You Can Finally Buy the New ‘It’ Japanese Cutting Board in Brooklyn
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Some cutting boards are forever classics, like those from Boos Block. Certain others have been, at one time or another, extremely on-trend, spotted in countless kitchens across social media — namelyMaterial Kitchen’sandFredericks & Mae’s.
But I’m ready to declare a new one — KAMA-ASA’s Black Cutting Board — the next big thing in this (granted, very niche) category.
I first noticed the board in videos from@madebymusashi, the Instagram account by partners Musashi Osaki and Jasmine Stoy (he’s a professional chef with NYC restaurants Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Atoboy, and Restaurant Yuu on his résumé, and she films him cooking). Turns out I wasn’t the only one who took note. People posted comments — lots of them — asking him about the cutting board. Finally, a little over a month ago,he answered. After that, Kyle Chayka, a staff writer forThe New Yorker, wrote a long post in hisOne Thingnewsletter on hisconversion to the board, thanks to Osaki.
KAMA-ASA started in Tokyo and has an outpost in Paris, and, as of several days ago, one in Brooklyn. It’s housed inside of50 Norman, a large complex of Japanese goods and food shops in Greenpoint that just underwent an expansion. The complex now includes a couple of purveyors of home products and art, a soon-to-open café, a section dedicated to Balmuda (whosetoaster oven,coffee-maker, andelectric kettlewe’ve written about), and KAMA-ASA.
I visited the shop, which sits at the back of the building, and it is a treasure trove of Japanese kitchen gear. It curates some items from other makers (like, for example, Three Snow, which provides the colanders for the vast majority of ramen restaurants in Tokyo, I was told). There arewoksandcarbon-steel skillets, copper tamagoyaki pans,suribachis, and stunning chef’s knives. The stainless-steel items —sheet trays, ladles, slotted spoons, whisks,storage containers, prep bowls, and so much more — are of amazing quality.
The board was there, too. It comes in five sizes, from mini to extra-large, and is made from ethylene-vinyl acetate, the material preferred by a lot of Japanese restaurants. A soft but dense version of plastic, it almost feels like firm rubber, and, as Chayka describes it, “a chef’s knife slices, rocks, and glides on it perfectly.” This means it’s easy on the edge of yourblades, ensuring they’ll stay sharper for longer. The board is thick and heavy, which makes it quite sturdy. And the black color — while not especially splashy — provides a striking contrast to food, for better visibility.
Another thing I was told: The store can hardly keep it in stock.
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KAMA-ASA Black Cutting Board
They may not be ‘it’ cutting boards, but we also stand by these
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