Hong Kong seafood’s quality ‘the same as in a Japanese fish market’, globetrotting Japanese chef Mitsuhiro Araki says
- After cooking up a storm in Tokyo and London, the itinerant sushi chef whose restaurants twice earned three Michelin stars has now set his sights on Hong Kong
- He recently opened his eponymous restaurant at Heritage 1881 in Tsim Sha Tsui, serving superb sushi
“Growing up in a small village in Kyushu, Western food was uncommon, so eating his food was such an amazing experience. When I tasted demi-glace for the first time, I felt lucky. At five years old, I was too young to ask my grandfather to teach me how to make it.”
Tell us about your childhood. “My mother made dumplings about twice a month – it was my favourite snack after school. She was born in Qingdao [in China’s Shandong province] and lived there until she was 11 years old and that’s where she learned how to make jiaozi.
My father ate only fresh sashimi every day so my mother went to the market and bought fish to make it. I was curious about sashimi and asked to try it, but my father would only give me small bits to satisfy my curiosity.”
At 24, you decided to move to Australia. Why? “At the time, I was done cooking Japanese food. I wanted a change. I didn’t have much money so I got a holiday visa where I could go to Australia, New Zealand or Canada. Sydney was great. At first, I tried to find an office job, but my English was not good and I didn’t find work. Then I saw how popular Japanese food was in Australia and started working in a Japanese restaurant.
