After Two Michelin Stars In London, A Chef Returns To Japan To Reimagine Kaiseki episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 19, 2025 · 54 MIN

After Two Michelin Stars In London, A Chef Returns To Japan To Reimagine Kaiseki

from Japan Eats!

Our guest is Yoshinori Ishi who is the executive chef and producer of Auberge TOKITO https://www.aubergetokito.com/en/ in Tachikawa, Tokyo.  Chef Ishii’s background is unique and spectacular.  He worked at one of the top Kaiseki restaurants in Kyoto called Arashiyama Kiccho as a sous chef and moved abroad to cook at the United Nations Ambassador's Residence in Geneva and New York.  Then he moved to London to open Umu, which earned two Michelin stars—the first two stars by a Japanese restaurant in Europe.  After 10 years of success at Umu, he decided to open Auberge Tokito in the suburb of Tokyo. In this episode, we will discuss how Chef Ishii’s philosophy of Japanese cuisine transitioned and expanded over the last 35 years of his career in Japan and abroad, why he decided to go back to Japan to start a new project, the innovative concept of Auberge TOKITO, which focuses on the Japanese cuisine that never existed before and much, much more!!! The documentary film TOKITO:  https://www.tokitofilm.com/enSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Yoshinori Ishi who is the executive chef and producer of Auberge TOKITO https://www.aubergetokito.com/en/ in Tachikawa, Tokyo.  Chef Ishii’s background is unique and spectacular.  He worked at one of the top Kaiseki restaurants in Kyoto called Arashiyama Kiccho as a sous chef and moved abroad to cook at the United Nations Ambassador's Residence in Geneva and New York.  Then he moved to London to open Umu, which earned two Michelin stars—the first two stars by a Japanese restaurant in Europe.  After 10 years of success at Umu, he decided to open Auberge Tokito in the suburb of Tokyo. In this episode, we will discuss how Chef Ishii’s philosophy of Japanese cuisine transitioned and expanded over the last 35 years of his career in Japan and abroad, why he decided to go back to Japan to start a new project, the innovative concept of Auberge TOKITO, which focuses on the Japanese cuisine that never existed before and much, much more!!! The documentary film TOKITO:  https://www.tokitofilm.com/en See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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After Two Michelin Stars In London, A Chef Returns To Japan To Reimagine Kaiseki

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This episode is 54 minutes long.

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This episode was published on June 19, 2025.

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Our guest is Yoshinori Ishi who is the executive chef and producer of Auberge TOKITO https://www.aubergetokito.com/en/ in Tachikawa, Tokyo.  Chef Ishii’s background is unique and spectacular.  He worked at one of the top Kaiseki restaurants in Kyoto...

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