What does "B-grade" mean in the context of Japanese food?
In movies, "B-grade" refers to lower-budget movies:
When Hollywood studios were at their height -- and before television was available -- it was common for people to spend an entire evening at the movies, where there would be a main feature, a second feature, a newsreel, and cartoons. The main feature would be the "A" film; it used the leading stars, and had a bigger budget. The second feature would typically be a movie that used lesser talent, and had inferior production values and less sophisticated plots. These films -- which were consciously made to be second-rate in this way -- were called "B movies", just as the "B" side of a record would not be the song that was popular, but just something else included because it was expected.
The term has come to be used in general conversation to mean "of inferior quality, and appealing to less sophisticated tastes." Source: http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=1352120
But what is B-grade Japanese gourmet food?:
- These days, so-called "B-grade gourmet" foods are getting popular even among foreigners
- Popular B-grade gourmet of the Osaka, a Review ranking.
- Enjoy savoring grade B gourmet foods from Tokyo!
Sources: 1, 2, 3.
Solution 1:
Apparently, it refers to: "more humble, simpler food that is more accessible, but no less delicious that kaiseki, which is Japanese haute cuisine." I have also seen it called "Japan's comfort food."
Japan's many fine restaurants have a world-class reputation for gourmet fare, but the national focus of late is on a different "class" of gourmet--simpler, more accessible, but no less delicious to its ravenous fans.
"B-grade gourmet" is now wildly popular and portrayed in the media as tasty, much-beloved local cuisines which are often variations of national favorites such as ramen, udon or yakisoba. B-grade gourmet dishes are all appealingly priced, from ¥300 to ¥700 (US$3.50-8.50). Essentially, this is ordinary food that can be enjoyed by anyone--but B-grade gourmet is prepared with devotion and flair.
Hugely popular B-grade events draw "gourmets" from all over the country who sample these different dishes, and then vote for the tastiest offering. At some events, winners are chosen based on the weight of piles of chopsticks accumulated from voters.
If a dish ranks highly at a B-grade gourmet event, people pour in from all over the country to line up at the local restaurant that serves it--a kind of gourmet tourism that helps revitalize that town or region. Some B-grade dishes may also allude to the history or customs of a community, and thus endure as an important part of Japan's diverse culinary culture. Local municipalities and other groups have taken the hint, participating in B-grade events to harness the economic stimulus of hungry tourists.
Regional B-grade cuisine may involve a simple noodle dish or a more esoteric reflection of local tastes. Some recent winners include Yokote yakisoba, a straightforward dish of fried noodles from Yokote in Akita Prefecture; more adventurous palates may prefer Kofu torimotsu-ni, simmered and glazed chicken giblets in soy sauce-based sauce from Kofu in Yamanashi Prefecture.
Locals in Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture enjoy Hachinohe senbei-jiru, wheat-flour wafers added to a broth containing meat, fish and vegetables. Shizuoka oden from Shizuoka Prefecture involves simmered kuro (black)-hanpen: steamed, minced fish, vegetables and meat in a rich dark soy sauce-based broth, sprinkled with aonori seaweed and dashi powder. Hearty Atsugi shirokoro horumon from Atsugi in Kanagawa Prefecture, consists of plump pork intestines cut into bite-size pieces and grilled in their original tubular shape.
Source: http://www.kikkoman.com/foodforum/spotlightjapan/32.shtml