NEWSLETTER MIYABI - 26.2.2026

DEAR GUESTS, DEAR FRIENDS!
Have you already come to see the Ohinasama dolls at Miyabi? They are on display. Yes — the very ones we, as parents, bought for our daughter when she was born. We wished for her to be the most beautiful little girl — simply a princess. Like Ohinasama. In fact, we were assigning her a social gender, and it never occurred to us that, thirty years later, the awareness of gender issues would change so profoundly. It never crossed our minds that some people would even think that language itself, through grammatical gender, influences us as individuals more than we might wish. Go and see the performance of Frankenstein at the Estates Theatre, where female actors play male roles and speak in the masculine form. They do not hide that they are women, because gender is not meant to matter. I did not want to feel confused — but I was. In Japan, they would not have such difficulty with grammatical gender, because in Japanese it does not exist. Verb forms do not change, there is often no clear indication of singular or plural, and even the subject is frequently omitted. Who exactly? You must often imagine it. Fill it in. Wish it. Perhaps it is precisely this space of ambiguity inherent in the Japanese language that makes Japanese parents happily embrace clear and established traditions in upbringing — such as the dolls of the Hina festival — and no one finds it problematic. I must admit, I like that. I like the Ohinasama festival! And why? You can also find out in my blog.
 

OHINASAMA MENU
The festival is celebrated on March 3rd, and starting from that day — from next Tuesday — we will be offering a special Ohinasama menu at Miyabi. The most typical dish is chirashizushi. We have placed our chirashi in a beautiful red lacquered box shaped like an ume blossom, because plum trees are now blooming in Japan. Inside you will find various delicacies such as renkon and kanpyo, and you will probably enjoy the unagi (eel) the most. A particularly exotic Ohinasama dish for you will be soft shell crab in tempura batter, filling an uramaki roll decorated with bright red salmon caviar. We first introduced this roll in this year’s Valentine’s menu, and our guests were delighted. Ohinasama is a celebration of love and partnership, just like Valentine’s Day, so it fits perfectly. Another important ingredient is renkon, lotus root, which I would like to give special attention to. We will offer it as tempura. You can read more about renkon in my blog post “Renkon – The Cross, Christ, and the Lotus Root.”

IZAN OGAWA – CALLIGRAPHY EXHIBITION
When you come to Miyabi, you will certainly notice the calligraphy scrolls — large and small — both in the front and in the back of the restaurant. Yes, Miyabi is filled with the spirit of our friend, the calligrapher Izan Ogawa from Japan. He has been connected with Miyabi for the entire thirty years of its existence. He would have loved to come for our anniversary, but his health did not allow it. So I organized an exhibition at least from the scrolls that remained at Miyabi from previous exhibitions. The three scrolls hanging to the left of the entrance above the staircase were recently sent by Izan by post, and he says he is preparing further works for Miyabi. It is a great honor for me to have these scrolls displayed at Miyabi. Some of them are twenty years old or more, and they carry many memories. “Natsukashii,” Izan said — and “Natsukashii,” I say as well. And you who know Izan will say it too. So much generosity. Thank you Izan!
 
ODEN – ONCE AGAIN
Spring is coming. Soon, our winter sakura will bloom in the Miyabi garden. The buds of the white camellia are also beginning to open. And surely, on your walks, you have already spotted the first snowdrops. Winter is saying goodbye — but let us not rush it, because the cold days are not over yet. We are mindful of that, and our chef Jára Štěpánek will prepare oden, your favorite winter dish. We have set the dates for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday — March 13th, 14th, and 15th. March — the month when it is still good to stay warm indoors. Oden will be available while supplies last, so it is best to make a reservation and let our staff know that you are coming for oden.
 
IDEA – MUSUBU & TSUNAGARU
You have surely noticed that the calligraphy on display has the same character as the kanji on our placemats. Yes — the author is the same: Izan Ogawa. Izan is his artistic name and means “to move mountains.” I am glad that through this exhibition you can now connect — musubu — a real person with the characters that are close to your hearts through the placemat on which you dine. Hana and The Path of Tastes. The idea of connecting and linking — musubu and tsunagaru — is fascinating, because it is a quality that today’s world greatly needs, Izan wrote in his email yesterday. The idea of musubu and tsunagaru is connected with listening and empathy — and that is what Izan and I wish for you. Move mountains!
 
Yours, Miyabi Darja

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