of the tours have been in nice fancy
10:33hotels, some of them have been sort of lower end, high end, but it's also been great in
10:40discovering and meeting new people as well.
10:43So, when we started running tasting tours, we sort of evolved into tasting tour community.
10:50So, I've only run, I think it's 78 events now, but I've had people who have been to
10:5525, 30 of them.
10:56There's a lot of chit-chat and chatter, old friends, new friends, and even people that
11:01decide to come on their own.
11:03People are just there for good food, good conversation, and to have a nice time.
11:07Our bellies are full, but a tasting tour wouldn't be complete without a dessert.
11:12So, we've come to Halwa Al Saigal for a coffee and a Qatari pastry to end a satisfying morning
11:19on an even sweeter note.
11:20I thought it was a great success.
11:22I've got business for these small restaurants, and they're trying somewhere, and they're
11:26trying somewhere new.
11:27The second restaurant we went to, at least half the group have said, I've walked past
11:31this place so many times and never gone in.
11:33They'll now go in.
11:34I think we did good today.
11:39From chopping it up with celebrity chefs visiting Doha, to sampling authentic local foods in
11:44one of the most iconic parts of the city, we hope you enjoyed this episode.
11:48That's all the time we have for now.
11:49For more, check out euronews.com and connect with us through a hashtag.
11:52Thanks for watching, and we'll see you next time on Qatar 365.