i. Biography
Modern Spanish cooking, when carried into Nara rather than copied from Spain, depends on translation: technique has to answer to local ingredients, local history, and the scale of the room. Since 2008, Hiroshi Kawashima has worked as Owner Chef of akordu in Nara, Japan, using that frame to filter Iberian reference through a specific Japanese place. The exchange between Spain and Japan at the restaurant is handled as a working grammar, not a clash of styles. Fish, paprika, and regional sourcing are used for what they can carry about origin and memory, while the cooking stays modern without cutting itself loose from place.
Coming Up
Formal culinary training at Osaka TSUJI Culinary Institute gave Hiroshi Kawashima a technical base built on discipline, repetition, and attention to detail. That foundation matters in a cuisine that moves across references: precision is what keeps influence from becoming decoration. A route through Tokyo, the Basque Country, and Japan’s ancient capital places modern Iberian cuisine in contact with both distance and return. The Basque Country supplied a model of cooking tied to landscape and culture; the return home became the point where Kawashima translated those lessons into the language of akordu, where he is Executive Chef.
The Work Today
Modern Spanish cuisine at akordu is rooted in local ingredients and history rather than treated as a fixed imported style. As Owner Chef, Kawashima works through interpretation: Japanese sourcing, Mediterranean structure, and ingredient choices that carry region, season, memory, and craft. The restaurant’s method is clearest where inspiration from Spain and Japanese sourcing meet without either being flattened. A plate at akordu is expected to hold clarity and complexity together, using composition to place the familiar under pressure from the unexpected.
Standing
Two Michelin stars for akordu and Seven consecutive Tabelog Awards for akordu mark sustained recognition for a restaurant that has continued, since 2008, to refine its own vocabulary: Modern Spanish in inspiration, Japanese in sourcing, and shaped by Nara.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Hiroshi
What does Hiroshi Kawashima do now?
Hiroshi Kawashima is chef at akordu — Spanish, Innovative.
Where did Hiroshi Kawashima train or study?
Hiroshi Kawashima trained at Osaka TSUJI Culinary Institute.
What recognition has Hiroshi Kawashima received?
Two Michelin stars for akordu.
