Neil Robertson, pastry chef and Japanophile, alerted us to numerous important pâtisseries, including Aigre-Douce.
Rachael Hutchings, blogger at LaFujiMama.com and cohost of the Miso Hungry podcast, read the manuscript and pointed out many instances where my understanding of Japanese food was less than stellar. She also invited me onto her show to talk about Tokyo supermarkets, and gathering my thoughts for that episode did a lot to improve the supermarket chapter. You can listen to me ramble here: goo.gl/aCnjG
The Usui family of Saitama-ken welcomed us into their home for an afternoon, cooked us an amazing meal, and gave us a couple of memorable restaurant recommendations. Their three kids treated Iris like a best friend from the moment they met. If you'd like to have a meal with a Japanese family in their home, Nagomi Visit (nagomivisit.com) will make it happen.
Thank you to Mac, our apartment manager, and to Zen, Makoto, and Amy, our neighbors. If you’re looking for a vacation rental in Tokyo, do not hesitate to use LiveInAsia.com.
In the acknowledgements of my last book, I referred to my family, Laurie and Iris, as “extremely high-quality.” This turned out to be a rank understatement. Can you imagine spending a month with your family in a 260-square-foot apartment without any murders? Thanks also to my parents, Judy and Richard Amster, who have always been my biggest boosters and have almost never criticized my not-very-moneymaking lifestyle. Writing books is almost as lucrative as playing pachinko, but a lot more fun.
Creating an ebook that mixes English and Japanese alphabets is a real caution. Thanks to Alberto Pettari and Liza Daly for the advice and tools that made it possible. Neil deMause answered my arcane Adobe InDesign questions. Beta testers included Josh Giesbrecht, Gunther Schmidl, Wendy Burton, Justin de Vesine, John Cater, and Tara C. of Kobo technical support.
The production budget for this book came from 381 backers on Kickstarter. It’s an incredible honor that hundreds of people from all over the world decided this was a good use of their money. Backers include:
Adrian Drake; Agatha Khishchenko; Alexander Y. Hawson, M.D.; Allen Garvin; Alon Takeuchi; Amanda Powter; Amanda Sargent; Amber Andersen; Amy Plank; Andrea Arnold; Andrew Duff; Anita and Cameron Crotty; Ann Bjorseth; Aoi Ninami; Betty and Dick Balcomb; Brad Mohr; Bruce and Susan Burton; Bruce Ryan; C Milne; Caroline Cummins; Chris Phelps; Christine Li; Chuck Nordhoff; Corinne Burger; Culinate; Cynthia Nims; Dan Shiovitz; Darsa Morrow; David Dadekian; David Glasser; David Mahashin; Dawn, Eric, and Ian Wright; Debbie Jeske; Dirk Elmendorf; Don Lee; Doug Jones; Emiko Freund; Emily Short; Florentyna Leow (Furochan); Glenn Fleishman; Helen Rennie; Henry H Lo, Lorna Yee, and Weston Lo; Hsiao-Ching Chou; Jacqueline L. Ashwell; James Kyoon Yun; James Whetzel; Jamison Moore; Jay Friedman; Jennifer and Greg Barnes; Jess Higgins; Jodi from MI; Joe “Linja” Lin; Jon Rosebaugh; Josie Paras; Judy and Richard Amster; Justin de Vesine; Kairu Yao; Kathleen Burton McDade; Katie Briggs; Kelly Samek; Kim Foster; Kristy Hogue; Lara Ferroni; Larry, Kristen, and Julia Liang; Laura Hooning; Laura Phillips; Lauren E. Cohn; Lauren Edlund; Laurent B. Sauvageau; Lily Yu; Liza Daly; Lizz Zitron; Marius Müller; Mark Musante; Masato Taniguchi; Matt Treiber; Matthew Murray; Megan Tortora; Meghan Feuk; Michael Bourret; Michael Burton; Michael Kitces; MK Carroll; Molly Wizenberg; N. Segovia; Nagayoshi Makoto, Amy, and Zen; Nancy Leson; Nathalie Nasr; Neil deMause; Neil K. Guy; Pat Tanumihardja; Patrick Cheung; Phillip Harris; Pia Thomas; Poh Ling Ng; Priya and Veena Mishra; Rachael Hutchings; Randy Thomson; Rebekah Denn; Robert Musser; Robin Wehl Martin; Roll with Jen; Rowena Fernando-Li; Ryan Franson; Samantha Koss; Sarah H.; Shannon; Sonoko Sakai; Stacy Cowley; Steve Kang; Steve Phifer; Steven Haryanto; Storme Winfield; Susan MacCulloch; Susann Rutledge; Svenssons; Talia Lynch; Tami Parr; Tatsuya Wagatsuma; Thanh P. L. L.; The Laney Family; Therese R. Harris; Wade and Joseph Pfau; Wendy Burton; Yuichi Miyakawa; and Yuki Caldwell.
Finally, thank you to the 30-odd million people of the world’s greatest city, for the best month of my life.
About the Author
Matthew Amster-Burton has written about food for Gourmet, the Seattle Times, and the Wall Street Journal, and has been featured in Best Food Writing five times. Cohost of the hit podcast Spilled Milk, Matthew lives with his family in Seattle but would rather be eating crispy soup dumplings in Nakano. For photos, visit prettygoodnumberone.com.
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