Rintaro - by Sylvan Mishima Brackett (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Nestled behind a leafy courtyard in San Francisco's Mission District, with the warm glow of lanterns illuminating well-worn wood counters, Rintaro is a beautiful escape; familiar and unexpected, bold and restrained. And its food is straightforwardly delicious: dashimaki tamago, juicy and piping hot, pork gyoza, each dumpling held together by a web of crispy batter, udon with hand-rolled noodles and a hot-spring egg, and a towering melon parfait with bright melon jellies that all but burst in your mouth. This is food that tastes both like Japan and California -- not fusion food -- but the food that you'd expect if the Bay Area were a region of Japan. Rintaro, the debut cookbook from this groundbreaking restaurant, translates the experience of a Tokyo izakaya to the home kitchen. Beautiful and idiosyncratic, Rintaro is both a master class in making homemade udon noodles, and plumbs the depths of true comfort in food, with recipes like its curry rice. With over 70 recipes showcasing inspiration and detailed instruction in equal measure, Rintaro is a book for anyone who loves Japanese food, from the curious novice to expats craving the tastes of home. It is a book that blends careful mastery with the pure delight of making the tastiest food, it encourages you to find the beauty in your own terroir and the heart in your own cooking." --

Book Synopsis

A BEST COOKBOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle

2024 JAMES BEARD AWARD NOMINEE: RESTAURANT AND PROFESSIONAL BOOK

RINTARO, the debut cookbook from one of San Francisco's most acclaimed restaurants, translates the experience of a Tokyo izakaya to the home kitchen.

Crowd-pleasing foods like curry rice, tonkatsu, and yakitori, eaten most often at lunch counters and in home kitchens, live alongside sashimi, fresh bamboo shoots, and other dishes that are usually considered part of a more elevated Japanese cooking tradition.

Through clear instruction, abundant photography, and utterly delicious recipes, RINTAROdemystifies Japanese food for home cooks with over 70 recipes for rice, simmered dishes, homemade udon, and grilled foods.

RINTARO shows a cross section of Japanese food that isn't usually shown in American cookbooks. The book showcases exciting but simple food that tastes both like Japan and California--not fusion food--but the food that you'd expect if the Bay Area were a region of Japan. With gorgeous photography and special design and production touches, this is a book that will live in the kitchen as well as on the coffee table.

Review Quotes

"Rintaro will inspire you to recreate your favorite izakaya dishes at home--and maybe even book a trip to Japan." - Genevieve Yam, Bon Appétit

"Rintaro is vibrant, generous, and the most exciting book on Japanese izakaya food to come out in over a decade. Sylvan Mishima Brackett embodies a deeply ingrained aesthetic sense, thoughtful attention to detail, and a desire to create pure deliciousness. These qualities are infused on each page of this remarkable book, reflecting a total dedication to excellence and community. Rintaro needs to be on the shelves of every cook interested in truly authentic Japanese food." --Nancy Singleton Hachisu, author of Japan: The Cookbook and Japanese Farm Food

"Brackett captures the elegance of the izakaya for home cooks everywhere."--Saveur

"Rintaro is a dream come true restaurant for me, and now I know all their secrets because of this INSANELY beautiful in-depth super book." --Eric Wareheim, author of Foodheim: A Culinary Adventure and owner of Las Jaras Wines

"Sylvan Mishima Brackett's first cookbook, 'Rintaro', honors and adapts Japanese traditions with a Californian state of mind, as he does at his restaurant in the Mission neighborhood of San Francisco. From Mr. Brackett, with help from Jessica Battilana, I learned that a seemingly professionally made fluffy cake or an expertly cured fish can each be easily prepared on a weeknight. His recipes, which possess remarkable clarity and detail, will appeal to amateur home cooks and seasoned restaurant chefs alike, and provide insights into Japanese cuisine the whole way."--Eleanore Park, The New York Times

"The debut cookbook from Rintaro, one of the Bay Area's best Japanese restaurants, is transportive, just like dining at the San Francisco favorite. Beautiful design and photographs shot by chef and author Sylvan Mishima Brackett's sister take you into the heart of the Rintaro kitchen, which deftly combines Bay Area seasonality with Japanese cooking."--Elena Kadvany, San Francisco Chronicle

"There's a homeyness to the recipes, but they are refined in the technique and ingredients. It's such a great way to think about food and adaptation of a cuisine to a different region. That really resonates with me."--Geoff Davis, chef and owner of Burdell, The Guardian

About the Author

Sylvan Mishima Brackett is the chef/owner of Rintaro in San Francisco, which was named one of Bon Appétit's Top 10 New Restaurants six months after opening in 2015. Sylvan was born in Kyoto and raised in Northern California. He is the former creative director at Chez Panisse, and trained at Soba Ro in Saitama, and at a Ryotei in Aoyama, Tokyo.

Jessica Battilana is a food writer, recipe developer, and author of Repertoire: All the Recipes You Need (Little Brown, 2018) and the co-author of over 6 cookbooks.