To those of you who don't know what natto is, Wikipedia
explains about it this way:
"Natto
(なっとう or 納豆) is a traditional Japanese food made from
soybeans fermented with Bacillus subtilis var. natto. Some eat it as a
breakfast food. Natto may be an acquired taste because of its powerful smell, strong
flavor, and slimy texture."
As the article
explains, natto has been one of the most popular breakfast food items and is considered
to be a very nutritious food.
Looking into
the Wikipedia description one more time, it says, "[...] serving of natto (100g) provides 29% of
the Daily value (DV) of Vitamin K, 22% of the DV for Vitamin C, 76% of the DV
for manganese, 22% of the DV for iron, and 22% of the DV for dietary
fiber."
Just like
sushi, people have believed that natto was something that is produced ONLY by
the Japanese. But thinking that most of the Japanese restaurants are run by
non-Japanese where sushi is served, natto can come out in place from
non-Japanese companies or factories. I know many Japanese want to say
"That's no better than a fake. I don't trust that. Our food can be
appreciated and tasted only when it is made in Japan."
If this is
true, it has to be that the performances in the Japanese Disney Resort will be all
fakes, and they should not be trusted. All the Disney characters are speaking
and singing in Japanese, and all are happening in Japan.
Going back
to the topic of this natto that was probably produced in a non-Japanese company (the package
says it is produced in Japan, but I doubt it), my family and I thought it was
as delicious as other Japanese brands we have eaten for so many years. Good
news is that it is less expensive than the famous Japanese items.
It doesn't
mean cheaper things can be better. Once there is a quality issue to be known
publicly on the media, people will stay away from the item regardless of
whether it is cheap or not.
We sometimes
go to the nearest Chinese buffet restaurant because we love the sushi over
there at a reasonable price. Great thing about this restaurant is that we can
also eat many other things, including various Chinese food, apple pie, cherry
pie, cake, and fruits. We go to Japanese grocery stores when we want to buy or
eat something that other Asian stores do not have, such as beef bowls, Japanese
seasoning items and so on.