[Review is for the 'Oishinbo A La Carte' English release] One facet of Japanese manga culture that's never quite ceased to surprise me is its seemingly inexhaustible appetite (bada-boom) for culinary series. -STORY- Oishinbo is one of the pillars of its genre, unfortunately, it's only legally available in English as part of VIZ Media's 'Oishinbo A La Carte' anthology series, which collects various chapters by subject matter rather than by publication order. It's good if you want to do an in-depth study of sake or sushi but it can be tricky to figure out what's going on with the characters, as the various selected chapters in each volumecan be years apart in-series. The plot and set-ups can be a bit formulaic (it seems like half of the couples in Japan have some food related problem, and main character Shiro Yamaoka tells off rich, snobby, wannabe gormets on a regular basis) but ultimately you're here for the food. The character drama is just a means to that end. My personal favorite volume is #2 "Sake", which takes a deep dive into Japanese sake production and drinking culture, with a few side stories investigating other types of alcohol. The series can get political at times, but it focuses on issues such as the use of pesticides or how the Japanese government's liquor tax policy interferes with the sake industry- rather than the "Screw [insert political figure of your choice here]".

-ART-
The characters and the environments can be fairly simple, but the designs are clean. The real effort goes into near-photorealistic depictions of the various dishes and how they are produced. The layouts are simple and easy to follow. That's really all there is to say about Oishinbo's art, except for the fact that you'll often notice a considerable 'art shift' if the volume you're reading contains both early and later chapters.

-CHARACTERS-
The characters are largely vehicles for the plot. They have their characterization and they stick to it, with development happening slowly if at all. In the A La Carte anthologies you'll need to check the footnotes at the end of each volume to keep up with what's going on with them, as the series jumps around a character might go from trying to get together with 'A' in one chapter, then in the next be married to 'B' with a baby on the way. At least their basic 'schtick' is fairly entertaining.

-ENJOYMENT-
This is a cooking series, plain and simple. If you don't have an interest in Japanese food there probably isn't anything here that will hook you. If you do have an interest in Japanese food it can be quite enjoyable.

-OVERALL-

I've pointed out flaws in the A La Carte anthology format, but I understand why VIZ Media did it. This is a niche, long-running series. It would be a MASSIVE gamble to try to start publishing from chapter 1 and hope for the best. If you're willing to accept what's being served to you, you just might find Oishinbo to be delicious.