Chef
Yuji Tani
- Discipline
- Chef
- Based in
- New York City, New York, United States
i. Biography
His own description of “Buri-Hira” as “something new and unique” says enough about the working habits behind Yuji Tani’s career: an attention to unfamiliar flavor, and a willingness to keep being surprised by what food can do. That same reflex has carried him from the routines of a sales office into the pressure of service, and then into ownership, where the work becomes both operational and editorial.
The Climb
A sales representative role at Long-established local bedding company in Kyoto was the first discipline in Yuji Tani’s working life. Before the kitchen, there was business etiquette, daily obligation, and the less visible training of being accountable to a schedule. The move to Bellecour in Kyoto shifted that discipline into a different register: heat, timing, repetition, and the exactness required on the line. French restaurants in Tokyo widened the scope of his training and placed him in the center of a more competitive restaurant field. The progression continued until he became Executive Chef at HOUSE Tokyo in Nishi-Azabu, Tokyo (2007–2015), where earlier office discipline and restaurant technique came together in a leadership role. That period became a fixed point in his career, the place where range and consistency were made to hold. Today, Yuji Tani is owner-chef of HOUSE Tokyo (since 2015), chef / owner of House Brooklyn (since 2023), and Executive Chef of House Restaurant (since 2023). The titles show expansion, but they also show continuity: the same operator moving across cities and formats while keeping the HOUSE name at the center.
Today
HOUSE Tokyo (since 2015) remains the core reference point in Yuji Tani’s work, with House Brooklyn (since 2023) and House Restaurant (since 2023) extending that structure into new settings. The progression is clear in the roles themselves, but the more telling fact is the sequence behind them: Long-established local bedding company in Kyoto, Bellecour in Kyoto, French restaurants in Tokyo, and then the Executive Chef post at HOUSE Tokyo in Nishi-Azabu, Tokyo (2007–2015). It is a simple line, but it points to a chef who still notices novelty rather than merely repeating success. Across the years and addresses, the work reads as accumulation without dulling the appetite for difference.
Recognition
Recognition for Yuji Tani is carried less by a single prize than by the sequence of roles that trace his standing in the trade: Long-established local bedding company in Kyoto, Bellecour in Kyoto, French restaurants in Tokyo, and Executive Chef at HOUSE Tokyo in Nishi-Azabu, Tokyo (2007–2015). His current posts—owner-chef of HOUSE Tokyo (since 2015), chef / owner of House Brooklyn (since 2023), and Executive Chef of House Restaurant (since 2023)—mark that standing in practical terms, as responsibilities earned through repetition, control, and leadership.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Yuji
What is Yuji Tani's current role?
As of 2026, Yuji Tani is Executive Chef.
Where did Yuji Tani work before?
Yuji Tani's earlier career included Long-established local bedding company and Bellecour.
What is Yuji Tani known for?
French-Japanese cuisine.
