Takayoshi Watanabe

Coming Up

Takayoshi Watanabe began as sales staff at Teruzushi in Japan, starting on the dining side before moving into the kitchen. That sequence matters: he learned the room from both ends, then took on chef duties at Teruzushi in Japan, where the pace of service and the precision of the counter meet. In 2013, he became owner chef of Teruzushi, a position he holds today, and with it came control over both the food and the way the restaurant is presented.

Where They Are Now

In that role, Watanabe made changes that sit directly inside the restaurant’s identity. He boosted seafood quality, raised prices, and shaped Teruzushi into a sushi venue with an entertainment-style experience. The result is a room built around exchange as much as service, where ingredient quality, timing, and the guest’s sense of occasion are treated as linked parts of the same work. The work now associated with him is an innovative sushi counter experience. For Watanabe, that means keeping sushi at the center while refining the surrounding encounter rather than replacing tradition. As owner chef, he uses the position to set both the standard of the seafood and the terms of the meal, making the restaurant feel deliberate in both product and presentation. His career stays closely tied to Teruzushi in Japan, but it is not static. The point of his practice is how fully he has made that place his own, with attention directed not only at excellence on the plate but at how the experience lands with the guest.

In Their Words “My sushi is completely different.” “Today, I live to make sushi.”

Honors

Takayoshi's honors include Kitakyushu City Tourism Ambassador (2018).