Yoshi Okai

Yoshi Okai was born and raised in Kyoto, Japan, where he was introduced to the culinary world at a young age through his family’s catering company. In 1998 he landed in Austin, where he went on to serve as head sushi chef of Uchi, Uchiko, East Side King and Qui. In 2015 he joined the New Waterloo team as head chef of his 12-seat omakase restaurant, Otoko. In 2017 Okai gained national recognition when he was named Best New Chef by Food and Wine Magazine.