Cursed food doesn’t keep Spirited Away out of the top five, but can it claim the top spot?

Along with an atmosphere of whimsy and dynamically animated flight sequences, mouthwatering depictions of food have become one of the hallmarks of the anime of Studio Ghibli. But of all the theatrical features put out by the Hayao Miyazaki-co-founded studio, which one has the best-looking food?

That was the question put forth by Japanese marketing firm Nexer and restaurant supply company Hachimenroppi, who conducted an online survey, in which participants were asked give the name of the Ghibli anime that contains the Ghibli food they most want to eat. A total of 500 responses were collected, so let’s take a look at the top five.

5. Howl’s Moving Castle (47 votes)

When you’ve literally got a fire spirit living in your kitchen, it’s only natural that it’s going to produce some magical-looking meals. In particular, it’s the bacon-and-egg combo that got voters’ stomachs growling, perhaps in part because it’s something that many of us make for ourselves in the real world, driving home the difference in how much better the breakfast staples look on Howl’s table than when we try our hand at them. “The bacon and eggs look so good, but the ones I make end up so plain-looking,” said one Howl supporter. “With Calcifer doing the cooking, you know they must smell great too,” added another.

4. My Neighbor Totoro (51 votes)

It may not be fancy, but there’s a strong rustic appeal to Totoro’s countryside cuisine. “I want to eat Satsuki’s bento. Just thinking of a young girl working that hard to make them for her family brings tears to my eyes,” said one emotional female respondent. Others were captivated by the beautiful bucolic produce that appears in the anime, such as tomatoes chilling in the cool waters of a well on a hot summer day or corn mixed in with rice.

3. Kiki’s Deliver Service (65 votes)

Considering how many of its scenes take place inside a bakery, it’s no surprise to see Kiki finish high in the rankings. “The bread they bake and the coffee Osono pours for Kiki look so good,” gushed one respondent. “Watching the anime, I almost feel like I can smell them even.” Kiki’s chocolate cake is a dessert another voter would leave room for, while another said that they’d love to eat the herring pie because of the love and kindness baked into it by the warmhearted grandmother who appears in the film,

2. Spirited Away (116 votes)

Yeah, the entire plot gets started on account of cursed food, but that doesn’t mean fans don’t want a bite. “The meat that Chihiro’s parents eat right at the start of the movie looks so good,” admitted one respondent, with several others echoing the sentiment. Less dangerously, the onigiri rice ball that brought tears to Chihiro’s eyes is something that fans would like Haku to make for them too.

1. Castle in the Sky/Laputa (126 votes)

For a Ghibli film, Laputa is heavy on the action and adventure, but it’s got no fewer than three famous food scenes. There’s the stew that Sheeta whips up for the sky pirates, and also the thick hunk of meat that their leader, Dola, tears into with gusto. But the reason Laputa took the Ghibli food crown is clearly the scene in which Pazu puts fried eggs on top of thick slabs of toast for Sheeta and himself. Several survey participants cited this as the reason for their vote, and the scene is so memorable that it’s even become part of the Japanese lexicon – say “Laputa no pan” (“Laputa bread”) to someone in Japan, even if they’re not a hardcore anime fan, and there’s a pretty good chance they’ll know exactly what you’re talking about.

Now if you’ll excuse us, we suddenly find ourselves feeling very hungry, so we need to go check if the staff at Ghibli Park has the stove in the real-world Totoro house fired up.

Source: PR Times
Top image: Studio Ghibli
Insert images: Studio Ghibli (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
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