- [Woman] This is a California roll,
and it was probably invented in Japan.
- [Man] Wrong.
- [Woman] Oh, California?
- [Man] Nope, it was invented in Canada.
- [Woman] Oh.
This is Chef Tojo.
- [Woman] He helped make
sushi one of the most popular
foods in the U.S. and Canada.
- [Man] But to understand this,
we have to take a look back.
It was 1971, and sushi wasn't popular.
When it came to Japanese food,
people only liked a couple things.
- [Woman] Turns out, North Americans,
they did not like seaweed.
- [Woman] So Tojo did something crazy.
- [Man] He wrapped the rice
on the outside of the seaweed.
- [Woman] To hide it.
- [Woman] And Chef Tojo,
he did not stop there.
- [Man] So he rolled these
preferred ingredients into one--
- [Woman] Beautiful.
- [Man] Amazing.
- [Man And Woman] Cuisine-changing roll.
- [Woman] Word is, it got
the name California Roll,
because it was so popular with people
who came to his restaurant from L.A.
- [Man] And the roll made people think
differently about sushi.
- [Woman] It was some
sort of gateway roll.
- [Woman] Chef Tojo's beginner
roll was such a success,
Japan's Ministry of Agriculture,
Forestry, and Fisheries
appointed him as the
nation's Goodwill Ambassador
for Japanese cuisine.
- [Man] And now, sushi is everywhere.
Stickers on your notebook.
- [Woman] USB drives.
- [Man] Play-Doh molds.
- [Woman] Wooden toy sets everywhere.
- [Man] Maybe not all
thanks to Chef Tojo--
- [Woman] But definitely partly.
(soft, bouncy doo wop song)
(chiming)
