{"id":140686,"date":"2021-05-27T14:13:21","date_gmt":"2021-05-27T05:13:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/?p=140686&lang=en"},"modified":"2021-06-07T11:23:44","modified_gmt":"2021-06-07T02:23:44","slug":"people-and-places03","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/en\/people-and-places03\/","title":{"rendered":"My Momochi – Rie Emoto’s Career Began Here"},"content":{"rendered":"

The \u201cMomochi Now\u201d series is back with monthly interviews with people who live, work, or are otherwise involved with Momochi. Through their stories, we will bring you closer to Momochi now!<\/p>\n

Momochi Now!<\/a><\/strong>
\nPresented by SEAHAWK GALLERIA<\/a><\/p>\n

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Rie Emoto, or more affectionately Emorie, is a local personality whose cute smile never fails to light up the living room through the TV.<\/p>\n

She began modeling when she was in junior college and got into show business after passing an audition for a late-night TV show in Fukuoka. \u201cI didn\u2019t intend to stick with TV for that long. When I started, it was tough. But it allowed me to try many new things and meet many great people, and before I realized it, I was hooked,\u201d says Emoto.<\/p>\n

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Overlooking Hakata Bay, Momochi is home to shopping centers, cultural attractions and residential areas, and it serves as a hub for people, information and culture. The preeminent landmark in the Seaside Momochi neighborhood is Fukuoka Tower, which doubles as a TV tower, and two of Fukuoka\u2019s six TV stations, TNC and RKB, are located in Momochi.<\/p>\n

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\nRie Emoto has been working in Momochi for over 20 years. She lives in Kitakyushu, so she takes the shinkansen to Hakata then takes a bus via the Urban Expressway to get to TNC in Momochi. From there she heads out into the city to get the latest scoop as a reporter. \u201cWhen I was single, I used to walk around the city after work, but now that I\u2019m married and have a family, I enjoy cooking for them at home,\u201d says Emoto.<\/p>\n

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Before heading home, she likes to stop by Konohana Garten, a farm-fresh market located inside the TNC building.<\/p>\n

The market is run by a farmers\u2019 cooperative from the Oyama district of Hita in Oita Prefecture. It was one of the early adopters of organic farming and other pioneering agricultural techniques. \u201cIt\u2019s convenient and easy to pick up fresh organic vegetables here. When I\u2019m working in Momochi, I always do some shopping before I go home,\u201d explains Emoto.<\/p>\n

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Every year at this time, she looks forward to the fresh organic water spinach. According to her, although the market\u2019s water spinach is good in stir fry, it\u2019s even more delicious when served uncooked in a salad.
\nEmoto loves to eat, and when she was in school, she studied nutrition. She even told us about the food trucks that only appear during lunch time on weekdays in the Momochi business district. \u201cLast year, Banzai Shokudo a Thai-cuisine food truck, joined in the fray, so the competition has gotten fierce,\u201d she laughs. \u201cIt\u2019s not only good, it\u2019s cheap. At lunchtime, the area bustles like an Asian street market.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her undying love of food knows no bounds. In April, she launched the Emoto Rie Channel<\/a> on YouTube, which features videos on seared foods. Talk about a narrow focus! Searing is something she always wanted to try, so she started her channel and uploads videos at her own pace.<\/p>\n