CTRL + CALM + RAMEN

Why Japanese Food Is the New Comfort Food for Gen Z and Urban Millennials

- Words ARANYAA CHOWDHURY

There's a quiet revolution simmering beneath the neon glow of sushi bars and the steam of perfectly swirled ramen bowls — and it smells like dashi, looks like an anime dream, and tastes like emotional clarity. Japanese food, once reserved for date nights and fine-dining flexes, has stealthily become the ultimate comfort cuisine for a generation raised on overstimulation and search bars. In a chaotic, digital world where everyone is chasing stillness, Gen Z and urban millennials are finding peace - not in kale smoothies or therapy apps - but in the artful symmetry of a bento box or the slow sip of matcha. "We didn't expect it to become a ritual," says Gaurav Kanwar, founder of Harajuku Tokyo Café & Bakehouse, now a cult name from Delhi to Mumbai.

There's something inherently meditative about Japanese cuisine - its minimalism, its intention, its refusal to scream. For a generation that grew up with the noise of algorithms and endless doomscrolling, this kind of food is narrative therapy.