【一食一客】洛杉矶|Ken Romaniszyn，Lady M

Ken Romaniszyn，

Lady M.

“大约十年前，纽约第一家店开张的时候，就在Madison Avenue边上，这就是名字中“M”的由来。而“Lady”则是因为，我想创造一个优雅女士们能享受生活的地方。无论是一起喝一杯还是吃一块蛋糕，她们都能暂时远离城市生活的纷扰，尽情享受一片小小的绿洲。”

时间：2015年5月1日 9AM

地点：洛杉矶，Lady M on 3rd in Hollywood

受访者：Ken Romaniszyn，Lady M甜品店创始人。橙县生、长大。

采访者@Chihuo：切里、Yunzhu

摄影@Chihuo：Yunzhu

文字@Chihuo：切里

Q: How long have you been in Los Angeles and what is your general impression of the city?

问：您在洛杉矶待了多长时间了，对这个城市感觉如何？

A: I grew up in Orange County and have a deep feeling for Los Angeles. Lady M has been here for almost two years and we are fortunate to receive a lot of support from the community. We are still growing as we are working on our second location in Irvine.

答：我在橙县长大，对洛杉矶感情深厚。Lady M在这里已经开张快两年，我们非常感谢当地顾客对我们的喜爱和支持。同时，我们也在发展洛杉矶地区的第二家分店，暂定是在Irvine。

Q: Why did you choose to open a cake boutique and is there any special story behind the name, Lady M?

问：您为什么选择开一家蛋糕店，Lady M这个名字又有什么特殊的意义吗？

A: Let me talk about the name first. We opened our first store just off of Madison Avenue, so that’s where the “M” came from. And for the “Lady” part, we really want to create a place where ladies would enjoy. They can have a cup of coffee or a piece of cake together and get away from the bust city life for a while in their little oasis. The reason why I opened a cake boutique is because it’s the place for happiness. We really cater to more special occasions and make them a little bit more special. It’s a celebration cake rather than a casual cake.

答：我先来说说名字的由来。大约十年前，纽约第一家店开张的时候，就在Madison Avenue边上，这就是名字中“M”的由来。而“Lady”则是因为，我想创造一个优雅女士们能享受生活的地方。无论是一起喝一杯还是吃一块蛋糕，她们都能暂时远离城市生活的纷扰，尽情享受一片小小的绿洲。而我选择开一家蛋糕店的原因则是因为蛋糕店能给人们带来快乐。在特殊的场合把记忆变得更加特殊，使得Lady M带着浓重的庆祝特殊场合的意味。

Q: Lady M has boutiques in both Los Angeles and New York and you constantly travel between the cities. How do you think Los Angeles and New York are different regarding the customers and the food culture in general?

问：Lady M在纽约和洛杉矶都有分店，您也时常在各大城市之间穿梭。在您看来，洛杉矶和纽约的人文和饮食文化有什么不同吗？

A: I don’t think there is a huge difference regarding the customers in both cities. In general, American food culture really grows through social networks and food channels. Regardless of the cities, people are more interested in finer foods and will spend a little bit more money on the food they find value in.

答：其实我并不觉得两个城市的客人有太大的不同。总体来说，美国的饮食文化通过各种社交平台和饮食频道得以发展。但是除去不同城市的因素来说，人们对于品质更优的食物往往更感兴趣，也更愿意多花一些钱在更有价值的食物上。

Q: Is there one particular customer that you cannot forget?

问：有没有哪一位客人让你记忆犹新？

A: Yes! When we were building our store in Los Angeles, this lady walked in and said her husband and her used to own this property. This place used to be a dance studio and her husband is the dance coach to the stars and singers. She still lives in the neighborhood and comes by time to time.

答：是的！起初我们洛杉矶这家店还在建造的时候，有一个女士走了进来，说她和她丈夫曾经是这栋房子的主人。从前，这里是一个舞蹈教室，她的丈夫是许多明星和演员的舞蹈老师。这位女士现在还住在附近的居民区，也时常来店里光顾，我对她印象很深。

Q: How did your Asian background shape your career path and life in general?

问：你的亚洲背景如何影响着你的事业和生活？

A: My Mother is Japanese and I was very fortunate to spend part of my childhood in Japan. I was introduced to very good quality food at a young age, especially when I started to work in my family restaurant at the age of ten. I also got to live in Beijing, Hong Kong and Singapore, all over southeast Asia, which allowed me to gain better knowledge about what good food was. The one particular thing that influences me the most is the dessert in Japan, which is very different from the heavy American dessert. That’s actually the reason why I introduced Lady M here, where the cakes are not too sweet or too heavy.

