Yoshihiro Narisawa is one of "The World's Most Influential, creative and important Chefs"

Yoshihiro Narisawa (Japan)

Yoshihiro Narisawa is one of "The World's Most Influential, creative and important Chefs"

When asked about other native chefs who are modernizing the cuisine, Yoshihiro Narisawa could think only of Seiji Yamamoto, whose Roppongoi restaurant, RyuGin, is known for a technique-driven, and occasionally quirky, interpretation of modern Japanese cuisine. “Not many people who are based in Japan are looking beyond Japanese borders,” says the mind behind Les Creations de Narisawa. And some of the world’s well-known Japanese chefs—Nobu and Morimoto not least among them—left to create modern Japanese food on foreign soil.

He worked his way through Europe, spending time in the kitchens of Joël Robuchon, Fredy Girardet, and Paul Bocuse. When he returned to Japan in 1996 he opened La Napoule, outside of Tokyo, and seven years later opened his next project: Les Créations de Narisawa. The nouvelle cuisine training he received in Europe left its mark on a technical level, and his sleek, modern kitchen has a rotary evaporator proudly on display—distilling the essence of wasabi while we were there. But the philosophy behind his food is distinctly Japanese.