The quiet pursuit of perfection — that unwavering dedication to a single ideal — is what I think is the most beautiful element of Japanese culture. It’s a far cry from the Western kitchen model, where

The quiet pursuit of perfection — that unwavering dedication to a single ideal — is what I think is the most beautiful element of Japanese culture. It’s a far cry from the Western kitchen model, where cooks bop between stations, learn a wide array of techniques and change employers every few years.

In a wider sense, I would say that this 'quiet pursuit of perfection' is also what is responsible for destroying Japan's economic competitiveness. Japanese workers are often experts in one field but know very little about anything else. Japanese companies spend time and money perfecting their existing products, not because they've discovered actual customer demand, but because it's literally the only thing they know how to produce well. They seem to think it's easier to create demand by polishing a turd to perfection rather than satisfy actual customer demand which might mean an entirely new product or technology. (for example, look at Sony installing 4k displays on tiny smartphones [even though the human eye can't actually detect the difference] while Apple and Samsung are eating their lunch with other new technologies and designs which people actually want).

The 'quiet pursuit of perfection' is basically a 'build it and they will come' attitude, which we all know doesn't guarantee success.

"The quiet pursuit of perfection"

I recall seeing a cook at a busy pub in Tokyo spend 15 minutes concentrating on making an omelette for us. It was made from one egg and was bland and boring, as it contained almost nothing in terms of seasoning or other ingredients. Maybe he thought it was perfect, we certainly did not!

I love Japanese food and appreciate the dedication almost all Japanese cooks show to their craft. I also love other Asian as well as European cuisines. Basically I love to eat good food.

My experience has been chefs trained in French cooking techniques, especially the ones who are able to effectively blend cuisines and ingredients to fit their tastes using locally sourced foods, have made the best meals I've ever eaten.

Mr Goulding's catering his latest book to a specific market.

I've found that Japanese cuisine is at its very best in places where the restaurant / eatery is well-known for one particular dish / style - be it sushi, ramen or even some Western foods. So I guess I'd agree with the OP. That said, creativity & daring to go "outside the box" can suffer - just look at any cafe here. "coffee shop" - sure, but very few are proper "cafes".

Food is one thing Japan does incredibly well

Japanese can't "bop" from one dish to the next because as RiskyMosaic said, they have rice, and they have fish, and.., um...

I recall seeing a cook at a busy pub in Tokyo spend 15 minutes concentrating on making an omelette for us

What was he cooking it on, his iPhone?

I've worked in Italian, Russian, French and Vietnamese restaurants

With this much "varieties" in style it only shows a jack of all trades and a specialist of none.It's basically the type the author shuns within his comment so naturally the two will never agree.