JETRO, short for Japan External Trade Organization invited us to a  showcase of their products conducted at the New School of Cooking located in Culver City.
The New School of Cooking has been teaching culinary arts courses for fifteen years and adjacent is the New School of Cooking Cafe which is a coffee bar and pastry shop offering bistro style breakfast and lunches with the pastries baked each day by students.
Guest chef Carol Cotner Thompson prepared the showcase Japanese  specialties that were presented for food professionals and members of the press.
The first was a grilled Mackerel with Japanese flavors and warm Onigiri.  The strong flavors of Mackerel were smoothed to the palate with a marinade, grilled and then placed atop a warm onigiri.  This rice includes Sushinoko,  a Japanese vinegar which gives the rice a most pleasant aroma and taste.  Our beverage, Soju Shiranami, a wine made from sweet potatoes and rice.
Next presented was the Oyster Po Boy which included a fried oyster with a Wasabi sauce on a slider roll smoothed with finely chopped Dakon pickle.  Our wine Soyu Kuroshiranand.
A surprise ending was a wonderful Fall gingerbread cake prepared by the school's pastry students.
This  was the first in a new series of events by JETRO to showcase Japanese products