Kitaōji Rosanjin | Translation Archive 00002 | Cooking | Shard 00002

Hawaiian Edible Frogs, 1954 | Excerpt

Translated from the Japanese by Christopher Southward, Summer 2026

Kojima Masajirō:

In my next letter, I’ll include a copy of the newspaper that published an article on my exhibition [1], so please take a look at it for an idea of how things went there.

Let me quickly tell you a few things about the food I’ve eaten in the United States. When I arrived in Hawaii, Mr. Yoda picked me up at Aloha Airport [2; 3] and took me to City Grille, his Downtown Honolulu restaurant, where I had my first American meal. He served frog legs pan-fried in olive oil and, Boy! Were they good! 

To be sure, frog legs are also quite popular in Japan, and no matter how often I’ve had them there, I’ve always found them more trouble than they’re worth, but now that I’ve eaten them at City Grille, I finally understand what all the fuss is about. I’ve actually had them several times since arriving Stateside, in San Francisco and Chicago, and they were terrible in both cities. Take it from me: For frog legs, go to City Grille.

Translator’s Notes:

1. Rosanjin references his 1954 New York exhibition of 250 ceramic works at the Museum of Modern Art.

2. Yoshio (James) Yoda

3. Common name for the Honolulu International Airport of Rosanjin’s trip and reflections.