Appetizer

Chapter 1.
Side dishes - karashi renkon, asparagus, bamboo shoots, kyarabuki, kombucha, chicken skin with ponzu sauce, natto wrapped in seaweed, wakame, itawasa, iburigakko
Chapter 2.
Meat and fish - spinach, yakibuta, gyusuji, Miyazaki native chicken, braised mackerel, eel, salt-grilled salmon, dried mackerel
Chapter 3.
A la carte dishes - stir-fried vegetables with sesame oil, omelets, croquettes, menchikatsu, xiaolongbao, chawanmushi, cabbage casserole, and mochi pizza
Chapter 4.
Noodles - Kamo Seiro, Zarusoba Fried Noodle Set, Champon, Ginger Ramen, Tanmen, Umani Soba, Napolitan Spaghetti
Chapter 5.
Rice and soup dishes - rice in a clay pot, Indian curry, Thai curry, Hong Kong-style porridge, tenshin-hang, gomoku rice in a pot, miso soup with fried tofu, and onion gratin soup
Chapter 6.
Desserts - Yanggaeng, shaved ice, soft ice cream, donuts, cheesecake, muskmelon, apple
Chapter 7.
Souvenirs - Cinnamon and Mint Snacks

·Additionally· Breakfast
·Special Supplement· Interview with Yutaka Matsushige and Michiko Abe

The actor who looks exactly like 'Goro' is also serious about 'food'.
Dive into the charm of my personally written 'Food Healing Essay'!

Just watching the eating show of Matsushige, the actor who plays Goro in the drama [Solitary Gourmet], is healing.
But I also wonder if the actor really likes food or if he is just good at mukbang acting.
If you read this book, “The Solitary Gourmet’s Eating Notes,” you will see that actor Matsushige, like Goro, truly loves food and restaurants.

Matsushige is not only a famous Japanese actor, but he is also a talented writer who serialized an essay titled “Eating Notes” in the biweekly magazine “Croissant.”
This newly published book is composed of previously serialized stories and new stories published in book form.
It includes 51 essays on food selected by the author, along with delicious food illustrations created in collaboration with renowned Japanese illustrator Michiko Abe.

Although the author says that his writing is merely a 'record of food,' he shows that he is 'sincere' about food and writing, thinking hard every morning during his walk to find material for his manuscript, and delving deeply into food ingredients, cooking methods, food preferences, and delicious ways to eat, just like a real person.
Finding his own 'best restaurant' is also one of his hobbies.

The joy of discovering the sensibilities of a solitary gourmet through books.

For drama fans, the fact that the actor is also 'serious about food' like Goro in real life makes it even more touching.
The formation of a sense of empathy, saying, "As expected! I knew it."
Moreover, the food story told by the actor himself through the medium of a book, which is different from 'acting', becomes a special gift that allows us to experience the emotions of a 'lonely gourmet' through a book.

Matsushige also shares Goro's sense of humor.
Now in his sixties, the author becomes the protagonist in the book, calling himself an "old man from the past" and reminiscing about the past, or the protagonist in a heart-wrenching and touching story, or the protagonist in a funny episode, as if filming a comedy movie.

As one psychologist claims, "The most certain happiness is eating delicious food with good people," the author also explains why he wrote this book, "because every single moment of everyday life, when we can sit down at the dinner table, is precious."

Every single moment that I am chewing over
It is a precious time that cannot be exchanged for anything else.
Tomorrow too
Sitting at this table
I sincerely hope that I can have a time like this.
With gratitude for everything.
“I ate well.” (From the book)

The charm of this book will be doubled if you dive into the author's warm story of suddenly feeling "hungry" like "Goro" and saying "Thank you for the meal" with gratitude while eating precious food.

Like 'The Solitary Gourmet's Eating Notes'
Create your own eating notebook

This book, "The Solitary Gourmet's Eating Notes," contains stories about "51 soul foods" selected by the author himself.
The book is rich with various foods, connections, and countless episodes from each region, including Hokkaido, the author's hometown, which influenced his childhood memories and taste buds, Tokyo, where he went to college, immersed himself in books, and endured his poor acting days to become a respectable actor, all over Japan, where he traveled for countless filming locations, as well as Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, and Korea.

