Who knew that the Sichuan cuisine that his seniors first recommended to him to would turn out to guide him down his life?

Born in Tochigi prefecture in 1979, he entered the culinary world when he was 18. He started training in a Cantonese restaurant in Yokohama's Chinatown, and entered "Choyo" when he was 20. After that, he studied under the guidance of Mr. Zhao Yang, and played an active role as the head chef of its Ginza branch. He set out on his own when he was 31 and opened "Shushanshan."

Home cooking for city folk, with a down-to-earth hostess.

She was born in Tokyo in 1970. She was raised by parents who were both gourmands, and in elementary school she was determined to learn cooking. After becoming independent, she began inviting friends to her house to eat her home cooking, and this inspired her to start "Iemeshi Shushu" in 2004, specializing in home-style cooking difficult to come upon for the modern city dweller. Modest and unpretentious, she has earned the trust of the world-weary through her fine cooking.

Particular about charcoal, a chef who pays attention to the details when grilling.

He expertly prepares the ‘Kirishima Chicken' of Miyasaki one by one by hand, and provides the skewers, even adding the finishing touches to the grilled dishes. At ‘Torigen, Kamata branch', he calls himself the ‘Char-grilling Craftsman.'

Encountering genuine motsunabe (meat stew) in Osaka led to him opening his own restaurant

I'm originally from Ichinomiya City. After stepping away from the 9-to-5 life of a businessman, I entered cooking school. After that, I apprenticed at a Chinese restaurant and worked at a gyoza (dumpling) shop in Osaka for even more training. When a famous motsunabe (meat stew) restaurant from Fukuoka opened a branch in Osaka, I seized the opportunity to work there and trained for a year and a half, and in 2007 split off and opened a restaurant in Nagoya.

Nothing says Sendai like gyutan (beef tongue)!

Nothing says Sendai like gyutan (beef tongue)! Interested in local ingredients, he took a job at Rikyu where he is now in charge of the grill. His motto is to take high quality ingredients and carefully grill them to perfection. "Grilling gyutan is fairly straightforward, and yet the flavor differs with each chef. I find that fascinating," Takashi remarks, as he affectionately tends the grill.

Our whole-hearted hope is that you will eat our delicious food and smile

Ever since Mr. Satou was a child he enjoyed food and always loved watching people smile and enjoy themselves as they ate. Thanks to his father, who ran a butcher shop, he was strongly influenced to want to see people enjoy delicious food. He succeeded his father in his butchering business and hormone-manufacturing business, and working there for 25 years he acquired a lot of know-how. At the age of 46 he stepped into the food industry for real, setting up his own shop, and after that opened "Sakura". It's now been over 15 years since the restaurant opened, and he's still doing his best to make sure his customers are happy day after day.

Seeing the form of the maker in the made is the charm of "vin naturel"

Born 1974 and coming from Gunma, he went on to a culinary college after graduating high school, aiming to be a chef. Graduating from there, he spent some time in another line of work before working a chef for about twelve years at an Italian restaurant in Hachioji. BIANCARA's owner, Mr. Kodaira, was in the same year as him in middle school, and from 2012 he has been chef here. Though coming from an background in Italian, and the closeness to wine that brings, he says that he first drank natural wine coming to BIANCARA. At current, he's tending and bringing to fruition wine conversation with guests daily.

The smiles of his customers inspire him to spend every day trying to make the best possible food on his hot plate.

He was born in Tokyo in 1995. From a young age he was interested in cooking, and when he was a student, he gained experience in the food industry through part-time jobs. This experience led to him setting his heart upon a career within cooking. In 2010, he started work at Asakusa Monja Ocomo. He became interested in working with a hot plate, which allows for a wide range of cooking to be performed. Every day he tries out new ideas as he cooks. He also puts his heart into welcoming his customers to make them happy.

Passionately dedicated to the art of the grill

When he was looking for a part-time job during his student days, Mr. Hashimoto asked to come work for us at Yakitori Fukusumi. He was so drawn by the complexities of cookery, he decided to stay on with us as a chef after graduation. He has enthusiastically dedicated himself to mastering the art since then, and these days we leave the grilling up to him.

Cuisine to be shared with guests that is the culmination of our chef's life experiences

Our chef was born in Mexico in January, 1967. In 1983 he began working at "Crown Plaza Holiday Inn" in Mexico, after which he went on to work in top hotels in America, Switzerland, Japan, and Egypt. Since 2010 he has been head chef at Conrad Tokyo, where he supervises "Bar and Lounge Twenty-Eight".

