ZEN AND THE ART OF COOKING
Cyrus Ichiza is the embodiment of seeming contradictions: a punk rock drag queen and body piercer-turned-chef who now embraces a Zen cooking style and environmental sustainability. The owner of Ichiza Kitchen, a small pan-Asian restaurant and tea house in the Goose Hollow neighborhood of Portland, Ore., Ichiza is a voice of hope in a culinary world in flux.
Ichiza is not just the chef’s last name. He explains that it is a multilayered term. In the most literal sense, it denotes “one sitting,” a concept familiar to patrons who served their entire order at once. Branch out a bit wider, and it may refer to “one party,” indicative of everyone eating together, a nod to the importance of community. Finally, in Zen, ichiza is the contemplation of one’s path in life.
ONE SITTING
Eating at Ichiza Kitchen is a novel experience steeped in simplicity. The kitchen has, Buddhist temple cuisine. Beauty lies at the heart of the set-meals, with an emphasis on the visual that goes beyond mere plating.
