90% of Japanese restaurants in Canada are owned by Chinese or Koreans”…Interview with a Japanese owner on the current situation of Japanese restaurants in Canada and the secret of their success
A Japanese chef fulfills his dream of opening his own restaurant in Canada
Japanese food continues to be popular overseas. According to a survey by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the number of Japanese restaurants in the world was approximately 159,000 in 2009.
According to a survey by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the number of Japanese restaurants in the world was about 159,000 as of 2009. I think it is fair to say that Toronto comes in second.
Says Kiyokazu Kashiwabara, a sushi chef and representative of the ZEN Japan Group, which operates Zen Japanese Restaurant and three other Japanese restaurants in Toronto, Canada.
Mr. Kashiwabara came to Canada in 1983 at the age of 25 and worked as a sushi chef in Ottawa for three years before moving to Toronto. After building a career in Japanese restaurants, in 2000 he took over Zen Japanese Restaurant in Toronto’s Scarborough area from a Japanese owner and started his own business.
When I first came to Canada, the only fish available was frozen yellowtail. But as time went by, the distribution industry developed, and seasonal fish from Japan began to arrive in Toronto. I think ZEN was the first to actively purchase and serve this fish.
In 2001, the restaurant welcomed as executive chef Kenshi Sato, who had honed his skills at Nadaman and other restaurants before serving as chef at the Consulate General of Japan in Toronto. In 2003, the restaurant moved to Markham, a suburb of Toronto where many wealthy Chinese people live. In 2003, the restaurant relocated to Markham, a suburb of Toronto where many wealthy Chinese people live, and reopened as an authentic Japanese restaurant offering sushi and kappo cuisine.
Mr. Sato loves cooking from the bottom of his heart and is very serious about it. At the restaurant before we moved, we served chicken and beef teriyaki for Canadians, but Mr. Sato told me, ‘I didn’t come to ZEN to grill meat. So we decided to build a kitchen where he could make the most of his skills and serve kappo and kaiseki dishes at Markham’s restaurant.
As expected, he has been very good at what he does. Thanks to him, ZEN has grown into a full-fledged Japanese restaurant.
In 2010, Mr. Sato left his position as executive chef to start his own restaurant. In 2010, Mr. Sato left his position as executive chef and opened his own restaurant, KAPPO SATO, in Toronto, under the direct management of the ZEN Japan Group.
He said, “From the time I met Mr. Sato, he told me that it was his dream to have his own restaurant abroad. I knew that, and that’s why I hired him as our executive chef. It was around the time he turned 42 that he finally said, ‘I want to open a restaurant. I said, ‘If that’s the case, I’ll help you,’ and I supported him, including the funds to open the restaurant.
Since it is a kappo restaurant, there are only counter seats in the restaurant. It is the first restaurant of that style in Toronto. It is busier than ours. It must be hard work, but I am enjoying it. When I see that, it makes me happy too.
