i. Biography
General Manager at CYCLE at Mauro Colagreco in Tokyo, Rie Yasui has moved through service, direction and cooking: from work as maître at Sant Pau and executive director of Saint to the 2016 opening of Nonna Maria in Barcelona and an executive-chef role in London. The route is compact but propulsive, joining her Japanese identity, Italian intent, hotel-restaurant scale and a pizza program built around 48-hour fermented dough.
Early Years
Yasui is Japanese, and her career arc has crossed dining-room command, restaurant leadership and the kitchen. At Sant Pau, she worked as maître, a front-of-house role defined by precision, pacing and the close reading of guests. Another turn came at Saint, where she served as executive director. That title placed her in a broader operating role before the restaurant work that would bring her name into the story of gourmet pizza.
Making a Name
In 2016, Rie Yasui and Jérôme Quilbeuf opened Nonna Maria in a small space on Carrer Anglí in Barcelona. The scale was modest, but the project had a clear signature from the start: gourmet pizzas with some Japanese influence. The craft note was specific. The Barcelona restaurant offered pizzas made with doughs fermented for 48 hours, and its menu combined Italian intent with the creative experience of its founder, with pizzas as the main focus. One of its most distinctive ideas was the *pizza of the month*, a monthly invitation for renowned chefs to create a pizza of their own. The feature became one of the restaurant’s marks of originality for building customer loyalty, turning a recurring menu slot into a reason to return. Three years after opening on Carrer Anglí, the project moved to the restaurant at Hotel Meliá Barcelona Sarrià. The relocation shifted the setting while keeping the pizza program at the center of the Barcelona identity.
The Present
Today, the map of Yasui’s work runs through both Tokyo and London. Her primary role is General Manager at CYCLE at Mauro Colagreco in Tokyo, a position that places her within a major international hospitality address in Japan. She also serves as Executive Chef at Nonna Maria in London. There, the work includes brunch, adding another point to a career that has already moved from maître to executive director, from Barcelona opening to hotel relocation, and from pizza craft to a current leadership role in Tokyo. The through-line is not a single job title. It is the movement between room, restaurant and kitchen: service at Sant Pau, direction at Saint, founding work in Barcelona with Quilbeuf, and present-day leadership split between CYCLE at Mauro Colagreco and the London kitchen.
FAQ What roles has Rie Yasui held? Rie Yasui has worked as maître at Sant Pau, executive director of Saint, General Manager at CYCLE at Mauro Colagreco in Tokyo, and Executive Chef at Nonna Maria in London. What is Rie Yasui doing now? She currently serves as General Manager at CYCLE at Mauro Colagreco in Tokyo and Executive Chef at Nonna Maria in London, where brunch is part of the work. Where else has Rie Yasui worked? Her career includes Sant Pau, Saint, and the 2016 opening of Nonna Maria on Carrer Anglí in Barcelona with Jérôme Quilbeuf.
