Chef Marco Campanella - A Journey Through Japanese Traditions

Embarking on a Journey of Deep Taste of Japan

Marco Campanella has two restaurants in Switzerland, La Brezza Ascona and La Brezza Arosa, both of which have received a high 5-toc score of 19.

He describes his cuisine as "open world," incorporating ingredients, seasonings, and techniques from around the world into his dishes and balancing them with Swiss ingredients.

Of course, he also incorporates Japanese ingredients and cooking methods, including wasabi miso from Hiroshima and binchotan charcoal, which he uses in his sauces and cooking.

The five-day trip to Japan was organized by ISSHO TABERU, an importer and distributor of traditional Japanese kitchen knives based in Brunnen, Switzerland. The company's local team, Tom and Luli Kuroiwa, served as guides.

Mr. Campanella was named "Chef of the Year" in 2025. What was the most memorable part of this trip?

Was it meeting the students at the culinary school?　Dinner with Seiji Yamamoto of Ryugin Japanese Cuisine?　Or meeting the artisans who preserve the traditions of Japanese cuisine?

Campanella describes his trip this way: "It was my first time in Japan.

It wasn't my first visit to Japan, so I wasn't worried about missing anything important. So I was able to really experience it in depth."

[Photo] At Musashino Culinary Institute: With students

Interaction with students at the culinary school

Mr. Campanella was first of all impressed by the strong attention to detail in the preparation of Japanese cuisine, which is inherent in Japanese cuisine in general.

Ramen soup stock may at first glance resemble the consommé of French cuisine," he said. Fish tempura is somewhat similar to our fried fish. But Japanese cuisine has always been more precise than that. There seems to be a deeper awareness, an understanding of the ingredients, and a tradition that has been developed over time that is embedded in Japanese cuisine.

Campanella realized this at Musashino Culinary Institute, one of the best culinary schools in Japan. During his visit, Principal Tetsuji Iio personally guided him through the classrooms and training rooms, where he observed the 30-minute process of carefully sharpening kitchen knives before starting to cook, followed by a class on "onion brunoise.

Later, Mr. Campanella also gave a lecture on the theme "A good chef makes his guests happy - but that is only possible when the whole team is happy. The students showed great interest in the topic and asked countless questions, which led to an exchange between the top chefs and the students on an equal footing.

The students were 19 to 20 years old, but more motivated than I have ever seen them."

[Photo] At the fish market in Fukui: business begins at 3:30 a.m. and everything is sold out within a few hours.

Fish Market and Workshop Visit

On the third day of his trip, Mr. Campanella attended the auction at the Fukui fish market at 3:30 a.m., before sunrise. He described the scene as "controlled chaos," and was particularly impressed by the tons of fish being auctioned off in such a short period of time.

Some stores were looking for gindara, others for shrimp, and in the end, everything was sold out, down to the very last fish."

We then visited the workshop of 85-year-old sword smith Toshiki Nambu in Echizen City, Fukui Prefecture. Mr. Nambu is one of the craftsmen who produces knives for the "ISSHO TABERU. Nambu's skill in discerning the temperature of the flame just by the color of the flame alone is so impressive that "he doesn't need any of the instruments that we have in our kitchens to measure temperatures accurately," he said! And every hammer blow is perfect, too," he marveled. He says he now understands why the workshop is darkened.

Campanella said that after witnessing Nambu's craftsmanship, "I wish I could be in my 80s and still be in the kitchen," and his respect for Japanese blacksmithing has deepened even further.

I felt that from now on, I can never leave my knives in the sink. We must take care of our knives with respect when we are done with them."

(Left) Toshiki Nambu, a sword smith who continues to work every day at the age of 85. (Middle) Mr. Campanella looking at a knife with great care. (Right) Mr. Nambu adjusting the temperature by the color of the flame.

The katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes) workshop, a tradition that continues

Mr. Campanella's group visited Kanesa Katsuobushi Shoten on the Izu Peninsula. Here, the Serizawa family has been making dried bonito flakes for five generations using the hand-volcanic roasting method.

Drying, salting, smoking - all done by hand," says Campanella. He is surprised at the scale of the operation , saying, "I didn't realize that more than 10 tons of fish are processed every month, all by hand."

(Left) Yasuhisa Serizawa and Mr. Campanella pose with fish (Middle) Fish used to make katsuobushi are smoked and processed (Right) "Kanesa Katsuobushi Shoten" has been in operation for five generations.

Whale's chirping, soft-shelled turtle, and dried mullet roe.

It is not hard to imagine that after so many encounters, the group's hunger was growing. The last night of the trip was scheduled for a sumptuous 14-course dinner at Ryugin Japanese Restaurant in Tokyo, rated 5 tok 19. Chef Seiji Yamamoto is the 2019 recipient of the "Chef of the Year Award" in the Japanese edition of Gault et Millau. He wanted to convey the roots of Japanese cuisine, so he prepared ingredients that are now becoming rare in Asia and used a more traditional cooking style than usual.

Says Campanella , "We have abalone in Europe, but I've never tasted it in such a fresh and pure state." But that was not the end of the surprise. The table was filled with whale chirping, bamboo shoots, wakame seaweed, eel and eggplant, Japanese mullet roe, and even a bowl of suppon.

It was nothing like the Japanese food we know! Mr. Campanella commented with a smile.

(Left) What will Mr. Yamamoto make with the Ticino powder presented by Chef Campanella?　(Right) Mr. Yamamoto writes a message to Mr. Campanella with an artistic brushstroke.

A gift to each other

On this evening, Mr. Campanella refrained from taking out his smartphone. That made the experience even more special, he said.

It was similar to the feeling I had when I was playing as a kid," he said. I was completely immersed in the moment, enjoying the food and talking about the trip, and in no time at all, five hours had passed.

Finally, the Swiss and Japanese chefs renewed their friendship in the kitchen and handed each other gifts. Yamamoto received Farina Bona (corn flour) from the Ticino region and Swiss Alpucci cheese, while Campanella received a copy of Yamamoto's cookbook, signed in his beautiful handwriting.

Mr. Campanella had many encounters and inspirations during his trip.

It will be interesting to see how his experiences in Japan will remain in his memory and how they will be put to use in the distant land of Switzerland.

Article written by Daniel Böniger (Gault & Millau Switzerland) Japanese edition edited by Gault et Millau Japon editors