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Well Bento, a closer look
Aloha!
12/3/08 - It's the funniest thing asking someone to explain exactly what macrobiotic means. Even the hard-core crowd hanging out at Down to Earth or Umeke Market are hard-pressed to give you a clear and precise answer. It has to do with healthy foods and healthy living, yes, but after that, I always seem to get a whole lot of sign-language, mostly the ol' backhand flip of the wrists, open palms rolled and extended outwards, over and over again, as if trying to pull words out of their mouths - physically. It usually doesn't work, and I then spare them the mentally strenuous task of pulling words out of their minds that stubbornly refuse to be retrieved and accessed. I can't tell you how many times I've heard someone initially say, and very confidently so, I might add, that they knew what macrobiotic meant, then watched as they stumbled and fumbled, seemingly surprised even within themselves for having such difficulty in answering.
I guess I shouldn't laugh, though, much less tease. If the Aku can't even tell you what it is, I am, in fact, no better off than they. Random House says that macrobiotic means "A program emphasizing harmony with nature, especially through a restrictive, primarily vegetarian diet."
Wikipedia says it is "A dietary regimen that involves eating grains as a staple food supplemented by other foodstuffs such as vegetables and beans, and avoiding the use of highly processed or refined foods."
The classic book Prescription for Nutritional Healing, Third Edition, describes macrobiotics as "A dietary approach adapted from Far Eastern philosophy whose basic principle consists of balancing the yin and yang energies of foods..."
Hmmm.... Kinda sorta the same, but kinda sorta not. Even the experts have slightly different explanations, so I don't expect the confusion to clear anytime soon. Actually, I do think the last explanation is best, as macrobiotics doesn't only deal with what foods are good for you - just about all fruits and vegetables are good for you, but it goes much deeper than that. The whole yin and yang thing is so powerful because it focuses on the different individual needs of each person and seeks a balance of that person through nutrition and over-all health. Basically, the whole philosophy states that our bodies remain in a constant flux of varying degrees of either yin (female, cold) or yang (male, hot) energies, and if our bodies contain too much of one side or the other, we become unbalanced, leaving us open to sickness and disease. At the same time, all foods, as well, have a constitution of either yin, yang, or nuetral energies, and therefore, are used as the primary element in restoring any deficiency of either yin or yang in our bodies. As in life, it's all about balance, yes?
I didn't know much about these principals until I studied tuina, or Chinese massage, at the Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Beijing. It was pretty awesome being there at Grand Central of a practice that has been developed and refined over thousands of years! I'll probably write about my two visits there, one which lasted almost three months, one day, but for now, here I am fronting the facility and looking very much the dork!
Unlike the west, half the people in China visit modern medical practitioners, while the other half rely on doctors at these particular types of hospitals, where they can look at your tongue, among other things, and determine exactly what ails you! Then, such remedies as acupuncture, massage, and all-natural, herbal mixtures are prescribed. It's pretty amazing, really.
Macrobiotics actually has its origins in Japan, which is probably why there are so many popular Japanese ingredients used, such as hijiki, gobo, and seaweeds. However, it is still based upon yin and yang, and the basic principals coming from traditional Chinese Medicine. A Japanese army doctor named Sagen Ishizuka first established the practice after being weak and sickly most of his life, and healing himself from a variety of kidney and skin diseases through eating the right foods, thus restoring the balance of yin and yang in his body. Ishizuka-san criticized the widespread trend of Western Medicine in his own country, and began prescribing natural healing principles to patients in a practice that grew so popular, he began limiting himself to only 100 patients per day! Pretty successful, I'd say!
He also taught many disciples, who then formed an association called Shoku Yo Kai. The group eventually attracted another student named George Ohsawa, born Nyoichi Sakurazawa, who was healed himself from a "terminal" disease through the practice. He eventually rose to become President of the association, publishing many books and articles in the process. Many believed that it was his growing fame that led jealous powerbrokers within Shoku Yo Kai to succeed in ousting him from the organization. But no worries, because that spurned him to then travel the world, spreading the doctrine wherever he went, and it was only during this time that the term macrobiotic, which comes from two Greek words meaning large or great, and concerning life, was coined. Thank you jealous powerbrokers - your loss was the worlds gain!
Here in the islands, however, fast-forwarding to the post-millenial world, we would probably never have known about macrobiotics if not for Well Bento on S. Beretania St. It is a tiny hide-away on the second floor of the low-rise East West Building, after University Ave. and right before Jiffy Lube.
Next is what wifey really ordered, the real tempeh scallopini, which we ate upon returning to the same park, this time without flies and with the cool comfort of air-conditioning, courtesty of my Hyundai-mobile:
I was glad to finally open up my own real order, which was seasoned with olive oil and tamari sauce. It was still nice and tender inside, despite the couple of minutes it remained enclosed in its styrofoam take-out box.
One of the great things about Well Bento is that most plates, unless specified, come with brown rice and a super-delicious brown gravy. Whaaa?
"I thought this was a healthy place!"
You bet, it is! This brown gravy is actually made fresh daily from vegetable sources, mostly a hulled sesame paste, which contains certain amino acid proteins that vegetarians especially need. First time I've ever heard of a gravy without butter and animal fat, much less one that tastes so darn good! Even sworn white rice eaters will be surprised at how easily this gravy makes brown rice go down!
Plates here also come with sides of broccoli, gobo, carrots, potatoes, and two items which are both dairy, egg, and mayonnaise-free - macaroni salad and cole slaw. I could tell the creamy sauce around these two items was applied very lightly, but mayo-free? Coulda fooled me!
Not that vegetarians won't do well here. This is a very sophisticated menu, with complete, all-veggie meals that taste so good, even a fast-food junkie could appreciate them! Besides tempeh, there is also an organic grilled tofu, seitan (Chef's specialty made from organic stone-ground whole wheat, which is soaked and washed until only gluten remains, then cooked and cured), and their healthiest offering of all, the Zen Macrobiotic. It comes with steamed cabbage, carrots, onion, kabocha pumpkin, daikon, hijiki seaweed, and a bean type of the day, along with the tahini gravy-covered brown rice and various sides.
The owners here are very able, having been trained by the founder and former owner but also coming with their own personal merits, as well. Chef Todd has been in the business for over 17 years, having been executive chef at three separate fine-dining restaurants, while wife Kristine has been trained and certified by the Nutritional Therapy Association, or NTA, and a graduate of the Ayurvedic Academy. You can tell by the articles and the buzz around town that these guys really know what they're doing.
And hope you all are also trying to eat healthy once in a while. Me? Aaah, I go up and, well, not too far down, most times, so I guess I'm doing ok. I know one thing for sure, and that is that I eat and take care of my health much better than I did growing up. I guess that's not saying much, however, as it wasn't until about the age of 24 that I even ventured into veggies, with a diet that previously consisted of just meat and starch, basically! Sure glad I've changed. Wifey's helped a lot in that department, as well!
Everything gets better as we age, doesn't it? Mostly because we shed the stupidness factor more and more, I think! My 30's were the best times of my life, and I expect the 40's to be even better!
Take care and Aloha till next time!
Aku