The foods and ingredients introduced in the book are divided into five categories, broadly divided into 'snacks', 'meat and fish', 'a la carte dishes', 'noodles', 'rice and soup dishes', 'desserts', and 'souvenirs', depending on the type of food ingredient or dish.
Although most of the food is Japanese, you will now be very familiar with Japanese food and culture, so you will be able to know more about Japanese food in general, when traveling to Japan, and when you see food in Japanese dramas, movies, and animations.

Starting with 'Buk-eot-guk', which is the first food to appear in the 'Appetizer', which is like a 'prologue', and which is said to have inspired the movie [The Solitary Gourmet: The Movie], the 'Natto Wrapped in Kim' section in Chapter 1 unexpectedly praises 'Korean Seasoned Laver', and the 'Mackerel' section in Chapter 2 talks about 'Mackerel Sashimi that can be tasted in Jeju Island', which brings an unexpected sense of joy and the author's deep affection for Korea.

Appetizer Buk-eot-guk
Chapter 1.
Anju karashi renkon, asparagus, bamboo shoots, kyarabuki, kombucha, chicken skin ponzu, natto wrapped in seaweed, wakame, itawasa, iburigakko
Chapter 2.
Meat and fish spinach, yakibuta, gyusuji, Miyazaki native chicken, braised mackerel, eel, salt-grilled salmon, dried mackerel
Chapter 3.
A la carte dishes include stir-fried vegetables with sesame oil, omelets, croquettes, menchikatsu, xiaolongbao, chawanmushi, cabbage casserole, and mochi pizza.
Chapter 4.
Noodles Kamo Seiro, Zarusoba Fried Rice Set, Champon, Ginger Ramen, Tanmen, Umani Soba, and Napolitan Spaghetti
Chapter 5.
Rice, soup dishes, earthenware pot rice, Indian curry, Thai curry, Hong Kong-style porridge, tenshin-hang, gomoku pot rice, miso soup with fried tofu, and onion gratin soup
Chapter 6.
Dessert: Yanggaeng, shaved ice, soft ice cream, donuts, cheesecake, muskmelon, apple
Chapter 7.
Souvenir Cinnamon Flavored Snacks, Mint Flavored Snacks

The 51 food stories are introduced with delicious illustrations along with short texts, so they are not only easy to read, but also provide considerable 'fun as reading an essay', and it is comfortable to listen to the voice of a familiar actor or a monologue similar to 'Goro' rather than a food critic or restaurant expert.

Of course, you might wonder, 'Are actors really better at writing than acting?'
However, as can be seen from the fact that the author not only acted in [The Solitary Gourmet Movie] but also planned, directed, and wrote the screenplay, it can be seen that he places great importance on a solid structure and episodes when it comes to writing.
(The author's beliefs about writing can also be confirmed in the conversation with the illustrator in the 'Special Appendix' of the book.)

It also introduces anecdotes that are funny enough to make you chuckle to yourself (even a Japanese actor reveals a toilet clogging incident that happened in a Korean hotel bathroom!), and the author's touching stories about his daily life, restaurants, and the people around him (the reason a veteran actor kept holding the hands of his staff, an anecdote about wanting to say goodbye to the owner of a restaurant he often frequented) will also make you feel a little touched.

If we each create our own eating notebook while reading Matsushige's "The Solitary Gourmet's Eating Notebook," our daily lives will become more meaningful and enriched, just like the small joys and emotions this book conveys.
This is a book that can convey a warm word of gratitude for everything, saying, “Thank you for the meal.”

Illustrations and special appendices
*Includes 51 color food illustrations from the book*

Includes 51 illustrations by illustrator Michiko Abe of 51 soul foods.
+ Includes full cut illustrations of 'Yutaka Matsushige' and his pets

*Special supplement in addition to food essays*

Includes a conversation between Yutaka Matsushige and Michiko Abe
Introducing Yutaka Matsushige's morning routine!