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Food Wars! is a comedic cooking slice of life anime filled with unending entertainment for the viewers. The story begins with the protagonist Yukihira Soma getting transferred to an elite culinary school.
Soma ran a small Japanese restaurant with his father Saiba Joichiro until the latter decided to send him to a culinary school to hone his skills. The school is the best in Japan, and students have extremely low chances of graduating because of the judges' strict judgment. However, this did not scare Soma at all. Instead, he confidently declared that he would be at the top of the school. That's where viewers' journeys begin - with Soma and his exploration of the culinary world.
Food Wars! highlights many important themes
Success comes with its own challenges
In order to reach the top, a student has to challenge a higher-up to a food war in exchange for something valuable. Food wars, which also take place to settle disputes, encourage students to polish their culinary skills and get better with each success or failure. There are instances where the theme of the war is so extraordinary that the chef is forced to rack their brains, which ultimately brings out their creativity.
Such activities ultimately produce some of the best chefs in the world. It is also a lesson to viewers that failing at something should be taken as an encouragement to improve themselves rather than wallowing in sadness and defeat.
The power of friendship and support
Just like most anime shows, Food Wars! also portrays an impressive friendship among students, some of whom couldn't see eye to eye once.
Viewers can see how the students of Polar Star Dorm support each other in honing their culinary skills. They constantly experiment with new dishes and work hard until they reach perfection and cheer for each other even if they lose in a war or an exam. In fact, there is a whole arc dedicated to Soma, Nakiri, Megumi, Aldini, and others fighting the elite to cancel their friends' expulsion from the school.
The hardwork of the culinary world
Through Food Wars!, viewers get a glimpse into the culinary world and how difficult it can be to survive if you don't improve constantly. One has to work hard and hone their skills constantly so they don't get rusty. Innovation and dedication are a top priority, and chefs need to put their whole heart and soul into the dish they prepare.
Constantly trying to create new things is not an easy task, and it can take a toll on anyone, both physically and mentally. Viewers saw how Joichiro almost lost himself as a chef when he was a student just because he was constantly trying to please others instead of himself.
The importance of practice
Skills alone are not enough to be good at something, be it an athlete, a ninja, a mathematician, or even a chef. One has to practice continuously in order to be the best.
Food Wars! shows how Soma is not afraid to try new things and aims to exceed perfection with his cooking. Even Senzaemon, Nakiri's grandfather, stressed the importance of practice - even though Nakiri was born with God's Tongue, a gift that can figure out the tiniest imperfections in a dish.
A new way of interacting with food
The judges in Food Wars! have a unique way of expressing their delight over a dish. Their expressions alone can prove how good a dish is, but they are taken to a completely different realm where they interact with the ingredients of a dish - but the nature of that realm depends entirely on how good or bad the dish is.
When Megumi tried one of Soma's experiments with pickled squid, it was so bad that she could picture being attacked by a squid. In another instance, when Soma tried Tsukasa's venison dish, he could almost see how the former took care of a deer in his arms - it looked like heaven.
This portrayal gives more justification to a dish than just mere words.
Otakus should definitely give Food Wars! a try. The show's comedy is top notch and can totally lighten up your mood if you're having a bad day, and it might even encourage you to cook new dishes!