Offers up big portions made with top quality ingredients.

He was born March 8th, 1972, in Osaka Prefecture. Wanting to become a cook, after finishing high school, he began apprenticing at Tori Ryori after a friend introduced him. After that, he continued working at the same restaurant as a cook. Tondabayashi, Osaka is a place blessed with tranquil nature; a place where people go to get directly-sourced, fresh ingredients to create delicious meals.

By making sure ingredients change every day, there is always an eye on consistent quality.

Born in 1973, and a native of Fukuoka Prefecture, he had always loved food, but was working at a company unrelated to the culinary world. From there, he decided to change occupations and pursue the path of becoming a chef. Every day he constantly watches changes in conditions and the quality of ingredients to insure a consistent high level of quality, which means he is always studying the textures and flavors of the food he has perfected.

I entered the food world after a chance encounter with the boss.

Originally, Mr. Ikeda said he enjoyed customer service. While he was doing some other job, he met the boss of "Sumibi Yakitori Kirishima" and became interested in the food world. After that, he was invited by the boss to manage the restuarant together.

Born February 23rd, 1960, a native of Hyogo Prefecture. After graduating from high school he worked at a number of restaurants, before traveling to France. He studied under Bernard Loiseau, the head chef at La Cote d'Or (now called Le Relais Bernard Loiseau), who gave rise to the Asian-inspired French fusion style, which our chef learned. He returned home to work at the Japanese chef of La Cote d'Or Kobe in 1992. As of 2000 he was promoted to the general manager and head chef of the Kitano Kobe Hotel.

Working part-time in restaurants during his high-school days proved to be the gateway to a culinary career

He was born in Hiroshima Prefecture on December 4th, 1972. During his high school days he worked in part time jobs at a variety of food and drink establishments and because of this experience he decided to become a chef. Aiming to become a chef in French cuisine, the most highly regarded in the world, he went to France, and at the age of 20 he graduated from the Tsuji Culinary Institute's school in France. After training in top-class hotels, he returned to France. After training in Lyon and Cannes he came back to Japan. He has been with "Mikuni Hiroshima" since it opened. Carrying on in the spirit of chef Kiyomi Mikuni, he opened "Restaurant Shimamura L'Espirit de Mikuni", which he currently operates.

A chef with a passion for serving delicious meat

Born in Kagoshima prefecture on July 19, 1982, this chef has a passion for serving the ultimate delicious meat prepared seared, rare, or roasted on one side. He spends his days at Yakiniku no Ryuen honing his cooking skills.

An interest in cooking that started in high school. A life devoted to Japanese cuisine and fish-based cuisine.

Born in Shizuoka prefecture in 1977, the proprietor's interest in cuisine started in high school. He started his career as an apprentice in Japanese restaurants in Shizuoka, achieving expertise in all forms of fish-based cooking at the likes of Uogashi Maruten, at both the main and branch restaurants. Since 2011 he has been at Uogashi Maruten Fuji, where he excels in all forms of Japanese cuisine.

After finishing school in China, I started working at a restaurant.

From the age of 20, I trained at Chinese restaurants and worked for 20 years in China. At the time it was tough, but I started with the fundamentals of Chinese cuisine. After this, I came to Japan and worked at a restaurant in Yokohama Chinatown where I offered up Chinese food to Japanese customers. In 2012, I achieved my dream of opening my own restaurant, Kokien, right here in Yokohama Chinatown. I would love for you to come and try my authentic Chinese dishes.

Experience of apprenticeship era in Bologna, Italy ensures chef's works.

He was born in Tokyo in 1975. After graduating from culinary school, he trined for 3 years at "Osteria" in Funabashi, before leaving for Italy. For the 7 years he spent in Italy, he wandered from northern Italy to southern Italy with Bologna as his base, and gained experiences from numerous restaurants, with the Michelin-starred restaurant "IL SOLE" at the center. After returning to Japan, he joined the Sicilian restaurant "Don Cicco" in Shibuya and worked for 6 years under chef Tsutomu Ishikawa. In March 2013, he opened "Trattoria Antica Ciuri Ciuri".

Our inspiration was French cuisine, but we are also inspired by Italian cuisine.

He gained experience working at a hotel and restaurant in the city. During that time he was also given a job as a chef. At first, he started out doing French cuisine, and then he fell in love with Italian cuisine and opened Fujji, where he is currently based.