About Roy Yamaguchi

Based on childhood memories of the feelings and flavors of Hawaii, Roy invented what he refers to as “Hawaiian Fusion© Cuisine” — a tempting combination of exotic flavors and spices mixed with the freshest of local ingredients, always with an emphasis on seafood. He is now regarded as a pioneer who mastered a distinctive style, which brought his cooking to the forefront of contemporary gastronomy.

Visit the Roy's Restaurant Web site.

Although Roy was born in Tokyo, his Hawaii connection goes back to his grandfather, who owned a tavern in the '40s in Wailuku, Maui, and who was also a pioneer of sorts in the local supermarket industry. Roy attributes his earliest appreciation of food to his father, a career military man born and raised on Maui, and to his Okinawan-born mother. Brought up in Tokyo within this fluent bilingual environment until the age of 17, Roy could not help but absorb much of Japan's culture. Yet he still vividly recalls visits back to Maui to see his grandparents, and his first experiences of the Pacific.

"My father would drive for hours just to get fresh fish, crabs, octopus and lobster from the piers. From trips to Okinawa, mom would haul back live spiny lobsters. And it seems that I have always loved to cook; whether it was fried Portuguese sausage and eggs for breakfast, or a full-on Thanksgiving dinner for the family, even if it was for credit in a home ec class." So even before graduating from high school in 1974, Roy knew what he wanted to do: enroll in the Culinary Institute of America in New York's Hyde Park, where he was to receive his first exposure to classical traditions.

After graduating in 1976, Roy's devotion to French cooking would be nurtured further in southern California, where he signed on for an apprenticeship at L'Escoffier, followed by one at L'Ermitage. Roy still considers L'Ermitage's late master chef Jean Bertranou to be his mentor. In a June '88 Bon Appetit cover story, Roy recalls how he absorbed the "inner secrets of haute cuisine" at this legendary West Hollywood restaurant: "I almost turned down the job because I didn't think I was good enough... but I started out doing simple things, like cutting fish and meat. I also learned more in two and a half years there than I could have anywhere else. Those two (Bertranou and his right-hand man, Michel Blanchet) taught me lessons straight from the school of hard knocks. They didn't take things lightly...I learned to do a dish and work at it until it was perfect. I learned to feel if a dish was right.

Thoroughly imbued with this discipline, Roy found the confidence to tackle his first experience as an executive chef at Le Serene by late 1979. This was followed by a few memorable months at the eternally posh Michael's in Santa Monica, working for "California Cuisine" originator Michael McCarty. Yamaguchi then continued to fuse French techniques and largely Japanese ingredients as executive chef of Le Gourmet in the Sheraton Plaza La Reina - an unusual venue that is still talked about by frequent LAX travelers/gourmets. Finally in 1984, Roy opened his first restaurant as an owner, 385 North on Hollywood's La Cienega. This is where the Yamaguchi cooking style, described by Bon Appetit as "California-French-Japanese-eclectic," first came into bloom. Dishes like rare ahi in grapefruit vinaigrette and Asian herb sauce would represent something bold even brazen, for some; but for Yamaguchi, merely "the next evolutionary step for a classic dish." It was plenty good, in fact, for the California Restaurant Writers Association, who chose Roy for their "California Chef of the Year" in 1986 and 1987.

Nevertheless, all the while Roy plotted still another move to a more ideal, and idyllic, location in which to expand his ideas. So after dissolving his L.A. partnership in early 1988, he uprooted his young family in order to renew his acquaintance with Hawaii; settling into the eastern side of Honolulu known as Hawaii Kai (where Roy Jr. was eventually born in July 1990).

The opening of Roy's Restaurant in late December 1988 did not go unnoticed. Within months Food & Wine (Nov. '89) dubbed it "the crown jewel of Honolulu's East-West eateries." Actually, to be fair, it was virtually the only one of its type in the early years. Nevertheless, Mimi Sheraton would select this pioneering Hawaiian Fusion project as one of Conde Nast Traveler's "Top 50" in America in '91 and '92; and by early 1992, Roy's Restaurant would be enshrined in Nation's Restaurant News' "Fine Dining Hall of Fame," Gault-Millau would award it two "toques" (a 17/20 rating), and in a Forbes FYI Andre Gayot would rank it amongst the nation's "Top 40." Proclaimed Gayot, "Yamaguchi invents his own tropical culinary scenario, blending French, Italian, Thai, Japanese and Chinese cuisines...no one has gone so far yet, at least with success." But even more important to Yamaguchi has been his restaurants' overwhelming acceptance by island cognoscenti, who have voted Roy's as Hawaii's "Most Popular Restaurant" in consecutive editions of the Zagat Hawaii Survey.

Surely this show of support is what helped kick-start the critical and popular success of Yamaguchi's second Hawaii venture, Roy's Kahana Bar & Grill, in January 1992 on the neighbor island of Maui. And as always, the proof has been in the pudding: for consecutive years since, readers of the Maui News have proclaimed Roy's Kahana Bar & Grill to be their "Best Overall Restaurant"; and following the fortunes of Roy's in Honolulu, it even managed to crack Mimi Sheraton's list of Conde Nast Traveler's "Top 50."

After accepting a James Beard Award for being 1993's "Best Pacific Northwest Chef" - and Hawaii's first recipient of this prestigious, peer selected national honor - Roy commented to the local press that he hoped this recognition ends up being just a first step towards proving "that Hawaii has the talent and chefs to compete nationally." Towards that end, Roy has devoted considerable amount of thought and energy to Hawaii Public Television's Hawaii Cooks with Roy Yamaguchi. More than a cooking show, the objective of this 13 segments per season series has been to share the beauty and culture of the islands by telling the story of its food producers, artists and, of course, chefs. Broadcast by more than 300 stations in all 50 states, as well as in over 60 countries, a sixth season will air this year. In association with the series, a companion cookbook has been published, Hawaii Cooks with Roy Yamaguchi (Ten Speed Press 2003). All of the recipes in this season plus favorite recipes from past seasons are included. A detailed pantry and flavoring section is also featured, in which Roy shares his thoughts and interesting culinary insights.

Last year, Roy taped a segment in Japan with the Food Network for their series, My Country, My Kitchen. In 2001 Yamaguchi was selected to be among the “Iron Chef USA” world-class contingent which includes Todd English (Olives, Figs), Jean Francois Meteigner (La Cachette), and Alessandro Stratta (Renoir).

In addition to his public television companion book, Roy has published a brilliantly illustrated cookbook entitled Roy's Feasts From Hawaii (Ten Speed Press 1995), now in its third printing. He is completing work on a cookbook of seafood recipes that will be published in early 2004.

Among the many special events in which he has participate throughout the world, he was a featured chef at the Grammy Awards post party this past March, and will be among the chefs at the upcoming Food & Wine Classic in Aspen in June. Since the mid '90s, BusinessFirst travelers on Continental and Continental Micronesia between Asia, Hawaii, the West Coast and the Southwest have also been able to enjoy Roy’s cuisine during their in-flight service.

Visit the Roy's Restaurant Web site.

Page updated: April 4th, 2007