Chef / Founder: Blake King

Blake realized that he was bored with French and Italian cookery after years grinding it out in some of the best kitchens in Washington, DC, Chicago and New Orleans. Japan became the new frontier, aspiring to train under the kaiseki masters he had only read about. Eventually plans were made and he somehow managed to stage in some of Japan’s finest restaurants spending time working in Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto.

But as much as he loved the hyper-seasonality and refined skill of classic kaiseki cuisine, the food that resonated the most for him was that of the humble izakaya, a place where conviviality was paramount and the kitchen’s passion was readily shared with its guests. It wasn’t until stumbling into a local watering hole in Sangenjaya, Tokyo with some friends one night that he was able to experience some of the best yakitori that he had ever eaten. And that experience became an obsession.

After taking a step back from his chef role, Blake relocated to Tokyo where he spent two years training with some of the best yakitori chefs in the world.

ToriSumi strives to honor the lessons and knowledge his Japanese mentors passed on to him. A simple goal: to make food that could be honest, disciplined and thoughtful.