The name Kotan derives from a Japanese tea ceremony concept that can be translated as ‘elegant simplicity’. It refers to something that despite its simple and light composition leaves you with a sense of refinement and deep flavor. The chef chose it because the concept fit so beautifully with his philosophy based on an honest consideration of each ingredient’s intrinsic flavors and avoidance of excessive treatment.

While a visit at lunchtime entails a selection of courses, dinner is omakase only – a course of twenty or so delicacies with around fourteen pieces of nigiri. The omakase starts with otsumami small plates like sashimi of seasonal, white-fleshed fish, octopus, and a warm bowl of simmered abalone, before a refreshing palate cleanser of mozuku seaweed. Next comes a moreish accompaniment to keep the sake flowing, then a grilled dish and a steamed dish. The parade of sumptuous nigiri begins with shimmering silver-skinned fish like shinko or kohada gizzard shad, moves on to shellfish and maguro, then meanders into varieties cured in kombu or vinegar followed by richer flavored morsels of shrimp and uni sea urchin. The beautifully composed course closes with anago conger eel in traditional Edomae fashion.

Chef Noguchi’s wish is to please guests with unwavering deliciousness every time, so while the structure remains unchanged, there may be small seasonal adjustments like switching the order of akami, chutoro and ootoro tuna. His creed is this: minimal intervention, no eccentricity, and cuisine stripped back to reveal ingredients in their purest form. Fish is rested a little for flavor but never aged, nor does he serve anything on a whim. For Noguchi, it is all about giving guests the deepest sense of enjoyment with familiar items.

The focus on innate flavors has yielded an obsession with the rice ovals that transport the toppings into diners’ mouths. For Noguchi, the rice must be a bundle of punctuated grains that gently falls apart in the mouth. Unlike his master Hashimoto, who uses an akazu red vinegar base, Noguchi’s rice is flavored primarily with rice vinegar and only a touch of akazu. His emphasis on rice vinegar comes from a deep understanding of the locale: Fukuoka is blessed with an abundance of white-fleshed fish. The acid is neither too strong nor too shy in its flavoring of the Aichi no Kaori rice cultivar. The cooked rice grains are large with noticeable contours, steamed just to al dente. He shapes the ovals while the rice is still quite warm to avoid the firm grains drying out.

One of the signature dishes at Kotan is nigiri of kombu-pressed kisu sillago whiting fish that is brought ashore at a fishing port right near the Fukuoka PayPay Dome – home to the city’s beloved baseball team. Served year-round, the fish is prepared according to traditional Edomae techniques to imbue it with deep kombu flavor. Local produce given Edomae treatment — this perfect bite weaves together the story of a Fukuoka local trained in Tokyo, now standing on his own to delight guests back in his hometown.

INGREDIENTS
Kyushu waters supply seventy percent of the seafood at Kotan, sourced every morning at local markets like Nagahama Fish Market in Hakata and another nicknamed ‘Hakata’s kitchen’, the Yanagibashi Rengo Market. Maguro and shellfish are shipped from Tokyo's Toyosu Market, the former from a long-established fishmonger who only supplies wild bluefin tuna caught in Japanese waters. Local products also feature in the seasonings, with both the soy sauce and salt accompaniments coming from Noguchi's hometown of Itoshima. As seen in the additive-free soy sauce made from organic soybeans and wheat, and the mineral-rich seaweed salt, the focus is on quality raw materials and traditional techniques.

Unlike the food ingredients, many of the ten to fifteen sake varieties come from further afield — from Hokkaido in the north to Kagoshima in the south. Three or four types of both red and white French wines are also available. An additional five varieties of champagne, including half bottles, round out the wine menu, guaranteeing to please sake afficionados and wine lovers alike.