Sushi chain gets Guinness nod for largest tuna cutting show
Japanese sushi restaurant chain Choushimaru Co. recently won a Guinness World Records title for the largest simultaneous tuna filleting performance, conducted at 71 locations in and near Tokyo.
Having sourced bluefin tuna weighing about 40 kilograms from Nagasaki Prefecture for the event, chefs at each restaurant began cutting into giant fish from around 11:30 a.m. on Nov. 1, which is promoted as “sushi day” in Japan.
All venues, which involved outlets in Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures, were connected via video conference and followed the same show format.
Choushimaru, which operates its sushi restaurant chain mainly in the broader Tokyo area, prides itself of having skilled sushi chefs across all outlets. It has revived its tuna cutting show, which was paused in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
As the efforts were recognized by the Guinness World Records, Ken Ishii, who heads the company, was overcome with joy, calling the achievement the result of “various departments working together on procurement and hygiene management.”
Fatty fish, fresh rice
At one of the restaurants in Tokyo open to media, families and other customers watched the performance and ordered freshly prepared tuna.
“What an impressive performance,” a woman in her 70s, who visited with her husband, said. “The medium-fatty tuna melted in my mouth and tasted great.”
In Japan, a major tuna consuming country, the fish is a staple in sushi.
Decades ago, a nationwide federation of sushi shop unions designated Nov. 1 as “sushi day,” as the fall season is when the ingredients are at their most delicious, with fatty fish and newly harvested rice hitting store shelves.
