[dcx]

FYI, this is called "orientalism" [1]. Most people would also be surprised to learn that the Swiss eat more cats and dogs per capita than China, and that Norway kills more whales per year than Japan (although there are some valid conservation arguments against Japan on the latter).

I implore any angry readers to do some Googling before flaming or instinctively downvoting: I don't plan on spending my weekend fighting some culture war, and I promise that there are reasonable sources for both claims just one Google search away.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orientalism

[macleginn]

Orientalism is presenting Eastern cultures as unnecessarily exotic, often in an ill-informed way. This article is all about presenting this tradition as reasonable and matter-of-fact. Moreover, it is pretty objective in its descriptive style, makes an attempt to present the custom from the point of view of the locals, and provides geographical context (Gifu is a landlocked prefecture, which makes it pretty unique food-sources wise). It is an absolute opposite of what Orientalism is supposed to be.

[tpict]

The GP’s sentiment is common in the comments. I absolutely understand the gut reaction–regional Eastern specialties are rarely presented with the warmth and openness that this article has. I feel like stepping around “Japanese” as a cultural description in this case would only serve to isolate the community in the reader’s mind. As the article says, there is more to Japanese cuisine than seafood. Why should this tradition not be included?