Celebrity Japanese chef shows healthy appetite for business

Cape Town: Humility is a trait that comes naturally to the Japanese — even if one is a legendary chef and restaurateur like Nobuyuki Matsuhisa.

Famous for his signature restaurant chain ‘Nobu’ all over the world, Matsuhisa remains a cult figure in the world of gourmet food for experimenting with traditional Japanese cuisine, thereby giving it a greater acceptance.

Starting off with his first restaurant using his surname Matsuhisa in Los Angeles in 1987, the 61 year old today has a chain of 25 restaurants spread over five continents — 21 of which bear the Nobu brand name while the remaining four bear his surname. And Dubai is no stranger to his fusion cuisine either, for one of the highest turnover outlets at Atlantis is Nobu.

While he refuses to disclose how much the Nobu brand is worth (‘frankly, I don’t know’), there is no mistaking the visionary in him when it comes to business sense.

In Cape Town last week to help celebrate the first anniversary celebrations of the One & Only hotel there, Nobu took time out to speak to Gulf News about his style, philosophy and of course expansion plans. The following are excerpts:

Gulf News: How has your Dubai experience been? Is the business doing well so far?

Nobuyuki Marsuhisa: Even before opening in Dubai, Sol Kerzner, the owner of Atlantis, had opened his hotel in the Bahamas and we already had a good relationship. So far, the business is doing well. The place has changed a lot since the first time I went to Dubai eight years ago. Now, people are more interested and I feel the food market has grown there tremendously in say the last five years.

Can you tell me a little about your expansion plans. Incidentally, why is it that you haven’t thought about India, which has a booming hospitality industry?

We are going to open in Beijing and Budapest this year. Talking about India, yes I was approached by the Leela group… I also visited Bangalore, Mumbai and New Delhi. Then, the terrorist attack happened (referring to the 26/11 attacks) and then the talks stopped.

How do you balance your two identities of being a chef as well as a businessman?

You see, the business has grown a lot since I started in Los Angeles… the staff is also growing. It’s not possible for me to do everything alone, but my philosophy is to treat it like a Nobu family. I visit all my restaurants from time to time. I spend time in the kitchen, maybe think about a new dish, spend time with guests…

Are you happy that fusion cuisine is far more acceptable now than it was before?

When I opened a Matsuhisa brand in Los Angeles, people at first said it was not true Japanese food. But after 23 years and restaurants in five continents, my experiments have proved right. Since I started working as a chef in Peru first where most of the ingredients for Japanese cooking were not available, I tried the South American sauce.

I tried to bring a lot of freedom to our cuisine and people liked it. In my opinion, the cooking business is almost like that of fashion… every time, we have got to change and give our guests something new.

You said you spend a lot of time with the guests. Do their complaints irritate you now, or do they keep you on your toes?

See, nobody is perfect and I also cannot claim to be. Customers pay to come to enjoy our food… I listen and accept it if we have made a mistake. But sometimes, it does not make sense. Some also say it’s too spicy.

How is the experience of doing business with a partner like Robert De Niro?

I’ve known him for more than 20 years now. First, he came to my restaurant as a customer and then asked me to join him, we are in partnership for the Nobu group. He is a great actor, but always finds time to support me, he does our public relations…

Finally, what’s the valuation of the Nobu empire?

(A long pause, then a smile) I have no idea.

* The article was originally published in Gulf News, Dubai.