I am at the Granada Market, the neighborhood mom-and-pop grocery in West Los Angeles where I get my Japanese staples. The fish counter looks cheerful with roses and dahlias from the owner’s garden in ...

The classic way to eat somen is with a cold soy- and mirin-based dipping sauce, and an assortment of herbs and condiments Japanese call yakumi — ginger, wasabi, chopped scallions, chives, myoga (a ...