Globally foods are now being accepted in different cultures more than ever. East Side Sushi is a testament to that concept. The rise in popularity of sushi burrito in Mexico and a Mexican-American female chef who dreams of working behind the bar at a Japanese restaurant is the theme of the movie.
The film is written and directed by Anthony Lucero
Juana Martinez (Torres) rises before 4 a.m. each day to help her fruit-vendor father (Rodrigo Duarte Clark) select fresh wares for his cart, dragging along her sleepy young daughter, Lydia (Kaya Jade Aguirre) in the wee hours before school. Theirs is a hard-scrabble existence that takes a harrowing turn when Juana is robbed at gunpoint while manning the cart, forcing her to find a safer, more lucrative way to support her family. While her cooking experience has been mostly limited to local Mexican taquerias, she impulsively applies for a job preparing food in the kitchen at a nearby sushi restaurant, where she quickly impresses the staff with her expert knifework and strong work ethic. The food is a mystery to her initially, but when she summons the courage to try a piece of raw tuna, it’s love at first bite.
Before long she’s bringing home Japanese leftovers and making different sushi-roll combinations in her own kitchen, where her father and Lydia are mystified — and initially, a bit grossed out — by her enthusiasm for this utterly foreign cuisine. But Juana recognizes that this relatively upscale dining establishment offers a real opportunity to advance in her career and be taken seriously; more to the point, she has a real knack for sushi making. But despite the cautious encouragement of sushi chef Aki (Yutaka Takeuchi), with whom she enjoys a chaste but affectionate bond, Juana’s dreams of becoming a proper sushi chef are promptly dashed by the restaurant’s owner, Mr. Yoshida (Roji Oyama), a staunch traditionalist who doesn’t see a place for a Latina behind the bar — a domain reserved almost exclusively for Japanese men.
The film is written and directed by Anthony Lucero
Juana Martinez (Torres) rises before 4 a.m. each day to help her fruit-vendor father (Rodrigo Duarte Clark) select fresh wares for his cart, dragging along her sleepy young daughter, Lydia (Kaya Jade Aguirre) in the wee hours before school. Theirs is a hard-scrabble existence that takes a harrowing turn when Juana is robbed at gunpoint while manning the cart, forcing her to find a safer, more lucrative way to support her family. While her cooking experience has been mostly limited to local Mexican taquerias, she impulsively applies for a job preparing food in the kitchen at a nearby sushi restaurant, where she quickly impresses the staff with her expert knifework and strong work ethic. The food is a mystery to her initially, but when she summons the courage to try a piece of raw tuna, it’s love at first bite.
Before long she’s bringing home Japanese leftovers and making different sushi-roll combinations in her own kitchen, where her father and Lydia are mystified — and initially, a bit grossed out — by her enthusiasm for this utterly foreign cuisine. But Juana recognizes that this relatively upscale dining establishment offers a real opportunity to advance in her career and be taken seriously; more to the point, she has a real knack for sushi making. But despite the cautious encouragement of sushi chef Aki (Yutaka Takeuchi), with whom she enjoys a chaste but affectionate bond, Juana’s dreams of becoming a proper sushi chef are promptly dashed by the restaurant’s owner, Mr. Yoshida (Roji Oyama), a staunch traditionalist who doesn’t see a place for a Latina behind the bar — a domain reserved almost exclusively for Japanese men.
So can she succeed in getting the chefs position ? Can she win the Sushi champion contest only time will tell.
My Rating 7 out of 10.
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