答：我的母亲是日本人，所以我童年的一部分记忆也在日本。在很小的时候，我就感受到了日本精致的饮食文化，特别是我十岁起在家里的餐厅帮忙，使得对事物的了解更加深入。除了日本，我也曾在北京，香港和新加坡居住，这段在亚洲生活的经历也让我真正了解了食材本身。在日本给我留下最深印象的就是甜点，这就是我想把精致甜点带到美国的原因。和美国较甜较厚重的甜点不同，Lady M的蛋糕更为清淡一些，也更加适合亚洲人的口味。

Q: What is your favorite type of cake in Lady M?

问：您最喜欢的Lady M蛋糕是哪一款呢？

A: My favorite is the strawberry shortcake. I had strawberry shortcake in Japan when I was younger. That’s the first time I realized how the cake should be. Everytime I go back to Japan, I’m always looking forward to the strawberry shortcake there.

答：我最喜欢的是草莓奶油蛋糕。小时候在日本第一次吃到草莓奶油蛋糕的时候，意识到这才是蛋糕应有的样貌。现在我每次回到日本，依然会很期待品尝一块草莓奶油蛋糕。

Q: What’s your favorite restaurant in Los Angeles? The one restaurant you have to visit every time when you are in LA.

问：您最喜欢洛杉矶哪一家餐厅？

A: My favorite restaurant in Los Angeles is probably In-n-Out. I know it doesn’t sound really high-end. The thing I appreciate about In-n-Out is not just the burger though, they commit to the quality of ingredients. Plus, I’m half Japanese and half American. I’ve got to love burgers!

答：听上去或许不是一家特别高档的餐厅，但是我最喜欢的洛杉矶餐厅也许是In-n-Out汉堡。让我觉得最满意的除了汉堡本身之外，是他们对食材的高要求。另外，我是日美混血，还有美国的那一半，所以一定喜欢汉堡啦！

Q: What is the worst “food adventure” you’ve had?

问：您有过的糟糕的一次用餐经历是？

A: I was in Iceland last week. We were having dinner in a very high-end restaurant. The view was very beautiful and the fish was very nice. Therefore, I expected the sushi to be very good. However, they added cheese in the sushi and it just wasn’t very authentic.

答：上周我和朋友在冰岛一家高档餐厅用晚餐。海景很漂亮，鱼非常新鲜也非常好吃。所以，我以为他们的寿司也会非常好吃。但是，他们在寿司里加了芝士和一些别的配料，感觉不是非常传统。

Q: What does home taste like to you? And where can you taste that in Los Angeles?

问：您觉得家乡是什么味道，洛杉矶又有哪里能尝到家的味道呢？

A: Home to me tastes like Grandma’s Japanese cooking. I think the Japanese food here is more or less Americanized comparing to home cooking.

答：对于我来说，外婆做的日式料理就是家的味道。洛杉矶的日式料理大多也根据美国人的口味做了调整，和家常料理还是有一定的区别。

Q: If you can pick someone, anyone, even fictional or historical to dine with, who would it be?

问：如果您可以选择任何一个人（虚幻人物或者历史人物也可）共进晚餐，会是谁呢？

A: I’ll pick Daniel Meyer, the founder of Shake Shack. He’s also founder of many high-end restaurants in New York. He took the fine dining concept to a burger place and focus on the quality of food and the taste. He doesn’t want to just sell you food, but instead, sell you experience. I’m really impressed since he can deliver this concept in both high-end restaurants and burger places.

答：我会选择Shake Shack的创始人Daniel Meyer。除了Shake Shack，他还在纽约开了许多高档的餐厅。然后他把高档餐厅注重食材质量的理念带到汉堡店。比起销售事物来说，他们出售的更是一种用餐体验。

Q: What do you like to do in your spare time?

问：您平时有什么业余爱好？

A: I love sports, American football, soccer, baseball and basketball. My first job is actually working with FIFA in Hong Kong, organizing soccer tournaments all over Asia. That’s why I got to travel a lot and enjoy local food when I’m travelling.

答：我热爱运动，美式橄榄球，足球，棒球和篮球。我的第一份工作是在香港，为国际足球联合会工作，组织整个亚洲范围内的足球联赛。所以我到处旅游，也能享受到各地的当地美食，是件很幸福的事情。